The executive search profession has long been accepted as a powerful interventional ally for boards eager to appoint highly capable leaders to their organisations. But within the context of a world with such spiralling environmental and social challenges, organisations must look to their closest partners, not least those with an influence on supporting their cultural development, as collaborative external colleagues who can introduce the power of external perspectives to help shape their journey.
The role of the executive search partner has morphed in recent years, from a historically transactional supplier relationship, to one that supports the development of organisational culture in a far more rounded and embedded way. Take for example those employers who use their executive search partner to conduct market research or salary benchmarking. This might sound like just another transactional exchange, but just like the executive search and selection mandate which requires a deep understanding of the client’s organisation to achieve an accurate senior leadership appointment, so too does the researcher require a crystal clear grasp of the organisation’s vision and intended outcome in order to deliver success on the research assignment.
It is this depth of understanding of the client’s organisation which is built during the briefing phase of the executive search project which equips the search partner to support with so much more than just recruitment. Take coaching and leadership development for example. When we founded Sherrington Associates in 2014, we were one of only a small number of search firms in the profession to be providing quality executive coaching for clients post-placement. Fast forward nine years and almost everyone is doing it. So much so in fact, that if you were to take a look at the sites of the ‘big five’ global executive search firms, on first glance you might be forgiven for thinking they were exclusively management consultants rather than recruiters. At the micro level, demand for Sherrington’s coaching services has grown in particular for standalone coaching assignments, without any search attached. This is a reflection of the way in which clients now view Sherrington and indeed the profession, as a supportive ally with the skills and experience and the understanding of their business, to develop as well as recruit their most influential leaders.
It is this level of trust that will be the bedrock of even greater alliances in the future for executive search partners who truly understand sustainability. As organisations look to their search partners to recruit leaders with the requisite skills, knowledge and leadership styles to deliver on sustainability ambitions, they first need to make sure the search firm a) understands sustainability leadership, and b) knows how to assess leaders for these qualities.
This is why Sherrington Associates have invested significant energy in recent years to immerse ourselves in sustainable business, from training with the University of Cambridge, applying for BCorp certification and rewiring our candidate assessment model to embed sustainability values assessment at the heart of our work, we now have the ability to recruit and develop leaders who can truly make a difference for our clients, in embedding sustainable leadership as a lasting culture.
To understand more about our work recruiting leaders with purpose, talk to our team.
