New Host for Search Bangkok Fairs

Changes are on the horizon! Senior Associate and Melbourne Fair Organizer Nick Kendell will be assuming the role as chief Fair Organizer of our Search Bangkok-January and Bangkok-Spring fairs, starting this recruiting season. Senior Associate Harry Deelman, along with his wife and Search Associates partner Margaret, will also continue to co-host both fairs. Nick has assisted candidates and learned the “ins and outs” of running Asia’s flagship fairs for several years. Michael Williams, Senior Associate and Bangkok Fair Organizer for the past ten years, has been working with Nick to prepare for the handoff. Mike says,

“My office, along with the help from Harry Deelman’s office, has thoroughly enjoyed running the Bangkok-January and Bangkok-Spring fairs these past years, and we wish Nick and Paula Kendell all the best moving forward.”

As Mike and Laurie, Mike’s wife and Search Associates partner, get ready for their next venture beyond Search Associates, Mike will continue to help Nick and Paula Kendell with the transition during their first year running the fair. Mike also hopes to attend Bangkok-January 2018 one last time as a Senior Associate advising candidates. He will continue to be a part of Search Associates, conducting leadership searches for administrative and other leadership positions.

The history of the Search Bangkok fair began in Kuala Lumpur (KL) 25 years ago and the fair has seen several organizers since! Two of Search Associates’ original team of four, Dexter Lewis and Founder John Magagna, had purchased an existing annual South-East Asia fair from another teacher-recruitment organization, and they launched Search KL in December 1992. After running six of those fairs–including in Bali as a trial location–Dexter Lewis handed over the management of Search KL to fellow Senior Associates Gavin Allen and Jim Ambrose. Gavin and Jim directed eight more KL fairs each December from 1998-2005, and they discussed moving the fair from KL post-Christmas to Bangkok post-New Year’s. When Senior Associate John Ritter took over management of the fair in 2006, he agreed that moving the month and location would be most advantageous. The result was not only a very well-attended annual Bangkok-January fair, but also a smaller Bangkok-Spring fair each March. Now, after running six extremely successful Australian fairs, Nick and Paula are ready to be the principal hosts of the Bangkok-January and Bangkok-Spring fairs, with Harry and Margaret Deelman continuing in their joint organizer roles. Nick says,

“We are very much looking forward to working with Harry and Margaret Deelman to ensure that the foundations of this great fair are built upon for many years to come.”

Search Associates is excited to see what the future holds as we continue to grow as an organization, embracing dynamic changes along the way. We look forward to what lies ahead, with the Kendells joining the Deelmans in taking the reins of the Bangkok fairs, after their successful foundation and transformation by a series of dedicated Associates.