Founding ChapmanCG and the First Year

In this multi-part series, I embark on a journey from the inception of ChapmanCG to its present-day status. Part 1 delves into the narrative of the first year.

Target Audience:

• HR Leaders, employees, or search industry professionals who followed the rise of ChapmanCG

• Aspiring entrepreneurs building companies that prioritise lifestyle and remote work

Introduction:

In 2008, I co-founded ChapmanCG, which subsequently established itself as one of the world’s most prominent human resources (HR) profession-focused search firms. This was an extraordinary journey, and I am honoured to have contributed to its creation. ChapmanCG continues to thrive today, and I am proud to have brought a company like this into existence. Through collaboration with global HR experts, we have successfully developed comprehensive people concepts across numerous multinational corporations.

The Pre-Cursor to the Idea:

Prior to the founding of ChapmanCG, I had embarked on an ultramarathon journey, completing Racing the Planet’s 4 Desert Series. Notably, I finished second in their inaugural episode of this series. The 4 Deserts encompasses a diverse range of experiences, including 250km multi-stage ultra-runs in the Atacama Desert (Chile), Gobi Desert (China), Sahara Desert (Egypt), and Antarctica. This accomplishment occurred in 2006, when I was approximately 30 years old. At that time, I had honed my HR search skills in Singapore and recognised the need for a work-life balance that would allow me to explore the world while simultaneously developing my professional search expertise globally.

The concept for ChapmanCG emerged from this personal experience and aspiration.

In collaboration with my co-founder, Oscar, we established a specialised search firm with a focus on the Human Resources (HR) profession within the Asia Pacific region. Notably, we made an unconventional decision to forego the establishment of an office. This choice was driven by lifestyle considerations rather than cost-cutting measures.

In 2008, well before the advent of the current technological landscape, we utilised Skype as our primary calling tool to facilitate international communication. Video conferencing had already gained traction since 2006, and LinkedIn was still in its early stages of development. Our initial focus was on identifying and serving HR leaders, and the concept originated in Singapore.

Within the first month of our venture, we welcomed Jessilyn as our administrative assistant, followed by her husband, Marq, the following month. Their roles were instrumental in assisting Oscar in managing the company’s database. Given our limited financial resources, including a mortgage and minimal savings, we opted to forgo salaries, redirecting our spare funds towards funding the website, hiring the two staff members, and initial advertising in Singapore HR magazines featuring job advertisements. This strategic approach allowed us to maintain a high level of visibility for the first six months until our website was fully operational.

Initial Phase (2008):

Reflecting on the initial phase, I vividly recall my diary entries from that year. I engaged in daily face-to-face meetings with approximately six to eight HR leaders in Singapore. Simultaneously, Oscar was occupied with the backend development of the company while simultaneously conducting remote consultations with HR leaders in Japan, solidifying our presence in that market. Within a matter of months, I had successfully identified and engaged with hundreds of HR leaders in Singapore, while Oscar achieved a similar level of success in Japan.

Jessilyn diligently implemented a substantial portion of our administrative processes, while Marq made significant progress in populating our database, with an estimated 2,000 HR leaders at the time. The HR searches commenced to generate substantial results, and our audience began to grow steadily. Gradually, we established credibility among our audience in both Singapore and Japan.

Broadening Focus (Subsequent Years):

Recognising the potential for further growth, we decided to broaden our scope of focus to encompass the entire Asia Pacific region. Our vision was that ChapmanCG would become the “exchange” for Asia Pacific HR leaders, enabling us to ultimately complete all their country HR Head and regional team positions across Asia Pacific. At that juncture, we branded ChapmanCG as “Just HR, That’s Us” and an “Asia Pacific HR search firm.” I will never forget the first year as the world plunged into the global financial crisis of 2008. It was a challenging year to commence a new venture, but we persevered and remained focused on our goals.

Website as a Hub for HR Leaders

By October 2008, our website was operational. We embarked on creating a hub for HR leaders, where insightful HR content would consistently engage leaders with job opportunities, thought leadership, and events. From the outset of the business, we hosted HR leader lunches at the Singapore Cricket Club, inviting 20 leaders each on a topic. This approach proved effective in quickly covering a wide range of leaders while simultaneously providing access to the latest industry trends.

Lessons on What Created the First Year of Success

I believe in any business creation, the first year of activities is pivotal. I would isolate the learnings as follows:

• Keep focused on a market niche (i.e., HR) and geography (i.e., Asia Pacific).

• Keep activity levels high (build market reputation, talk to many people).

• Execution of searches and good feedback (image and referrals important).

• Engage your audience so they move towards you (trust, interest).

• Silence distractions (neglect competitors and negative thoughts)

• Achieve financial breakeven (manage your cost base to balance revenue and costs)

• Avoid becoming overly focused on year 2 vision while in year 1 (maintain a focus on the present)