Michael Stomberg is the founder and CEO of Planet Professional’s parent company, The Planet Group, which includes several renowned staffing companies and global consulting organizations. Since founding Planet in 2009, Michael has led the organization to record organic growth while also leading the company through the launch of four new business lines and the acquisition of multiple firms. He also led the M&A activities when in May 2021, The Planet Group merged with ProPharma Group, the leading global provider of outsourced regulatory, clinical research, compliance, pharmacovigilance, and medical information services for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device companies. Michael assumed the role of ProPharma Group’s CEO in September 2021.
Michael has over 20 years of experience developing and leading global organizations focused on the Life Sciences, Technology and Energy industries. His expertise includes organizational development, leadership development, streamlining operations, technology integration, team development, and global business strategy. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from Northern Illinois University and an MBA from the Keller Graduate School of Management.
Tim Simmerly is the President of Planet Professional’s parent company, The Planet Group, and oversees global strategy as well as the day-to-day operations for our global staffing and consulting companies.
With more than twenty years of experience in talent and human capital services, Tim has helped launch three of Planet’s companies and continues to lead PFES today. Tim’s leadership ability, business development acumen, and operational excellence are key to his role in expanding The Planet Group into new market segments worldwide. Tim joined the Planet Group of Companies in 2009 and has held numerous leadership positions including Director of Business Development, Vice President, and Executive Vice President.
Philip Monti is the CFO of The Planet Group and is responsible for driving the firm’s profitability as well as providing financial discipline and capital direction. With over two decades of senior financial leadership and a deep understanding of the global consulting and staffing industries, Phil excels at overseeing complex financial systems that serve enterprise-level organizations with thousands of employees.
He is a valued business partner with a strong record of balancing the interests of executive leadership and the board while also being a financial voice for the organization; navigating debt and equity capital transactions; and negotiating, closing and communicating M&A transactions in private equity and public company environments.
Prior to joining The Planet Group, Phil was Chief Financial Officer of DISYS where he helped guide the firm as a global staffing leader. Previously, he served in a variety of similar executive-level corporate finance roles with Signature Consultants and Acosta Sales & Marketing. A certified public accountant, Phil received his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida and his Master’s in Accounting from the University of North Florida.
Marni Helfand is the Chief HR Officer and General Counsel for The Planet Group. Marni oversees all legal and HR functions including providing training, advising on all areas of compliance, negotiating client agreements, managing litigation, and protecting the company’s intellectual property. After leaving private practice with the law firm of Littler Mendelson, most of her career has been spent in the staffing and consulting industries. Prior to beginning her career, Marni received her Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial and Labor Relations form Cornell University, and attained her JD Law Degree from Northwestern University’s School of Law.
Jon Whiley is the CTO of The Planet Group of companies and is responsible for leading the firm’s innovative technology strategy, including network infrastructure, system integrations, process improvements, new technology implementations, and IT support.
Jon has over 20 years of progressive tech and operations experience delivering transformative solutions that drive immediate business impact and continuous improvements across enterprises. During his career, he has designed competitive tools and adopted technology to optimize workflows and strengthen service delivery across multisite operations.
Prior to joining The Planet Group, Jon was Executive Vice President and CTO of Majestic Steel USA. A veteran of the US Marine Corps and graduate of Ohio University, he serves as a Governing Body Member of Evanta’s Midwest CIO group and is also involved with the Northeast Ohio chapter of SIM.
Jeff Dillenburg brings over 20 years of experience in operations within the human capital consulting and staffing world to his role as Chief Operating Officer of The Planet Group and has a strong track record of success everywhere he has been. He was one of the first employees at both Inforte and Slalom Consulting and played an integral role in executing their high growth strategy as Managing Director.
Along with his Planet COO responsibilities, Jeff concurrently serves in the same capacity with Strive Consulting which The Planet Group acquired in December of 2021. Jeff has been with Strive since 2015 and has been instrumental in helping drive the strategy to restructure the organization from a staffing firm to a consulting firm.
Jeff brings a tremendous track record of success and hard work and is a thought leader that has used many innovative approaches to help construct some of the best delivery platforms in the business.
As president, Jeff Bonci oversees the strategy and operations of Planet Professional, a staffing and recruitment firm specializing in Accounting & Finance, Human Resources and Administrative. In addition to helping Planet Professional expand its national footprint, Jeff leads a team of nearly 100 staffing professionals. He has 15+ years of relationship building, solution selling and business strategy, all within the staffing industry.
Prior to joining the firm, Jeff was the Senior Managing Director of Collabera, a digital-first engineering technology talent leader, where he helped increase billing by 500% and developed a multi-region sales team. Jeff has also held senior management, sales and recruiter positions with Insight Global, a full-service staffing agency.
Jeff holds a Bachelor’s degree from Stonehill College in Easton, MA and volunteers with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
David Janowsky oversees the business development activities of Planet Professional. In addition to his work directly with clients, David leads a team of professional sales people while working closely with the group’s Recruiting team to support clients. Committed to success, David always strives to continuously provide the highest quality service to candidates and clients while leading his team to grow and fulfill their potential.
Sara Ferraioli is the SVP of Recruitment and oversees the strategic and day-to-day delivery activities of Planet Professional’s 50+ recruiters. She joined the firm in 2003 as a Staffing Manager before progressing to Manager of Recruiting and in 2012 to General Manager of our HR practice. Previously, Sara held recruiting roles at Interim Healthcare, Hall Kinion, and Bose Corporations.