Deliberately Different: Fifty Years. Two Generations. Leading in a Changing World.

This is not your typical leadership book.

It’s the story of two very different women, Judith M. “Judee” von Seldeneck and Aileen K. Alexander, who built their careers in two very different eras. Each started out in public service—Judee on Capitol Hill in the ’60s and Aileen in the military in the ’90s. Each had a front row seat to observe leaders through challenging and historic times. And they share a common purpose: widening the circle of leaders for a changing world.

In Deliberately Different, Judee, founder of Diversified Search Group, and Aileen, now DSG’s CEO leading one of America’s top ten executive search firms, share their inspiring leadership journeys. From Judee launching the firm early in the women’s movement to Aileen steering it through this transformational era, they share tough decisions, personal memories, and observations about both the timeless qualities and essential traits for modern leaders.

Presented as an open and engaging dialogue between the authors, this book is full of entertaining and uplifting anecdotes that will be useful for executives in any industry, any generation, and any context. Their forward-thinking wisdom sets a new standard of excellence for the leaders who will shape our future—including you.

Judith M. “Judee” von Seldeneck, founder and chair of Diversified Search Group (DSG), was executive assistant to US Senator Walter F. Mondale before buying into and then acquiring a small Philadelphia firm founded to help women find professional roles. Over five decades, Judee built it into a national top ten executive search firm and the largest such woman-founded one in the world.

A longtime advocate for women, she recently established the JVS Philadelphia Fund for Women, which provides funding for women entrepreneurs. She’s served on numerous public company boards, has been named to the 2022 Forbes 50 Over 50 list, and is the only two-time Lifetime Achievement Award winner from the Association of Executive Search Consultants.

LinkedIn: jvonseldeneck

Aileen K. Alexander, whose career spans the public and private sectors, is CEO of DSG. She advises boards and executives from Fortune 500 to private-equity-backed and mid-market companies.

Beginning her career in the military, she became a US Army captain. She’s also served in government, working on national security policy at the Department of Defense and in the US House of Representatives. Aileen is a graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School and Johns Hopkins University. She has received numerous awards and has been quoted as a thought leader in various publications, including Barrons, Bloomsberg, Forbes, and Fortune.

LinkedIn: aileen-alexander