What We Do
Leadership Recruitment
For over 20+ years, our team have been recruiting senior managers and leaders for clients across a wide range of markets from professional services, manufacturing, public sector, third sector, life sciences, engineering, financial services, shipping and logistics. Throughout this time, recruiting for values has been at the core of our work.
Sustainability isn’t a department, a project or programme… it’s a culture.
For an organisation to be sustainable, it needs leaders who embody the hallmarks of sustainable leadership. By recruiting leaders and senior managers with the requisite skills, knowledge and values for sustainable leadership, we help our clients to embed cultures that support a sustainable future.
In 2021, Sherrington Associates commissioned research by sustainability expert and professor at Derby University Dr Paul Beers and his team, to inform our model of sustainable leadership. Read more about the research project here. The result is what we now call The 4A Model of Sustainable Leadership.
Our team use The 4A Model as a framework for assessing leadership candidates during the recruitment process. This helps us understand the candidate’s potential for developing a culture of sustainable leadership. By combining Barrett Values Centre analytics and our own 4A Model assessments, we’re able to identify the best leaders to deliver sustainability across your organisation.
Every new search assignment is unique and taking the time to really understand each client’s specific requirements is fundamental to the success of the search. Our delivery team support the client to formulate an accurate and compelling brief, before designing a polished, professional Recruitment Pack to showcase the opportunity to potential candidates.
Unlike larger executive search firms where consultants manage larger numbers of assignments at any one time therefore are more inclined to adopt a one-size-fits-all approach, we have the agility to make sure we apply the most appropriate methodology to deliver results for our client with every new search.
Our position on DEI is clear. Recruiting the best possible talent using the most meritocratic recruitment process is our first priority. Research by McKinsey shows that companies in the top quartile for gender-diversity on executive teams are 25% more profitable than those in the fourth quartile, therefore the concept of assembling diverse management teams makes sound commercial sense. We believe the executive search profession has a responsibility to play it's part in addressing inequalities and whilst we fully embrace search methods that proactively uncover talent from underrepresented groups for this reason, we'll never promote them at the expense of appointing the best possible candidate for the role in question.
Over the years we've adopted hiring tactics that enable the fairest, most effective recruitment process. For example, research shows that men tend to use more keywords on their Linkedin profiles than women, meaning that executive search consultants relying on Linkedin Recruiter may inadvertently be at a disadvantage when it comes to attracting shortlists consisting of the best talent. We've invested in intelligent technology that supplements candidate profiles using augmented keywords to draw out high calibre female talent that would otherwise unlikely be identified, so that our consultants can prioritise selecting the best talent for our client's requirements, knowing that talent across all demographics are considered fairly and equally.
From utilising enhanced technology, to promoting our client's vacancies across the most accessible media to ensure everyone gets a chance to apply, our systems and processes have evolved to make sure the best talent is appointed as a priority, whilst at the same time creating a level playing field for all applicants.
Our researchers combine desk-research, with proactive headhunting supported by the latest in AI-powered recruitment software Talentis™, to cultivate powerfully accurate long-lists of both active and passive leadership talent. Our extensive network built over 20+ years means we can access hidden talent quickly through confidential referrals, providing our clients with the best possible talent out there.
When it comes to our assessments, turning the long-list into the short-list means scrutinising candidates for the specific qualities highlighted by our clients during the briefing. Using our groundbreaking 4A Sustainable Leadership Assessment Platform, we assess candidates for their leadership qualities and their ability to achieve sustained success in post.
To maximise cultural alignment, we also use intelligent tools and analytics from Barret Values Centre, such as their Personal Values Assessment (PVA™) chosen by some of the largest corporates on the planet for assessing values in relation to the shared values and culture of the organisation. Achieving values alignment is paramount to the success of the appointment and our expertise in this area has been the reason why many clients have partnered Sherrington over many years.
If required, we can also support with full Culture Diagnostics to help build an accurate picture of the client’s organisational culture ahead of recruitment, thus enabling even more accurate matching.
We are proud to have a delivery record of 98% across all assignments since our company began. Taking a long-term partnership approach and placing trust and transparency at the heart of our work, means many of our clients have partnered with Sherrington Associates for decades.
The first six months in a new leadership role are crucial. According to research by The Society for Human Resource Management, newly appointed executives who are supported by structured coaching and mentoring during the onboarding period are 58% more likely to be with the organisation after three years.
Sherrington Associates provide tailored coaching and mentoring for newly-placed executives to support the success of executive search projects post-placement stage. Read more about our leadership development work.
Our team have over 25+ years’ experience recruiting across multiple sectors and geographies including international. As a non-sector specific search partner, we’re able to provide insights into external talent pools and make lateral matches with values alignment at the core of the shortlist. Whilst remaining sector agnostic, some of the sectors where we have vast experience include…
Our team has experience recruiting senior-level positions across the globe. With access to multi-lingual research capability, we’ve supported clients to setup new teams in overseas territories in Europe, Asia, US and South America.
To find out more about how the 4A Model of Sustainable Leadership
can support your organisation, talk to our team.
