About Jay
Jay Millen is the managing partner of Caldwell’s CEO & Board Practice and leads our Charleston office team. Working with publicly-traded and privately-held companies, Jay assists clients in senior-level recruitment and in the development of board and CEO succession plans as well as industry specific leaders at all levels in the natural resources and manufacturing sectors. Jay also has an extensive not for profit background at the board and senior executive level.
Experience
Jay joined Caldwell from DHR, where he was a vice chairman and head of the Board and CEO Practice. Previously, he was a senior client partner at Korn Ferry, where he served as the global sector leader of basic materials and as managing director of strategic client partnerships in the Americas.
Prior to joining the executive search industry, Jay led Accenture’s global natural resource practices, based in London, where he focused on global mergers and acquisitions for some of the leading agribusiness, forest products, metals, mining, building materials, energy, and infrastructure businesses across the globe. Additionally, his practice group conducted significant client support in the areas of leadership assessment and development, market segmentation, supply chain optimization, and innovation/new product development.
In his tenures with Tenneco, International Paper and a major private equity venture, Jay’s experience included engineering, operations and leadership roles in a diverse set of forest products and engineered materials companies, culminating in his role as the senior operations executive in an engineered materials and building/consumer products business.
Jay began his career as an infantry and special operations officer in the US Army after graduating from the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Education
Jay holds a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering and history from the United States Military Academy at West Point. He also earned an MBA in corporate finance from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio.
More About Jay
Jay is active in the Charleston, SC community, where he serves on the board of directors of the South Carolina Aquarium, is the Chair of the American Heart Association’s Low Country Heart Ball, and serves as the leader of the Men’s Ministry and as vestry member of Saint James Anglican Church. Jay is active in veterans’ and surviving family support efforts as an advisor to NAVSO and an active supporter of the Johnny Mac Fund. Jay previously served as an advisor to the USEPA NACEPT Advisory Board, as a company board member of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, and on the board of directors of the Southeast Florida Episcopal Diocesan Cathedral.
Recent Feedback
“Both Carlos Cata and Jay Millen quickly formed a deep understanding of our company’s structure, culture, and needs, and were spot-on in their assessments of potential “fit” of the candidates they presented. We look forward to partnering with Caldwell again on future executive searches.” – Maggie Yontz, Vice President, Human Resources
“Jay and Courtney are extremely well prepared, provide excellent insights and perspectives on the candidate position, culture, challenges and opportunities. Excellent follow up.” – Executive Vice President, multinational infrastructure engineering & construction company
“The professionalism shown by the recruiters was amazing. I would recommend Caldwell to both the hiring companies and the candidates. I had a very pleasant experience throughout the whole process.” – Vice President, Operations, apparel & lifestyle e-commerce company
Recent News
The How Matters: Selecting and Promoting Leaders in Today’s Challenging Times
Drawing from real-world case studies, Jay Millen shares his expertise on defining your ideal organizational culture, utilizing powerful assessment tools, navigating the complexities of internal promotions, and unleashing the potential of “boundary spanners.” -read more-
Leaning into the Turn: Refocusing Leadership and Communication in the Continuing Coronavirus Crisis. With COVID-19 less likely to stall out in this quarter and more likely to gather steam as we move into the fall, it is incumbent on leaders to think carefully about how to galvanize their organizations in the months ahead. Download this paper for some critical “checklist” issues to review to prepare for the next several months to potentially well into 2021, and some best practices for recruiting and on-boarding in a changed environment. -read more-
Webinar: A View from the Trenches & the Leadership Imperative with General Stanley McChrystal. Caldwell, in association with the McChrystal Group, recently hosted a webinar with General Stanley McChrystal, Founder & CEO, McChrystal Group, former commander of U.S. and International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) Afghanistan and the former commander of the nation’s premier military counter-terrorism force, Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). General McChrystal shares his leadership insights on navigating the current and challenging times of today’s business and social climate. -read more-
Nimble Continuity Planning: Leveraging Existing Response Plans to Tackle COVID-19. While the world continues to face the uncertainties surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, corporate, academic, and government leaders are examining the long-range questions “what’s next?” and “how do we respond?” If your organization doesn’t yet have a pandemic response and recovery plan in place, it may be a critical time to take what is in place as a cyber attack or natural disaster response and recovery plan and leverage it as a foundation upon which to build a pandemic response and recovery plan. –read more-
Leading in a Crisis: How to think outside the box when there is no box. We’ve all heard the expression “think outside the box.” But what do you do when there’s no box, no frame of reference, or no paradigm to shift? -read more-
Navigating Uncharted Waters in Uncertain Times. Pragmatic governance during the COVID-19 Pandemic. As COVID-19 continues to spread disruption to the cadence of daily life around the globe, “the new normal” is a fast-evolving concept. -read more-
Blocking and Tackling: Who Will Implement Blockchain in Your Business? As business leaders continue to grapple with the Technology Evolution and Revolution that has accelerated through mobile technology and the internet, yet another capability has come front and center: Blockchain Technology. -read more-
