Is the Executive Search impact weak on the Economy?

I see Executive Search playing a positive role essentially in two directions:

- Accelerate the career evolution of the recruited top performers. The candidate is usually not in a mood for changing employer when he is contacted by a head hunter

- Cause some organisational changes for replacing the talent leaving. The Executive Search accelerates some positive changes which would probably have happened later.

Executive Search provides services that induce changes which can sometimes turn out to be decisive in the development of their customers.

I frequently hear people saying Executive Search has a rather weak input to the economic world for it only shifts talents from a company to another.

I believe this perception of the profession is by far too negative and keeps quiet about the very positive aspects of its positive role. I see this evolution in two directions: an increasing importance in the career evolution of top performers and a steady growth in the recruitment market to help companies finding their talents.

Let me tell you why.

- The career acceleration of top performers

Most of the talents put an increasing energy in managing their performances within their own company. In this context, actively looking for the coming move is probably not the main focus for top performers don’t have not much time left and no real motivation.

The role of Executive Search is to actually trigger the candidate’s move where there was neither real demand nor need. Quite seldom, top performers are very surprised when approached but willing to listen to the offer (the famous “we never know” concept!).

In this context, Executive Search is speeding the rate of talent change in two directions: the company welcoming its future executive and surprisingly, to a certain extent, in the one seeing its talent leaving.

Let’s review this in detail:

- The company welcoming its future executive:

The new manager is also expected to bring new management techniques, developing his market know-how, speeding-up the rate of changes.

- The company seeing its talent leaving:

For the replacement of the leaving talent, the company will either seek some external help (please see above) or choose the option of an internal promotion. This option will provide some career opportunity for the “new” manager which will be given the occasion to induce some organisational changes that otherwise should probably not have been undertaken (not to tell the other moves he will induce lower in the organisational chart).

Conclusions

From the above, we see changes that are most beneficial to both companies. I believe this is a strong added value of the Executive Search to the market as a whole. The role is reinforced by the key role played in the organisation by the recruited talents

Additionally, the new hired talent finds a new motivation that can turn out to be determinant to its company development. He plays an activator role of changes leading to progress.