Chris Ohlendorf
Senior Partner

Chris Ohlendorf is a co-founder and Partner at McKinley Group. He provides senior level counsel and strategic recruitment advice to industry leaders in the sales, marketing, engineering and technology categories and brings years of real world managerial experience to the process.

Ohlendorf joined multi-billion dollar global snack food giant PepsiCo out of college and worked with the company for 11 years. Starting out as an employee of a local Pizza Hut franchise, a decade later he had risen through the ranks to become district manager of one of the company’s busiest districts with responsibilities for 600 people. In his time with the company Ohlendorf was voted “Rookie of the Year” in his first managerial position and received the fastest promotion in the region to second line management.

Seeking a more challenging managerial career path, Ohlendorf transitioned into executive recruitment, joining Twin Cities recruitment firm Hayden & Associates where he received a second career “Rookie of the Year” award and was recognized regularly as a top performer. He stayed with the firm until 2003, when along with his three partners he launched McKinley Group Inc., today Minnesota’s leading executive search firm.

A Certified Personnel Consultant (CPC) and a graduate in Business Administration from Bethel College in Arden Hills, MN, Ohlendorf also received an MBA with a focus on marketing from the University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Management. He lives with his wife and six children in Maple Grove, Minnesota.