Pembe Candaner is a Turkish businesswoman, human resources expert and consultant, author, speaker, columnist and host of her TV show. Candaner served as the CEO of major corporations such as Adecco SA Turkey and Kariyer.net. She is a member of TUSIAD, the top business association of Turkey and Society for Human Resource Management. Additionally to her career in private sector, she authored 4 books, held a column in daily Sabah and currently has a column in CEO Life Magazine. She is a member of Board of Advisors of Forbes Magazine in Turkey and hosted her TV show at ‘Artı Bir TV’ about Woman Leaders and Entrepreneurs. Candaner was awarded as the BusinessWoman of the year 2003, by the Dunya Newspaper.
Early life
Pembe Candaner was born in Ankara, Turkey as the second child of lawyer/poet Suphi Taşhan, a member of famous Tashan family in Ankara, and Mualla Taşhan. Suphi Tashan, a very well-known figure in Turkey, died at the age of 39, when Pembe was just two years old. Tashan family was the wealthiest family in Ankara at the time, giving their name to Tashan Square, today known as Ulus Square. Mualla was working as a speechwriter for the prime minister. In an interview, Candaner told to Hurriyet, "''I had to write essays for school she wouldn't write them for me. I was so mad, because I was competing against my best friend, whose father was a great speaker and certainly helped her. My mom said, 'One day you'll be grateful; grades are not important, learning is'.' After graduating from TED Ankara College, she obtained her BSc. degree from Middle East Technical University, Department of Psychology in 1980. She received her MA from Ankara University DTCF, Department of Art History. Upon her graduation, she lectured in Middle East Technical University, Ankara and Marmara University, Istanbul on Psychology and Social Sciences. After having education in Finance and Business Administration, she moved from academic world to private sector.
Career
Private sector
In 1997, Candaner was appointed Country Manager of Adecco SA. Later she became the CEO of Adecco Turkey, GM of Lee Hecht Harrisson and had a chair in the Board of Directors and remained in this position for nine years. In 2003, Candaner played a central role in changing the Labor Law and the legalization of Private Employment Agencies. The law also legalized temporary work, work-on-call and part-time work, which was previously not legal in Turkey. In 2005, she was selected as a consultant by European Union for the standardization of Public Employment Agency and for the National Employment Strategies of Turkey. In 2009, she founded the ‘Yaratıcı İnsan Platformu' to help the entrepreneurs in Turkey and support the creative ideas and entrepreneurship. In 2011, she also became the shareholder of Mikom Inc. and holds the position of Vice President in Board of Directors. Since 2003, Candaner is the Founding and Honorary President of Private Employment Agencies Association. She is also a member of TUSIAD, the top business association of Turkey. In 2016, she co-founded JobzMall, a job finding platform focused primarily on youth employment, located in Orange County, California. She currently serves as its President.
