Seasoned recruiter and business executive Crystal Stephens is passionate about her clients and helping them reach their goals. She knows that finding the right leader means the difference between success and mediocrity. Crystal has led mission-critical searches for clients such as Year Up, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Communities in Schools and the Anti-Defamation League.
Crystal excels in understanding the unique aspects of her clients and takes their mission into the market to attract leaders who otherwise might not be interested. She has a track record of recruiting civic-minded business leaders into nonprofit roles and an impressive track record of repeat assignments with national clients. With each well-executed search, Crystal knows we affect not just the client served, but the community.
Crystal joined BoardWalk in 2012 after extensive experience working with top-tier organizations in sales, marketing and recruiting. She spent the majority of her corporate career with IBM in senior sales and marketing positions which included leading an emerging channel of 1,000 inside sales and e-commerce teams, as a Director of ibm.com, and subsequently as a Vice President, leading a national sales and client coverage team.
As Executive Vice President at Monster.com, she managed a global sales team. She has received several leadership and sales awards throughout her career. Crystal moved into executive recruiting with Russell Reynolds Associates, where she led an expansive search portfolio in the technology sector.
After taking time off to start a family, Crystal returned to recruiting in a space where she combines her passion for serving the community along with her client-serving skills.
Crystal is an active volunteer and currently serves as Vice Chair of BreakThrough Atlanta. She has served on the board of a Georgia-based chapter of the Boys and Girls Club, and a division of the Woodruff Arts Center. Crystal was also the Board Chair of Elite Women of Excellence for over four years.
As a media contributor, Crystal hosted a technology segment on TV for a former education program, Kids These Days, and has appeared on the local NBC news affiliate as an expert on emerging technology.
Crystal grew up in St. Louis and went to college in Chicago where she received her undergraduate degree from Northwestern University and MBA from Emory University.
Above all, family is most important to Crystal. Traveling together is especially memorable with favorite destinations including sailing in the Caribbean, and adventures in Africa and Canada.
