From the first conversation

How We Work

The quality of a search is shaped long before the market is approached. It begins with understanding the organisation, what it is trying to achieve and why this appointment matters now.

That understanding informs the mandate, the people we consider and the way we represent the opportunity. It also allows us to recognise when the original brief needs to change.

The same senior people remain involved throughout, from the first conversation and market mapping through to assessment, appointment and transition.

Before the search begins.

Understand the Organisation.

We begin with the organisation rather than the position description.

We want to understand what is changing, what needs to be achieved and the part this appointment will play. We consider the organisation’s stage, structure, leadership and the capability already in place.

This gives the search its direction and helps us determine whether the original role is the right answer.

Defining what is needed.

Shape the Appointment.

A title rarely tells the whole story.

We work with you to define what the person will lead, build or change, and what success should look like once they are in place.

This may confirm the original brief. It may show that the mandate needs to change, different experience is required or another capability should be introduced first.

We also consider whether the need is permanent, interim or fractional. The model follows the work.

Seeing the market clearly.

Map the Market.

Once the mandate is clear, we map the organisations and adjacent markets where the relevant capability may be found.

Technology and research help us build a broader view. Experience and judgement help us determine which backgrounds matter, where assumptions should be challenged and who warrants a direct conversation.

The purpose is not to produce the longest list. It is to understand the market well enough to know where the strongest possibilities sit.

Strategic headhunting.

Reach the Right People.

The strongest person may not be actively looking for another role.

We approach relevant people directly and confidentially, using established relationships, trusted referrals and targeted research.

A credible approach requires more than a position description. The person needs to understand the organisation, why the appointment matters and what they could help make possible.

Because the senior people leading the search understand that context, they can represent the opportunity properly from the first conversation.

Beyond career history.

Assess What Matters.

Relevant experience creates the basis for a conversation. It does not complete the assessment.

We consider what the person has built, changed or delivered, how they exercise judgement and the environments in which they have been most effective.

Assessment is grounded in the mandate and the organisation the person will enter. Behavioural assessment, structured referencing and organisational psychology can provide further evidence where appropriate.

The purpose is to understand whether the person can succeed in the role, within this organisation, at this point in its development.

From decision to appointment

Secure the Appointment.

As the search progresses, we maintain clear communication with the organisation and the people being considered.

We support interviews, assessment, referencing, remuneration discussions and the final terms of appointment. We remain involved through offer, resignation and transition so expectations remain clear on both sides.

The way candidates are treated matters throughout. Every conversation represents your organisation, including those with people who are not ultimately appointed.

Around the leader.

Continue Building.

One appointment may resolve the immediate need. It may also create the need for further capability.

A newly appointed CEO may need an executive structure. A Country Head may need a local team. A functional leader may need managers and specialists around them.

Because we already understand the organisation and the thinking behind the first appointment, the next conversation does not begin again from the start.

UNDERSTAND → DEFINE → MAP → ENGAGE → ASSESS → APPOINT → BUILD

Start here.

Begin With the Organisation.

You may have a completed position description or only an emerging view of the capability required.

We begin with what is changing, what needs to be achieved and the part the appointment will play.