CHALLENGE: UNCERTAINTY

Businesses are faced with uncertainty – geopolitical, economic, environmental, and more. “If you think about everything that’s affecting our clients and us — geopolitical disruption, economic uncertainty, war, climate change, global slowdown, supply chain disruption — what do all those things have in common? We can’t control them and these challenges create significant uncertainty,” Greenbaum says.

SOLUTION: PARTNER WITH EXPERIENCED ADVISORS

“Uncertainty creates challenges for sure. But adaptable and resilient leaders can see past the negative aspects of uncertainty to focus on innovative opportunities,” according to Greenbaum. “From seeking new leaders to developing leaders of the future, from assessing and team building to aligning culture – a trusted talent and leadership advisor can provide targeted guidance to accelerate growth.” AESC members think beyond a single “transactional hire” through a lens of the broader business context and opportunities. “AESC members possess the necessary skills, knowledge and expertise to bring valuable insights, and help their clients create an environment where the best people want to come, stay and contribute,” Greenbaum says.

CHALLENGE: NEED FOR NEW COMPETENCIES & SKILLS

AESC’s 2022 research shows that to be successful during the pandemic, leaders needed the ability to quickly pivot. Survey respondents identified two necessary competencies: adaptability and agility.

Now, as companies move out of the pandemic mindset and leaders are evaluating and re-evaluating strategies, AESC 2023 survey respondents have replaced “adaptability” with “resilience,” says Greenbaum, who believes this shift is critically important for today’s “uncertain and turbulent times.” Businesses need “a leader who can lead with resilience so that they can inspire other people to hang in there and deal with whatever comes their way. If the last couple of years hasn’t taught us the importance of resilience, I don’t know what would,” she says.

Businesses are seeking talent that is often significantly different than what they have sought before – including leaders who can drive change and leaders with new specialized skills and competencies—all in an environment where there is a significant shortage of the right talent. AESC research indicates organizations are seeking new highly specialized roles including Chief Sustainability Officer, Climate Change Risk Officer, Chief Information Security Officer, Chief AI Officer, Data Scientist, Chief Diversity Officer, as well as traditional roles that require new capabilities, such as CIOs with expertise in artificial intelligence, cyber risk management, and platform-driven change to name just a few.

SOLUTION: PARTNER WITH AN EXECUTIVE SEARCH EXPERT

How do businesses find these new leaders? They turn to advisors with deep expertise and experience, who have done this before and understand business requirements, the evolving market, and where to look for unique talent. AESC’s most recent client research indicated that clients seek advisors with deep industry and functional expertise, a strong reputation, and experience in in-depth candidate assessment.

No longer can businesses simply rely on finding candidates with a 20-year relevant track record. Often these are new or evolving roles where a long track record is not possible. It becomes critical to partner with an expert who understands the needed requirements and knows how to broaden the search to a wider range of networks and adjacent industries.

These advisors also bring experience in multi-factor assessment to evaluate past experiences and how a candidate’s prior experiences can translate to leading in a new area, in a new environment. Often, psychometric assessments are included to understand the personality characteristics that will enable the leader to succeed in the specific role with the specific team and business. Greenbaum says, “We saw firsthand during the pandemic what happens to firms that didn’t have the right leaders to deal with a completely new challenge – the need to pivot to a virtual environment in weeks not years.”

The use of a structured multi-source assessment process not only provides a more complete picture of a candidate but is important to reduce bias through consistent validated processes.

CHALLENGE: TALENT SHORTAGE

The pandemic years created pent-up demand for leadership, which has run headlong into a talent shortage — a lack of top-tier executive leaders capable of driving innovation, managing uncertainty, fostering agility, and attracting and retaining employees. “It’s a ‘candidates’ market,’” Greenbaum says. “Candidates are often in the driver’s seat. And they seek more than just a pay increase. They are looking for an organization that has a purpose and an inclusive culture that aligns with their values. In a strong candidate market, candidates have choices and they can spend as much time or even more evaluating each opportunity as the business does evaluating them.” One emerging potential conflict in hiring – is a number of businesses want to move back to full time onsite or a hybrid environment, and executive candidates may insist upon a fully virtual role. This issue alone can be the deal breaker in hiring.”

SOLUTION: EXPERTISE MATTERS!

“A shortage of needed talent increases the need for the work we do,” Greenbaum says. “We are rarely hired for ‘an easy assignment.’ AESC member firms understand the connection between leaders, teams, and culture. And they have the in-depth experience needed to solve the most difficult talent and leadership challenges.” They can tap into a global network of executives, understand functional requirements and industry nuances and go beyond the ‘usual suspects. They also understand that it’s not just about hiring top talent. You also need to ensure that you are retaining your talent. To develop a strong leadership team and create a culture that encourages attraction and retention, there needs to be a focus on culture assessment and alignment, leadership development, team effectiveness and longer-term succession strategies.”

CHALLENGE: ATTRACTING AND RETAINING TOP TALENT

Considering the talent shortage, both attracting and retaining talent are top priorities. It’s not unusual today for executives to be pursued by more than one organization. “And when you have choices,” Greenbaum says, “you’re going to ask a lot of questions, not just about how much money you’ll make, but what it’s like working for the business pursuing you. Is the purpose and culture aligned with your own values? Do you connect with the selection committee and others that you meet in the interview process? Is this the kind of place you want to go and where you see yourself staying? Purpose and culture matter.”

SOLUTION: MATCH CANDIDATES TO CULTURE

AESC’s recent BlueSteps survey found that 59% of executives are looking for a new position. This shows that companies are missing an opportunity to both attract and retain talent if they don’t address their own leadership, values and culture.

Talent and leadership advisors know the importance of assessing the current culture, hiring the right leaders to help lead a culture shift, assessing why leaders join and why they stay, and more. It’s critical to be authentic about priorities in areas such as diversity, equity and inclusion, sustainability and a commitment to the environment, and even the current culture and what needs to change. Also, they work with the clients to understand why an organization may be seeking leaders who are ‘culture adds’ in their quest to build a diverse, purpose-driven leadership team.