How Healthcare Agencies Are Helping Industry Recruiter Terri Passick Find a Kidney

Terri Passick, SVP of talent acquisition at Havas Heath & You, has been part of the industry for more than three decades. Her role is to match the right candidates with the right company. Now, it’s Terri who needs right match.

Passick has Alport Syndrome, a rare, hereditary kidney disease that’s destroying her kidney function. The disease took the life of her father when he was in his early 30s.

“I knew I had Alport Syndrome since I was a young adult,” says Passick. “Over the years, I participated in a few drug studies at Columbia NY-Presbyterian. None received FDA approval. It wasn’t until last February that my nephrologist had the transplant talk with me. I was devastated. I am in no pain, but my kidneys failing is causing me to be tired and weak. I am not yet on dialysis and hoping to avoid it. I can work, which has been a godsend! I love my job and the joy it brings helping develop people’s careers.”

Passick’s deep ties to the industry spawned “Friends of Terri,” a group of 30 execs from Dentsu, Havas, IPG, Omnicom and WPP, as well as independent agencies and freelancers, who joined forces to create a social media campaign to find her a living kidney donor.

“My friends from all the holding companies took quick action once I told them the news,” Passick tells Muse. “Most of them are friends and colleagues from the start of our careers—many from my early days at Ogilvy. We have a strong unbreakable bond. Amazing friends, great talents.”

The group came up with the concept of #HiringAHero. The campaign, running on Facebook, LinkedIn and targeting recruiters and working-mom networks nationwide, features quick copy and simple graphics: “No salary. No overtime. But the benefits are huge.” The campaign drives people to HiringAHero.com, Passick’s personal website that houses information about kidney donation, contact information for kidney donor organization Renewal, and an in-depth look at Passick’s story.

“I’ve had an outpouring of folks contacting me, because of seeing the posts, cheering for me, and telling me their families’ transplant stories,” says Passick. “You hear from people you never would have heard from before, and then there are others you expect to hear from but don’t. Allison Cerasso, president and CCO at Havas Health+, friend and current colleague, helped me get started and pushed me to go public and get the word out. It was hard to go public with such a personal problem and crazy ask. At first, I just froze, but then she got me into action.”