Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine

Client Challenge

The Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine (ACOM) needed to fill its Assistant Dean of Student Advancement role within its medical school. The position was central to student affairs and required a highly specialized background, significantly narrowing the available talent pool.

The primary challenges included:

Highly specialized requirements: Candidates were required to hold a PhD or MD and have direct experience working within a medical school environment.
Limited national supply: Medical schools represent a small subset of higher education institutions, reducing the number of qualified candidates nationwide.
Cultural and regional alignment: ACOM sought a leader who would align with the institution’s mission-driven culture and the expectations of a Southeastern academic community.

The institution needed a recruiting partner who could deliver both speed and precision without sacrificing quality or fit.

Merraine Group’s Approach

Drawing on nearly two decades of experience at Merraine Group, Jeff Ptalis led a highly targeted, research-driven search to address the role's complexity.

Key elements of Jeff’s approach included:

Focused Market MappingJeff conducted targeted outreach to student affairs leaders within U.S. medical schools, ensuring that every candidate met the academic and experiential criteria.
Mission-First Candidate EvaluationJeff prioritized alignment with ACOM’s mission, values and student-centered culture, recognizing that long-term success depends as much on cultural fit as credentials.
High-Touch, Always-Accessible CommunicationActing as an extension of the client’s internal team, Jeff maintained open lines of communication with both candidates and institutional stakeholders, including evenings and weekends when time-sensitive issues arose.

The Result

Time to Fill: Approximately 6–8 weeks
Placement Level: Senior Academic Leadership

The successful candidate met all academic requirements and brought direct medical school experience. She was based in the Southeastern U.S., supporting geographic and cultural alignment. Personally motivated by a major life transition, she likely viewed the role as a long-term opportunity, enhancing retention prospects for the institution.

Why the Placement Succeeded

Several factors contributed to the success of the engagement:

Precision over volume: A narrowly defined search strategy ensured efficiency and relevance.
Cultural intelligence: Regional familiarity and mission alignment were treated as essential, not secondary, criteria.
Trust and consistency: ACOM returned to Merraine Group knowing exactly what level of service and results to expect.

A Long-Term Partnership

Over the past two years, Merraine Group has completed three senior-level searches for the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine, including:

Assistant Dean of Student Advancement
Chief Human Resources Officer
Director of Research Development

Each engagement reinforced Merraine Group’s reputation as a trusted, long-term recruiting partner within academic medicine.

About Jeff Ptalis

Jeff Ptalis is a Director of Business Development at Merraine Group and has been with the firm for nearly 19 years. He specializes in leadership recruitment across academic institutions, nonprofits, healthcare organizations.

Jeff is known for his:

Relationship-driven approach, acting as a true extension of his clients’ internal teams
Deep understanding of mission-based organizations, particularly within higher education and social impact environments
Exceptional responsiveness, maintaining availability outside traditional business hours to support time-sensitive hiring decisions
Ability to navigate complex, niche searches, where cultural alignment and institutional fit are as critical as technical qualifications

His background in early-career customer service and high-volume communication roles helped shape a calm, confident and solutions-oriented style, one that allows him to manage challenging conversations and deliver results in high-stakes searches.

Above all, Jeff is focused on helping organizations achieve their missions by placing leaders who will make a lasting impact.