KCO is a family-owned and operated recruiting firm. KCO was founded in January 2009 at the peak of the Great Recession and is named in honor of Ryan Osterhout’s late mother, Kathleen Corinne Osterhout (K.C.O). KCO’s continued success in operating for well over a decade is a tribute to the quality of service provided to our clients and the strength of our hard work and dedication we have to the KCO mission.

KCO’s first chapter began when Jill (who was recruiting in the Pharmaceutical and Biotech industries) decided it was time to strike out on her own! She always had a passion for natural and organic foods, sustainable food practices. and environmental conservation. Given the fact our country was in one of the worst recessions in history, Jill wanted a “recession-proof” industry to enter; thus Jill decided to combine her knowledge and passion and entered into the Natural, Organic Food and Beverage space.

Jill dove right in and quickly landed a major account with a hyper-growth company in the dairy industry. It wasn’t long before KCO became the ‘’go-to” recruiting firm for many of the country’s biggest yogurt and Greek yogurt companies. KCO took off at such an amazing pace, that within the first year Ryan quickly hopped on board to help Jill co-lead this growing business as COO.

Over the next decade, KCO played an instrumental part in supporting the growth of major trends across the natural/organic/sustainable/specialty Food and Beverage industry. Starting with the Greek yogurt boom of the early 2010’s, and continuing with trends like gluten-free/allergen-free, cold-pressed juices and coconut water, plant-based dairy and meat, keto-friendly foods, and indoor hydroponically grown produce, KCO has been there through it all, helping their clients find top-level industry talent across the US and internationally as well.

Today more than a decade later KCO has become one of the most trusted recruitment firms in the natural/organic food and beverage industry, working with companies of all shapes and sizes, from start-ups to multi-billion dollar multinational food companies.

At KCO, we are dedicated to working hard to find the best candidates in the industry; we strive to truly understand not just the position and the job qualifications, but the company culture of our client partners as well. When KCO is your recruiting partner, you can trust that we will go above and beyond to find not just the best talent, but the best people in terms of cultural fit that will align with your company values. This focused mission and our own KCO internal company values are what sets us apart.

If you trust KCO as your recruiting partner, you can be sure we will always follow our values to deliver Real. Good. People: