Specialist Staffing Group, a leading provider of talent and consulting to the life sciences, energy, and technology sectors, today announced that its President of Americas, Sunny Ackerman and its Global Head of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and People Engagement, Karima Green, have been named on the 2022 Global Power 150 list by Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA), a global advisor on staffing and workforce solutions. Now in its eighth year, the Global Power 150 is made up of the most influential women in staffing, recognizing the top 150 globally. The award highlights women who have made significant contributions to their companies and the staffing ecosystem.
Sunny Ackerman serves as President of Specialist Staffing Group and is responsible for the region’s strategic growth strategy. She is a recognized leader in the recruiting industry with over two decades of extensive experience leading and developing enterprise organizations spanning various sectors, while building a reputation as an agile, strategic business architect who delivers sustainable revenue, market share, and profitable growth while advocating for gender equality and furthering women’s interests. As a leader of Specialist Staffing Group second-largest territory, Sunny and her team have seen expansive growth across all North American businesses, including double-digit growth in gross margin. Sunny also has prioritized gender equality and diversity equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives for the region, amplifying the organization’s strategic priority to have a 50-50 split gender across its business, with Specialist Staffing Group US Senior Leadership Team now representing 50% women.
“Throughout my career, I’ve focused on actionable ways to amplify women’s voices and their professional development in the staffing and recruiting industry, as well as throughout the STEM field,” said Sunny Ackerman, President of Americas, Specialist Staffing Group. “While at Specialist Staffing Group, I’ve seen the company take great and measurable strides to embrace DEI and ESG initiatives, and I’ve committed myself to ensuring gender parity is a priority at our organization and across the Americas. I’m pleased to be named to this distinguished list of female leaders who are committed to doing the same.”
Sunny was also instrumental in launching the company’s first STEM Equity Coalition, a program developed to engage employers and community partners to further our diversity efforts externally. The Coalition targets growth in five US social impact programs, aligning societal needs to the STEM talent gap.
Beyond her contributions to Specialist Staffing Group, Sunny is an avid believer in investing in the next generation of leaders and sits on the Leadership Council for Women’s Business Collaborative, and she serves on the Board of Directors for TechServe Alliance, and the Nexus Recovery Center.
As Global Head of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and People Engagement, Karima Green has developed a four-year strategy that embeds DE&I in every part of Specialist Staffing Group through policy, practice and process. Over the last three years, Green led Specialist Staffing Group to be recognized as Company of the Year at the 2021 European Diversity Awards and grew the employee resource groups to 10 across the business. A thought leader with a vision to make the world better, Green continues to build her own network, The Brave Network, focused on defining best practices around organizational diversity.
“I am honored to be included in this year’s list,” commented Green. “As a leader focused on culture and having only been in staffing for 3 years, it is great recognition for myself, Specialist Staffing Group and the work we do dedicated to making our organization more diverse, equitable and inclusive – and most importantly making Specialist Staffing Group and the staffing industry a place where everyone is welcome.”
“These forward-thinking women have turned challenges into springboards to success. From heading up impactful organizations to steering essential projects to fine-tuning the hybrid model, they have led with grace and empathy,” said Subadhra Sriram, SIA’s editor and publisher, media products. “Congratulations to this year’s honorees who are navigating, adapting and innovating in this new world of work. The remarkable women gracing our 2022 Global Power 150 list exemplify strength and leadership in the staffing industry.”
Notes to editors
Specialist Staffing Group brings skilled people together to build the future. It is the only global pure-play specialist staffing business focused on roles in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (‘STEM’), providing permanent and flexible contract talent to a diverse base of more than 9,000 clients in 15 countries.
The Group’s c.2,700 staff cover the technology, life sciences, engineering, banking and finance sectors.
Specialist Staffing Group's parent company is quoted on the Premium Segment of the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority under the ticker symbol STEM and also has a US level one ADR facility, symbol SERTY.
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