Anne Kerwin Payne – Dedicated and Connected

Background

Anne Kerwin Payne has been a legal recruiter in the Northern California Legal Marketplace for over 25 years. She runs and manages Kerwin Associates, located in West Menlo Park. Anne was born and raised in the bay area. She enjoyed her college experience at UC Berkley and was a Political Science Major. She had the full college experience: Intercollegiate athletics, the Greek life, attended football games, where she watched the intense rivalry between the Golden Bears and the Stanford Cardinal.


Anne was a dedicated student who wasn't afraid to camp out at the library. The future legal recruiter put in a lot of hours studying and said, “I needed to put in the time to do well.” When she wasn't studying, Anne could be found on the tennis court, where she was known to be a formidable opponent, with quick hands and outstanding footwork. She described Berkeley's campus as gorgeous and loved the diversity of the students. In addition to the excellent educational experience UC Berkeley provided, Anne was fortunate to develop lifelong friends during her years at CAL.

Anne's Tips for a Successful Recruiter

What does it take to become a legal recruiter? Anne said, “It takes an innate intuition about people coupled with drive, tenacity and patience. You need to find enjoyment in listening and absorbing your candidate's career stories as well as their needs, wants, and goals.” The legal recruiter listens very closely to her candidate's stories, and if can't meet them in person will Skype with them. She recalled a Skpe interview with a candidate in New York, but got a different feel after she met him in person. The tenacious recruiter said you need to meet candidates in person as often times … the “energy is just different face to face.”

Anne continued to discuss other desirable qualities needed to be a successful recruiter. She stated, “You need to study and understand your client's environment, products, and teams in order to partner with them successfully to get to the end result. You need to have respect for candidates and clients and have a genuine interest in putting them first. Then you must be able to draw upon all that you know substantively and intuitively to put it all together.”

So what motivated the tennis player to become a recruiter? She gives credit to Bob Majors. Anne said, “Majors was a friend and I had the opportunity to temp in his office - literally answering phones and filing papers.” Although Anne admitted it was a tough road figuring out what direction she wanted to go professionally, after working in Majors office for six weeks, she realized she wanted to be a legal recruiter.

When asked what she is known for professionally, Anne said Kerwin Associates is known for “building in-house legal teams and in-house recruiting.” Not only does her firm partner with companies in the Silicon Valley and all of California, but Kerwin Associates handles international searches as well.

The legal recruiter entered this industry because it allowed her to use her competitive side and at the same time, Anne “enjoys coaching and counseling individuals. There is a fulfillment that comes with helping individuals get to the next level.” This industry also permits Anne to utilize her “talents, gifts and knowledge. I feel engaged and passionate about this line of work. And the fact that I can really impact someone's life for the better is the most rewarding experience one can have.” Another reason why the legal recruiter remains in the field is because she likes working “for or with intelligent and driven individuals, who she can learn anything from.”

Anne's advice to new recruiters? She candidly revealed a new recruiter should never be afraid to put themselves out there. The legal recruiter explained, “The old fashion ‘cold calls' are a way to learn and connect with individuals in the marketplace”. It isn't an easy business and you cannot control what people do. You have to be able to be OK with that.”

Since the legal recruiter started a discussion about what not to be afraid of, many readers would be very interested in knowing how Anne processes fear. Fear is the number one obstacle for many individuals. You can circle around it, but you will really never succeed in achieving your goals, and in essence grow as an individual, if you don't move through it. “If you I remind yourself of all the things you have achieved and draw upon your historical successes – the confidence will come to overcome it”.

What are Anne's strengths and weaknesses as a recruiter? She highlighted her strengths by saying it's her “deep knowledge of the in-house marketplace and her genuine need to help her clients and candidates.” As for her weaknesses, although the recruiter likes to bring deals together and is very successful at the end result, she claimed it would be letting individuals or clients know that I cannot help them. ‘No' is a word I have learned to use.”

How do you know who is the best candidate? Anne said you are looking for a candidate who is “connected and passionate about what they are doing. The best candidate is the one who is excited and intrinsically interested in ‘the work' or ‘the industry' and thus meets my client's needs.”

Volunteer Activities and Hobbies

When Anne isn't working in the office, she spends her time volunteering to many non-profit organizations. She is currently Chairman of the Board of the Bay Area Women's Sports Initiative (BAWSI). The first-rate recruiter has previously been actively involved in East Palo Alto Tennis and Tutoring (EPATT) and served on their Board and the National Junior Tennis League (NJTL). She also served for six years on the Menlo Circus Club Board and was a past President.

The experienced recruiter stays in shape and is very active. Her favorite sport is tennis and has been playing the game since she was eight years old. The Golden Bear loves to drill on the court and knows how to compete in tournaments. Anne is also passionate about hiking, biking, skiing, and fashion. She supports the U.S. Women's soccer team and roots for her daughter, who plays for the BC Women's Soccer team. Anne enjoyed watching Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings capture their three consecutive gold medals at the 2012 Olympics.

Family

No question Anne's priority outside of her work is to stay connected to her family and close friends. She met her husband, Reed Payne at UC Berkeley. Reed currently manages the Northern California office of Kidder Matthews, a commercial brokerage firm. With thirty years in the Commercial Real Estate industry – doing deals and managing brokers – Reed has been a consummate advisor to Anne's business throughout the years. Anne said that one of her greatest achievements in life is raising her two children. The devoted mother said, “I adore and am extremely proud of them. They are going after what they want out of life and I feel good about that, but mostly I am proud of them for the people they are becoming.” Her advice to her kids is “figure out what you love to do because you will be doing it for a long time.”

Anne also gives advice to herself. Her mantra has been, “Play for the love of the game.” This is the quote she lives by because you can apply the phrase to anything in life, whether you are playing tennis or working at a Fortune 500 company. She added, if you “are not ‘connected to it,' you will not stay with it and succeed.”