The Role of Research in Appointing Senior Leaders
When appointing new board members, it’s easy to choose someone from your existing network or hire on recommendation. An empty board seat or absent senior leader can have a negative impact on business operations and substantially increase the workload for other senior leaders, creating pressure to make a quick decision and plug the gap. However, forgoing the opportunity to explore the wider market often isn’t the most sensible decision even if it achieves a swift resolution.
Appointing your next board member or senior leader is a big decision; it’s a significant cost and it can impact the entire business, so the search should not be limited to a network of the board or external party, no matter how extensive or strong that network appears to be. Industry connections are useful, but hiring for sector experience alone may mean missing out on the talent that could take your business to the next level.
The pitfalls of hiring through network.
- Harm to diversity: Networks can lack diversity. Relying on networks alone to fill a vacancy can therefore promote a lack of diversity within your senior team which in turn can have a negative impact on company culture.
- Missing out on talent: Networks are limited by nature. The best person for the role might sit outside of your network with expertise and a skillset you may not have even considered.
- Square peg, round hole: Hiring from network is undoubtedly faster than conducting a thorough, research-led process therefore it can be tempting to hire those known to you, even if they are not quite the right fit. You may end up hiring someone you trust, but lack of candidate comparison carries a risk of hiring good people into roles they just aren’t suited to.
- Cost: If you hire the wrong person, or perhaps someone who won’t have longevity in the role, the cost of replacement is always far greater than conducting a thorough search the first-time round. A quick fix doesn’t necessarily save money.
Diversity
Board members shape businesses so exploring networks should only ever be part of the process. It’s crucial to access the best talent not just the known talent and an over reliance on networks can harm board diversity. To access a diverse range of candidates, a diverse talent pool must first be identified. This can only be achieved through conducting a comprehensive search exploring the competitor landscape and complementary sectors, reviewing all relevant roles within those organisations. This will widen the talent pool and reduce the risk of overlooking diverse candidates with strong potential. This approach can differentiate you from your competitors, not only in the sense that diverse boards outperform those that lack diversity but, by enabling you to identify leaders with the capability to bring something new to the table.
Sector
It’s also possible that your network is more heavily weighted with people whose sector experience matches your own which can be another restriction on the candidate pool. For some businesses or roles sector experience will always be an important aspect of candidate profile but this isn’t always the case. Careful consideration should be given to this aspect of experience. Consider what aspects of experience are important to success in the role, reviewing this each time there is a new vacancy to ascertain whether sector experience should be required experience. It may well be required but this should never be an assumption. Limiting the candidate pool by sector can mean missing out on excellent candidates with similar skillsets who can bring an outside perspective to enhance strategy development. If sector experience is a necessity, conducting a research-led process can help widen the talent pool, identifying adjacent sectors and candidates that may bring very similar experience.
Insight
One of the most underrated benefits of conducting research to identify senior leaders is the market insight generated through the process. A research-led process should give you good insight into the candidate market, helping you understand what the current appetite is for moving roles and what well suited candidates might look for in an employer. Candidate engagement done right can help you understand how your brand is perceived in the market and how attractive you are to candidates. It is a particularly useful opportunity to sense check the remuneration package on offer, helping you forward plan and adjust the package if necessary, so you can remain competitive in the market. It may also give you some insight into the competition and what they are doing to attract and retain good leaders. Using the insight uncovered effectively can significantly increase the likelihood of attracting strong candidates, making insight generation another beneficial consequence of conducting a research-led hiring process.
The importance of research-led hiring
The importance of research in the hiring process for board members or other senior leaders should not be underestimated. It truly enables you to choose the best person for the role whereas hiring through network only gives you access to those that are known to you and available. Whilst finding the right person for the role is the number one priority, the wider benefits of conducting research are not insignificant. Mapping can provide you with insight into the market, candidate salary expectations, and an understanding of how your brand in perceived in the market. These findings can be used to benefit your organisation, promoting your ability to grow.
Ultimately, accessing the widest possible talent pool for a senior hire reduces the risk that hiring new leaders brings. It can potentially increase diversity in your senior team and bring new expertise into the board room. Scouring your network is a great place to start but it should only ever form part of the process; it might allow you to fill a gap in your leadership team quickly, but you likely won’t make the optimal hire.
The Abstract Approach
Abstract takes a research-led approach to executive hiring. It’s important to us that our clients have the leaders they need to facilitate their transformation and growth goals. We make sure no stone is left unturned, so you have options when it comes to hiring your next leader. We think creatively about candidate identification, operating with inclusivity, so we can present you with profiles you may not have instinctively considered, leaving you to focus on deciding who is the right fit for your business.
The Process
- Defining requirements: We work with you to understand the scope of the role and what is required of the successful candidate, helping you decide on the non-negotiables versus the desirable experience. We think carefully about how to broaden the talent pool giving you ideas on the type of candidate profiles that could meet your requirements.
- The plan: We use all the information gathered to create a search strategy, identifying all the organisations where we may be able to find candidates suitable for the position. This explores organisations beyond the competitor landscape where we might find well-suited candidates who bring alternative sector experience.
- Mapping: We map the market, using the search strategy, identifying all candidates that may be a fit for the role and ranking them accordingly. Undertaking thorough mapping allows us to access the widest possible talent pool supporting the creation of diverse shortlists and longlists.
- Engaging: We work with you to develop an attractive proposition for the candidates, before reaching out to those we feel are best fit for the role. We ascertain interest and carry our initial screening, allowing us to refine the longlist. We gather market insight throughout these conversations to feedback to you, allowing us to strengthen the proposition if necessary.
- Assessment: We find out what you want to know before leading thorough interviews, gaining a detailed understanding of the candidates’ background so you can make an informed decision on the shortlist. We share detailed reports with you so you can use your time with shortlisted candidates effectively, finding out any additional information and assessing their fit with the wider team. When it comes to technical leaders, we can utilise our in-house expertise to assess the candidates’ ability in terms of helping you to achieve your technical goals.
- Support: We support you with candidate management throughout your interview process, freeing up your time and allowing you to focus on the decision-making. We remain on hand to share insight and advice when needed and help you to navigate the offer process once you have chosen your preferred candidate.
Why Abstract?
We work with you to ensure that what you are looking for is what you need whether it’s an interim, fractional, or permanent leader. We help you figure out what the ideal candidate profile is for the gap in your leadership team. We never try to put a square peg in a round hole, we take a collaborative approach from the outset, recognising the bearing a new leader will have on your business, no matter what the role. We know that a shortlist is only ever as strong as the longlist and the time we take conducting thorough research, coupled with our rigorous assessment process, is what ensures we can present you with leaders who can set you apart from your competitors.
Emily Wells
A researcher by background, I've held roles in executive search and talent intelligence, undertaking a variety of projects spanning headhunting, benchmarking, insight generation and market analysis, working with a range of organisations across numerous industries, from SMEs to large corporates, and private equity firms.
As a divisional head within Abstract Group, I am responsible for leading on Abstract Talent's service offering, go to market proposition, and project delivery. I'm hands on in both client engagement and undertaking research, ensuring our services are tailored to the needs of our clients. Abstract Talent specialises in identifying and assessing technical leaders and helping organisations develop effective talent strategies to ensure they can attract, acquire, and retain the right people.