Possessing years of professional experience, G. Gerald Hart is a noteworthy figure in the fields of marketing, advertising and executive recruiting. Since 1998, he has excelled as the owner of Hart & Company, an executive recruiting and consulting company focused on advertising agencies and corporate communications. Mr. Hart draws upon a Bachelor of Business Administration from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan.
Mr. Hart began his professional career in commercial banking with Security Bank & Trust as a sales promotion manager, then the National Bank of Detroit as an advertising manager. From there, he joined Leo Burnett/Detroit as a copywriter on the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors and Michigan National Bank. He subsequently moved on to a local agency, Yaffe Stone & August, and transitioned into account management as an account executive on the Detroit Oldsmobile Dealer Association and Raider Twin Track snowmobiles.
Relocating to Chicago, Mr. Hart joined J. Walter Thompson as an account executive, servicing Ford Dealer Groups in Chicago and Twin Cities, Minnesota, markets before joining a local agency to work on several McDonald’s co-ops. He was brought back to J. Walter Thompson to work on Hyatt Hotels before being recruited by D’Arcy/St. Louis to work on Red Lobster Restaurants. Thereafter, he moved to New York and joined D’Arcy Benton & Bowles as an account supervisor on Hardee’s Restaurants. When they hired Ogilvy & Mather, he was asked to follow them as director of field marketing. Later, Mr. Hart was recruited by Tracy-Locke to oversee the marketing and advertising activities for Taco Bell’s southern region, based in Atlanta, Georgia.
Mr. Hart returned to New York and joined Foote Cone & Belding as a senior account director, overseeing the marketing for Mazda’s northeast region, its largest region. His final agency role was with Grey Advertising as the account director for International Dairy Queen. Among the many highlights of his advertising career, he is proud of being a member of teams that were recognized by being awarded a Clio for Northland Ford Dealers advertising and with an Effie for Hardee’s advertising campaigns.
It was natural for Mr. Hart to segue from his agency career to enter the field of executive recruiting, finding agency career opportunities for numerous talented and professional individuals. In addition to his primary research responsibilities at Hart & Company, he spends quality time consulting with candidates to help improve their resumes and LinkedIn profiles and developing job research strategies. As the professional job search category becomes more crowded and complex, Mr. Hart looks forward to providing his clients with the most qualified candidates, assisting candidates, and identifying and securing new career opportunities.
