Privacy Policy

1. Who we are and what this Policy is

Welcome to www.thbender.com, the website of T. H. Bender & Partners Incorporated (“TH Bender”, “THBP”, “we,” “us” and “our”etc.), an Illinois-registered Corporation located at 150 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 2800, Chicago, Il 60601 and at 2200 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest, 4 th Floor, East Tower, in Washington, DC 20037, United States of America. We are an executive search firm and advisor to many respected organizations. We provide a variety of services including, but not limited to: (1) executive search (e.g., helping clients recruit Board of Director members, Executives, Professionals for their organizations); (2) staff assessments; (3) compensation consulting (i.e. advising companies about compensation structures and levels in a specific industry); (4) market entry consulting (advising companies how to enter a new market or region); (5) partner searches (helping clients to find acquisition targets or potential sales or manufacturing). For additional information on our Services please visit our website. Our consultants provide these services globally from our offices in the United States. We very much respect the privacy of the users of our website (“you”, “your”) and are committed to protecting their personal data and information according to the applicable laws of the United States and, when applicable other jurisdictions. This privacy policy (“Policy”) explains how, to what extent and for what purposes, we are collecting and subsequently processing personal data and information through our website. T. H. Bender & Partners Incorporated is the responsible entity for the processing of your personal data and information.

2. Definitions

In addition to terms defined elsewhere in this Policy, the following terms shall have the following meaning throughout this Policy:

“Personal Information” means any information that either (a) personally identifies a natural person; or (b) pertains to an identifiable natural person, i.e. someone who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular, by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to his or her physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity, or (c) constitutes individually identifiable information about an individual consumer collected by us online through this website and that we maintain in an accessible form, or that (d) we are otherwise required to protect under applicable data privacy laws (including but not limited to, national, international and supranational data protection and privacy laws, directives, regulations and comparable legal acts). Examples of Personal Information include your contact details such as your name, email address, birthday or phone number as well as information about your professional education and experience, skills, preferences, compensation, membership in professional organizations, etc.;

“Processing” (and variations such as “Process”) means any operation or set of operations which is performed on Personal Information or on sets of Personal Information, whether or not by automated means, such as the collection, recording, organization, structuring, storage, adaptation or alteration, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure by transmission, dissemination or otherwise making available, alignment or combination, blocking, restriction, erasure or destruction;

“Sensitive Personal Information” means Personal Information revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, or trade union membership, and the Processing of genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or data concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation;

“Site” means www.thbender.com, thbender.net, solar-hiring.com and all web pages hosted at such domains.

3. Processing of Your Personal Information

3.1. Data Transfers outside the European Economic Area („EEA“)

If you are resident in the European Union, please note that as we are located in the United States, and that when you provide us with your Personal Information we will process it in countries outside the European Economic Area („EEA“), such as the United States, which may not provide the same level of data protection as in your jurisdiction. This is necessary in order to perform our services. Regardless of where your Personal Information is located, we will adopt measures to protect your Personal Information as set out below.

3.2. Your Career – Declaration of Consent

As part of our Services, we specialize in the global search, placement and integration of candidates for executive and similar management positions (each a “Candidate”) on behalf of our clients (“Client Services”).
In the event you are interested in becoming a Candidate you can provide us with information on your personal and professional background (“Candidate Information”) that we will, subject to our sole discretion, take into consideration as part of the Client Services. Providing any Candidate Information is purely voluntary on your part. Although it is generally true that the more information you share with us the better we are able to assess your potential suitability for an open executive or similar management position, we urge you not to disclose to us any Candidate Information that is likely of little or no relevance, or may not even be legally considered as part of common hiring processes. This applies, in particular, to Sensitive Personal Information.
If and to the extent you share Candidate Information with us, we might follow up with you using the contact details you may have provided in order to clarify any questions we might have or obtain complementary information from you. In addition, we might conduct assessments of your professional profile and perform searches for information on your personal and professional life publicly available via social media services (e.g. Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Twitter, XING, etc.), on the Internet or within data you have previously disclosed to us, provided that such information might be of importance to your qualification for a particular executive or similar management or individual contributor position. Any resulting information will be considered Candidate Information and be Processed as described below together with the Candidate Information you initially provided us with through the Site.
Your Candidate Information will mainly be processed by and on behalf of T. H. Bender and Partners, Inc. However, depending on how and where the Client Services need to be performed in your individual case, your Candidate Information might, in addition, be Processed by and on behalf of affiliated companies and contractors in countries throughout the world (the “TH Bender Network”).
Your Candidate Information Processed by T. H. Bender and Partners, Inc. and/or other companies of the TH Bender Network might contain (a) your contact details (name, address, phone number, email address, etc.), (b) your biographical data, (c) information on your professional education, and (d) your educational credentials, professional diplomas and certificates. In addition, it may contain (e) your employment and compensation history, (f) data on your suitability for client opportunities we compile as part of our assessments of your professional profile, (g) information on your personal and professional life publicly available via social media services (e.g. Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Twitter, XING, etc.) or otherwise on the Internet that might be of importance to your qualification for a particular executive or similar management position, and (h) any Sensitive Personal Information you might choose to disclose to us.

Your Candidate Information will be shared with third parties as follows:

• Your Candidate Information will be stored in databases located in the United States. The servers hosting the databases are operated by and accessible to members of the TH Bender Network or third-party service providers acting on their behalf and as per their instruction in order to operate the servers. The third-party service providers include Triple 8 Network, Apple Inc., and Microsoft Corporation;
• Via the databases, your Candidate Information will be available to the consultants and administrative staff of the different companies in the TH Bender Network for the purposes of providing the Client Services;
• Subject to our discretion, we might disclose excerpts of your Candidate Information such as your professional education and employment history with particular clients in order to confirm whether they might be interested in you as a Candidate with respect to an opening for an executive or similar management position they have informed us of. The information disclosed will be limited to what is necessary for this purpose. We will not disclose the entirety of your Candidate Information or otherwise introduce you to any client in detail without first obtaining separate and specific consent from you.

In this context, please be aware that various companies of the TH Bender Network, most of the third-party service providers maintaining the databases, operating the database servers and some of our clients that might disclose excerpts of your Candidate Information are located in countries outside of the European Economic Area (EEA) and have not been found by the European Union to provide an adequate level of protection of personal data, i.e. a level of protection of fundamental rights and freedoms that is essentially equivalent to that guaranteed within the European Union. Similarly, the countries your Candidate Information, or parts thereof, might be transferred to in accordance with the above may not be found to provide an adequate level of protection by jurisdictions outside of the European Union. By declaring your consent as set forth below you therefore explicitly and unambiguously (a) agree that your Candidate Information, or parts thereof, may be disclosed or otherwise transferred, as described above, to recipients in countries that may provide different, less or even inadequate protection of personal data as compared to the standards applicable in the jurisdiction you reside or work in, or you contact us from, and (b) waive protection according to such standards with respect to the information so disclosed or transferred.
As part of the Client Services, your Candidate Information may be processed for the purposes of (a) executing searches and assignments for potential Candidates on behalf of clients that have an opening for an executive or similar management position, (b) assessing your suitability for client opportunities, (c) informing you of open executive or similar management positions potentially suitable for you, (d) introducing you to clients as a Candidate and potential future member of their management, and of (e) verifying your educational credentials, professional diplomas and certificates. In addition, your Candidate Information may be Processed for the purposes of (f) performing searches for information on your personal and professional life publicly available via social media services (e.g. Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.), on the Internet or within data you have previously disclosed to us, provided that such information might be of importance to your qualification for a particular executive or similar management position, (g) providing integration services on behalf of a client you have been placed with by monitoring your integration with the client, speaking with all parties involved and lending support for you to reach full effectiveness in your new role as soon as possible, (h) approaching you, after you have been placed with a client, as a client contact for the placement of other Candidates or as a source of information about potential Candidates for third-party clients, (i) ensuring that after your placement with a client you will not be recruited on behalf of another client unless you request consideration for other opportunities, and of (j) operating the databases your Candidate Information is stored in.
At no point will your Candidate Information be matched, linked or otherwise connected with Personal Information collected through other components of the Site for purposes other than providing Client Services. Your Candidate Data will be Processed until you revoke your declaration of consent given when sharing Candidate Data with us. Upon the revocation of your declaration of consent, we will delete your Candidate Data from all databases.
By sharing your Candidate Information with us you explicitly consent to the Processing of your Candidate Information, including any Sensitive Personal Information you might choose to disclose to us as described above. This includes, without limitation, the transfer of your Candidate Information, or parts thereof, to countries not providing an adequate level of protection of personal data. You acknowledge that you are under no obligation to provide your consent and that, if you choose to do so nonetheless, you may revoke your declaration of consent at any time with future effect by using the following contact details: dataprivacy@thbender.com

3.3. Cookies

Our Site makes use of cookies. Cookies are small text files downloaded by your Internet browser and stored on the device you use to access the Site (e.g., your desktop computer, tablet or smartphone). Depending on their purpose cookies log specific user-related information such as your user preferences, authentication information, security parameters, data concerning the device you access the Site with and statistical information regarding your use of the Site. Where necessary during your visit of the Site or when revisiting the Site, your Internet browser transmits the cookies including the contained information back to the servers they were initially downloaded from. The analysis and Processing of such information allows us to ensure the functionality of the Site, improve your online experience and optimize the structure and content of the Site.

The cookies we use can be categorized as follows:

• Session Cookies: These are cookies that allow our Site to collect information about what you do during a browsing session each time you visit the Site. When connecting to our server your device will be allocated a session ID, which enables our server to identify your device during the session and facilitates Site usability. These cookies are temporary and are set to be deleted when you leave the Site;
• Persistent Cookies: These are cookies that are stored by your Internet browser for more than a session and are set to expire within a defined time period. Persistent cookies enable us to remember your settings and information so you do not have to keep re-entering them whenever you visit our Site. They also measure how you use and interact with the Site and enable us to personalize the Site. For example, they may allow us to alter the rotation of images on the Site so that different images will be displayed on your next visit;
• First-Party Cookies: These are cookies that we store and access on your device in our capacity as controller of your Personal Information when you visit our Site. They might include cookies related to third-party service providers, provided that we control and determine the purposes and means of the Processing of your Personal Information logged by such cookies. As a result, first-party cookies might log user-related Personal Information accessible to and Processed by third parties on our behalf and subject to our instructions.
• Third-Party Cookies: These are cookies that are stored and accessed on your device by third parties determining the purposes and means of the Processing of your Personal Information logged by such cookies.

You may influence the scope and extent to which we use cookies when you visit our Site. In particular, you may prevent cookies from being stored on your device by adjusting the respective settings on your Internet browser. For more information on how to do so in the settings of your particular Internet browser, please see the following information:
Internet Explorer:
https://privacy.microsoft.com/en-us/internet-explorer-ie11-preview-privacy-statement
Chrome:
https://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/browser/privacy/
Firefox:
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/products/firefox/protect-your-privacy
Safari:
http://www.apple.com/privacy/manage-your-privacy/
However, please be aware that this might render certain functions of our Site inoperable or more difficult to use. Depending on the Internet browser you use you might also be able to specifically reject third-party cookies. In this context, please note, however, that third parties might still have access to your Personal Information to the extent that such information is logged by first-party cookies.
For additional information on first-party and third-party cookies used on our Site in the context of third-party services and for information on how you might stop such cookies from being stored on your device, please see “Third-Party Services” below.

3.4. Third-Party Services

On our Site we use the following services provided by third parties:

• Google Analytics

Our Site uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA (“Google”). Google Analytics uses “cookies”, which are text files placed on your computer to help analyze how users use the Site.
The information generated by the cookies about your use of the Site (including your IP address) will be transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States. The United States has not been found by the European Union to provide an adequate level of protection of personal data, i.e. a level of protection of fundamental rights and freedoms that is essentially equivalent to that guaranteed within the European Union. Similarly, the United States may not be found to provide an adequate level of protection by jurisdictions outside of the European Union.
On our behalf, Google will use the information collected for the purpose of evaluating your use of the Site, compiling reports on website activity for us and providing other services relating to website activity and Internet usage to us. Google will not associate your IP address with any other data held by Google. Neither will we match, link or otherwise connect any information received from Google with Personal Information collected through other components of the Site.
You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your Internet browser. However, please note that if you do this you may not be able to use the full functionality of our Site. Furthermore, you can prevent Google’s collection and use of data (cookies and IP address) by downloading and installing the browser plug-in available under https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en-GB. Lastly, you can refuse the use of Google Analytics by clicking on the following link:
Disable Google Analytics Google Analytics disabled.
In the latter case, an opt-out cookie will be set on your device which prevents the future collection of your data when visiting this Site. Be aware, however, that the opt-out cookie will only be effective within the Internet browser you used to access the above link and only for as long as you do not delete the opt-out cookie.
Further information concerning the terms and conditions of use and data privacy can be found at http://www.google.com/analytic… or at https://www.google.de/intl/en_uk/policies/.

• Lead Forensics

We use the “Lead Forensics” web analytics service by Piedmont Center 5-8, Building 8, Suite 300, 3525 Piedmont Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30305, USA (“Lead Forensics”) to collect statistical data regarding the use of our Site. This way we may evaluate and, if necessary, modify the Site to improve its functions and make it easier for visitors to use. For this purpose, text files referred to as “cookies” are stored on your device and transmitted to Lead Forensics. The cookies contain information permitting the analysis and visualization of your and other users’ interaction with the Site.
Further information concerning the terms and conditions of use and data privacy can be found at https://www.leadforensics.com/privacy-policy/

• Hotjar

We use Hotjar in order to better understand our users’ needs and to optimize this service and experience. Hotjar is a technology service that helps us better understand our users experience (e.g. how much time they spend on which pages, which links they choose to click, what users do and don’t like, etc.) and this enables us to build and maintain our service with user feedback. Hotjar uses cookies and other technologies to collect data on our users’ behavior and their devices (in particular device’s IP address (captured and stored only in anonymized form), device screen size, device type (unique device identifiers), browser information, geographic location (country only), preferred language used to display our website). Hotjar stores this information in a pseudonymized user profile. Neither Hotjar nor we will ever use this information to identify individual users or to match it with further data on an individual user. For further details, please see Hotjar’s privacy policy: https://www.hotjar.com/legal/policies/privacy
You can opt-out to the creation of a user profile, Hotjar’s storing of data about your usage of our site and Hotjar’s use of tracking cookies on other websites by clicking here: https://www.hotjar.com/legal/compliance/opt-out

3.5. Do-Not-Track Disclosure

Laws such as California Business and Professions Code § 22575 require us to disclose how our Site responds to Internet browser “Do Not Track” signals and/or other mechanisms that seek to provide consumers with the ability to control the collection of their Personal Information through online tracking for certain purposes, such as targeted or behavioral advertising.
Please note that we do not knowingly use Personal Information collected on our Site through cookies or other technologies for targeted or behavioral advertising, or knowingly allow third parties to use our Site to do so. If your Internet browser gives our Site a “Do Not Track” signal, the Site may not honor it to the extent that the Site uses cookies or other tracking technologies as described in “Cookies” or “Third-Party Services” above. We do not make any promises or guarantees about the effects of any “Do Not Track” signal we receive from your Internet browser because (a) the “Do Not Track” technology is not necessarily effective for any or all Internet browsers, mechanisms or technologies, (b) third parties we cooperate with may not honor your “Do Not Track” signal, and (c) technologies, Internet browsers and access devices may change from time to time and efforts to honor your “Do Not Track” signal might or might not be effective for each technology or across all platforms.
However, in “Cookies” and “Third-Party Services” above, we describe how you may use mechanisms similar to the “Do Not Track” technology of certain Internet browsers in order to effectively prevent us or third parties from collecting your Personal Information through online tracking. To the extent that you make use of these mechanisms, your preference not to be tracked or to be tracked only to a limited extent will be honored by us and the third parties providing services to us.

3.6. Personal Information Pertaining to Children

Our Site and Services are not intended to be used by minors and we do not want to collect information from minors. If a child’s parent or a guardian believes their child may have provided Personal Information to us, please write us using the contact details provided in “How to Contact Us” below and we will delete that Personal Information, subject to the applicable law and this Policy.

4. Data Security

Protecting your Personal Information is important to us. We use appropriate technical and organizational measures and safeguards designed to help prevent unauthorized access, unlawful Processing, and unauthorized or accidental loss of your Personal Information.

5. Your Right to Information

Subject to the applicable law, you have the right to (a) obtain information about your Personal Information we Process on our Site, and to (b) request the correction, deletion or blocking of incorrect Personal Information or Personal Information not processed in line with the applicable legal requirements. To make a respective request, please use the contact details provided in “How to Contact Us” below.

6. Amendments to This Policy

From time to time we may change our business activities and/or our policies and procedures with respect to the Processing of Personal Information. Where appropriate in these cases, we will, subject to applicable law, revise, supplement, or replace this Policy. When the Policy changes, we will post the substitute version and change the effective date listed at the beginning of the Policy.
When required by applicable law, however, we may provide you with advance notice of any changes to this Policy and with an opportunity to object to such changes. If you exercise your right to object, the changes will not become effective with respect to your Personal Information, but your ability to use our Services may be terminated or impaired. We will explicitly notify you of the consequences of the objection or non-objection to the extent and in the manner required by law.

7. How to Contact Us

We encourage your questions and comments about this Policy and our privacy practices. Please contact us using the information below and we will respond to you as soon as reasonably possible:

T. H. Bender and Partners, Inc.
2200 Pennsylvania Ave NW
4th Floor, East Tower
Washington, DC 20037
United States of America

Email: dataprivacy@thbender.com