In her own words: Katie Weigel of Robert Half International

Northern Nevada Business Weekly: Tell me about Robert Half Finance and Accounting and the duties of your position.

Katie Weigel: We provide permanent job placement services for highly skilled finance and accounting professionals. We also have two temporary placement divisions in our Reno location; Accountemps and Office Team, which provide temporary accounting and administrative professionals respectively. I manage our Robert Half Finance and Accounting division here in Reno. My team is responsible for the permanent placement of highly-skilled accounting and finance professionals. We maintain relationships with local business organizations and job-seekers. Our team of staffing professionals helps match these organizations with the talent they need to maintain productivity and build profitability, while assisting job-seekers in finding meaningful employment.

NNBW: What changes have you seen recently in applicants? In the jobs that employers are seeking to fill in northern Nevada?

Weigel: Applicants are a lot more selective about what they are willing to leave a job for. To that point, employers are a lot choosier about the applicants they're hiring as well. Their payroll dollars are more of an investment than ever, and they won't settle for less than exactly what they want.

NNBW: What's the most fun in your job?

Weigel: Watching people succeed in their careers and being able to help them build their careers by placing them in the right employment opportunities.

NNBW: Is your job stressful? Why?

Weigel: Sometimes. It's very important to me to exceed the expectations of my clients and my candidates, and that isn't always easy to do.

NNBW: How do you relax?

Weigel: Vacationing with my family. A glass of wine with friends.

NNBW: Is your job best for an extrovert or an introvert? Why?

Weigel: Extrovert. You talk to people all day every day, by Friday night sometimes I'm fresh out of charm.

NNBW: Do you wish you could have a do-over on any part of your career? Why?

Weigel: No. I've been very, very fortunate by falling into this career. I've had one job that I thought was a mistake to take, but I learned a lot and life experience is invaluable.

NNBW: What lesson would you like to teach to the folks you mentor?

Weigel: Recruiting is about long term relationships, not one time placements that's for both the clients and job-seekers.

NNBW: Who, either dead or alive, would you most like to have dinner with? Why?

Weigel: Joan of Arc. She was a valiant woman with a lot of courage who died for her cause.

NNBW: What's your idea of a perfect vacation?

Weigel: One without a blackberry, laptop, iPad or a cell phone. Completely unplugged.

NNBW: What were you like as a kid?

Weigel: I grew up on a horseradish farm in Tulelake, Calif. I grew up hunting, driving tractors and being in 4-H. I was a Potato Festival Princess my girlfriends love to haze me about that. I think many people who have only known me as an adult are surprised that I'm a farm girl.

NNBW: Who is your hero?

Weigel: My husband.

NNBW: What would bystanders say if they saw you dancing?

Weigel: Please stop.

Katie Weigel can be reached at 823-3883.

Know someone whose perspective you want to share with NNBW readers? Send contact information to: rsabo@nnbw.biz or call (775) 850-2146.

The basics:

Name: Katie Weigel, division director for Robert Half Finance and Accounting, a division of Robert Half International

How long have you been in this job?7.5 years

How long in the profession? 14 years

What's your educational background? Bachelor of Science degree in finance, University of Nevada, Reno; MBA, University of Nevada Reno

Spouse, kids, pets? The best husband I could ask for, Marty,

and two great kids: Kaelen, 9, and Andrew 4. Ivory, our rescue dog,

is probably 11