Our Team

“Ed, simply put, is the Michael Jordan of Recruiters. You probably don’t need much else stated than that to get the idea of how Ed operates and how serious and dedicated he is to recruiting.”

– Paul O’Sullivan | Vice President, Regional Health Properties

Ed McAlexander

Managing Director

Ed currently leads the Accounting/Finance practice at MRA Search.
He began his career in accounting with KPMG in Atlanta. In 2001, he joined Spherion and found his niche in recruiting and talent search. In 2003, at age 28, Ed ranked 13th out of 250 U.S. Spherion associates. Ed left Spherion in 2004 to become a partner at BlueTree Search. As the youngest partner, Ed was consistently the top revenue producer in the company for more than five years. Ed founded MRA Search in February, 2010.
Ed holds both undergraduate and Master’s degrees in Accounting from the University of Mississippi.
Ed has been involved as a Volunteer in the Make-A-Wish Foundation in Atlanta, has served on the Board of the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) as VP of Education and Director at Large (Corporate Development), and has been a Gold Sponsor for the Atlanta Chapter of FENG (Financial Executives Networking Group) and an affiliate member of SHRM – Atlanta Chapter.

Cheney Robinson

Director of Business Development/Higher Education Recruiting

Cheney Robinson specializes in searches for higher education. He is responsible for filling job openings for clients and finding jobs for candidates. The enjoyment of finding the right person for the right job is what drives Cheney to listen intently as his clients articulate the perfect candidate and candidates conceptualize their dream job.
His experiences range from bagging groceries and stocking shelves to multi-million dollar sales volume in real estate, with a little bit of college baseball coaching/recruiting and some fundraising sprinkled in.
After two years at Wofford College as a member of the baseball team, Cheney transferred to the University of Mississippi, earning his Bachelor’s in Business Management. After graduating from Ole Miss, he attended the University of Georgia, earning a Master’s degree in Sports Management. One year into Florida State University’s doctoral program in Sports Administration, Cheney made the change to the Administration of Higher Education doctoral program at Auburn University, where he earned his Ph.D. in 2012.
Cheney’s personal philosophies are to put God first, and everything else will fall into place, and always, always being on time — “Who am I to make anyone wait?” He and his wife, Elizabeth, have three beautiful children. He enjoys collegiate athletics, being outdoors, and has even jumped out of a perfectly good airplane, with the video to prove it! Cheney is located in South Carolina.

Avery Clem

Chief Administrative Officer

Avery brings more than ten years of experience in customer service, office administration, and operational management to her role as Chief Administrative Officer here at MRA Search. She began her career in administrative support and client-facing service positions, where she discovered her strengths in organization, communication, and building efficient systems that allow teams to focus on high-level work. In her role as CAO, Avery supports strategic initiatives across recruiting, marketing, and business development. She plays a central part in maintaining the firm’s reputation for responsiveness and high-quality service, ensuring that both clients and candidates experience a streamlined, well-organized recruiting process.

Outside of her work at MRA Search, Avery is a dedicated wife and mother who loves to read, travel, and spend time with family.

Bill Clem

Senior Recruiter

Bill is an MBA-educated finance leader with extensive experience overseeing budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting, payroll/HR operations, and risk management across education, professional sports, nonprofit, and healthcare organizations. He has directed accounting teams, improved financial systems, and developed procedures and training programs that strengthen operational performance.

With more than two decades of leadership in complex, people-focused environments, Bill brings a deep understanding of organizational needs, exceptional attention to detail, and a strategic mindset to his role as Senior Recruiter at MRA Search—helping clients identify and hire high-impact Accounting & Finance talent.

Janet L. Poole, CPA, CFE

Director of Operations Administration

Janet is a fun-loving, self-motivated change leader who has many years of experience helping turn around companies’ operations and management focus. She started her career at KPMG and has held management positions at several large Atlanta companies-of-choice, including Manhattan Associates and SiteOne Landscape Supply, Inc. (previously John Deere Landscapes LLC). Janet is dedicated to helping companies succeed and grow, and is excited to join MRA Search. In her spare time, she loves to travel, hike, read, socialize, and work on her true passion — nature photography.

Dakota McAlexander

Office Manager

Dakota is the newest member of our staff, and does an excellent job of exemplifying our “Work Hard. Play Hard.” philosophy. But mostly, she helps keep Ed in line. She enjoys hiking, watersports and the occasional rawhide.