Insights

Hiring insights for technology and marketing leaders

What we see across searches: how senior teams get built, what makes leaders say yes, and where hiring processes quietly go wrong.

· 1 min read

AI will reshape millions of roles. Your org chart shouldn't be a bystander.

Goldman Sachs has projected that AI will alter the work of millions of U.S. workers. Whatever the exact number ends up being, the direction is clear, and most companies are still hiring against org charts designed before any of it. The leaders getting this right aren't asking "which jobs does AI eliminate?" They're asking "which roles should be redesigned around it?" Different question, dramatically different hiring plan. Worth doing this quarter: before approving your next senior...

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· 1 min read

The market for exceptional leaders never actually softens.

B-players become easier to hire in every downturn. A-players never do. Someone is always funding their next mandate, in any cycle, in every market we work. That's the part hiring plans keep missing. "We'll wait for the market to cool" assumes the leaders you want cool with it. They don't. The competition for the top of the market is permanent; only the noise level changes. The companies that consistently win those people share one habit: they move with conviction. Clear mandate, tight...

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· 1 min read

Layoff cycles are when smart companies quietly upgrade their leadership.

Layoff cycles are when smart companies quietly upgrade their leadership. Every tech downturn cycle puts exceptional operators in motion: people who were unreachable eighteen months earlier, now taking calls. Companies that hire into that window get talent their budgets couldn't touch at the peak. Most don't. Layoff headlines trigger institutional caution exactly when boldness pays best, and the window closes fast: the strongest people released in any cycle land within months. For leaders...

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· 1 min read

The strict requirements list is how you hire the past.

The strict requirements list is how you hire the past. Checklist hiring optimizes for people who've already done your exact job in your exact industry. Comfortable, and frequently wrong: you're hiring for a market that's already moved. What keeps predicting success in our placements instead: transferable judgment, adaptability, and evidence that the person levels up every environment they enter. The VP who's navigated three business models often outperforms the one who's repeated the same...

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· 1 min read

Emotional intelligence is the least tested skill in executive interviews.

Emotional intelligence is the least tested skill in executive interviews. Technical credentials get verified. Track records get referenced. But the qualities that actually sink leaders (how they handle pressure, absorb feedback, treat people below them) mostly get guessed at. The market keeps revaluing these "human" skills upward, especially in technology and finance, where the technical bar is table stakes and the failures are almost always behavioral. A practical fix: build one interview...

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· 1 min read

Top executives aren't found. They're convinced.

Top executives aren't found. They're convinced. There's no shortage of candidates for any senior role. There's a shortage of reasons for the best ones to say yes. That's the actual constraint in competitive markets, and most companies aggravate it. The mistake: spending months perfecting the search process and zero hours on the pitch. Why this role, why now, why would a thriving leader leave a good thing for it? Before your next search, write the answer down. One page. If it isn't...

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· 1 min read

Hiring is a service business. Most companies treat it like procurement.

Hiring is a service business. Most companies treat it like procurement. Candidates for senior roles are evaluating you as hard as you're evaluating them: response times, interview quality, how your team talks about the company. Every touchpoint is a signal. The companies that win competitive searches treat candidates like clients: clear process, honest answers, fast decisions. The ones that lose treat interviews like favors they're granting. One test worth running this week: ask your last...

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· 1 min read

Culture fit is often misused when rejecting candidates.

Culture fit is often misused when rejecting candidates. Too often, "culture fit" becomes a mask for bias or an excuse to avoid innovation. Leadership teams sometimes lean on it to maintain the status quo, rather than embrace diverse perspectives. This mindset costs companies both in innovation and the top talent market. Imagine rejecting a technically brilliant VP of Engineering because they don't play golf with the rest of the leadership team. It sounds absurd, but it happens more often...

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· 1 min read

A.I. Isn't Replacing Developers Yet, and That's Telling.

A.I. Isn't Replacing Developers Yet, and That's Telling. Atlassian's latest results tell us something intriguing: despite AI's rise, the demand for skilled developers remains robust. The tech industry's expectation that AI would cut software developer jobs hasn't panned out, which calls for a re-evaluation of hiring strategies. For hiring executives, this is an important wake-up call. It's time to reassess how AI fits into your talent strategy. Don't overlook the continuous need for...

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· 1 min read

AI Efficiency in a Slowing Job Market: Opportunity or Threat?

AI Efficiency in a Slowing Job Market: Opportunity or Threat? Job cuts in July signal a cooling job market, especially for those with a traditional perspective on hiring. But the rise of artificial intelligence may transform this slowdown into an opportunity for strategic shift. In search, this means recognizing AI's potential to make workers more effective. Founders and hiring executives should prepare for adjustments in workforce needs by leveraging AI to augment existing roles. The real...

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· 1 min read

Building A-Teams Begins Before You Hire

Building A-Teams Begins Before You Hire Too many companies fail at hiring because they rush to fill a position without clarity. The shiny pitch of a well-structured job description easily distracts, yet the core question remains: what singular problem must this hire solve? Companies often mistake activity for progress. Filling a role quickly with the wrong person is merely a Band-Aid on a deeper wound. The real work begins before the candidate search. Define your needs precisely. Retreat...

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· 1 min read

AI's Role in Job Market Changes: What Leaders Should Know

AI's Role in Job Market Changes: What Leaders Should Know The US job market saw a slight dip in July with the loss of 23,000 positions. While some may see this as an immediate red flag, it's crucial to examine the potential influence of artificial intelligence on this trend. Hiring executives often fear what they can't predict, but every industry disruption also carries new opportunities. AI's dual capacity to create efficiencies and eliminate redundant roles can be key in refining your...

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· 2 min read

Executive Search vs. Recruiting Agency: What's the Difference?

Executive search and recruiting agencies both help companies hire, but they work differently. Executive search proactively maps a market and approaches senior leaders who aren't job hunting, while a typical recruiting agency fills roles faster from a pool of active candidates. The fee models differ too — and understanding both will help you pick the right partner for the role you need to fill. What a recruiting agency does A recruiting agency works on contingency: no fee unless they place...

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· 1 min read

Talent wars are heating up in South Florida and Toronto.

Talent wars are heating up in South Florida and Toronto. Competition for top-notch professionals in these markets is escalating, and companies are pulling out all the stops to attract the best. This heightened demand spells opportunity for professionals open to new possibilities. Now more than ever, your unique skills and experience are commodities that companies are vying for. It's no longer merely about securing a paycheck, but about finding the right fit — a workplace where you can grow,...

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· 4 min read

Stop Asking “Why” and Start Asking “How”

“The child is father of the man,” wrote William Wordsworth back in 1802. A century and a half later, The Beach Boys paid homage to Wordsworth in a song with the same title. From a 21st century perspective, we would prefer them to have said, “The child is parent to the adult,” but let’s be forgiving and assume that both were looking for something that scanned easily rather than being consciously gender exclusive. Whether we stick with father/man or update to parent/adult, the line contains a...

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· 3 min read

Even In Stressful Times, Setting A More Difficult Goal Could Increase Your Happiness

In less stressful times, it wouldn’t seem too crazy to suggest that setting difficult goals for ourselves might deliver a motivational boost. Whether your preferred methodology is HARD Goals, BHAGs, stretch goals, or whatever, there’s no shortage of evidence that difficult or audacious goals improve achievement and, as a result, overall fulfillment and happiness. Of course, these aren’t normal times. For example, in Leadership IQ’s study Employee Burnout In 2021 , we learned that only 25% of...

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· 3 min read

3 Ways to Flip the 'Great Resignation' Into the 'Great Retention'

According to The 2021 People Management Report , which surveyed 2,000 workers across 15-plus industries, 48% have considered quitting their jobs in the past year. Looking ahead 12 months: A staggering 57% are thinking of leaving in the near future. “The Great Resignation,” as it’s been deemed , is just the latest front in the war for talent. If a high performer doesn’t feel engaged in their job, they’ll start looking for a job that does motivate them. That’s talent optimization in action....

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· 3 min read

Hiring on a Budget: Where to Post a Job for Free.

Job posting sites are crucial when it comes to finding talent. They promote your company and your job openings to qualified candidates that may not have otherwise known you were hiring. Even if you don't have an existing career page, job sites can still provide a premium hiring experience for potential employees. Growing businesses know that an efficient hiring process saves time, money, resources and lets you make hiring decisions faster. Many job sites are also equipped with other valuable...

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· 6 min read

Life’s 4 Quarters – And How The Map Shapes The Road

There are many theories of adult development, but they lean to the complicated. If we are going to live to 100, it’s time we get a better grip of what to expect – and how to navigate - longer lives. And why the extra decades that science has gifted us this past century changes the shape of life as a whole. So here’s my very simple proposition, gleaned from decades of coaching and dozens of interviews of people transitioning between different phases of their lives. It’s called the Four...

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· 5 min read

How Worried Should We Be About Inflation?

High inflation is making the news, and many people are worried. On the one hand, rising prices are taking a bigger bite out of families’ wallets than they did in recent years. On the other hand, price spikes are concentrated in a few items and may prove temporary. Workers, especially low-income ones, have also seen strong wage gains that outpace price increases, so their overall standards of living are still improving. Rather than worrying about temporary, limited price spikes, policymakers...

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