Process & Toolkit

Our five disciplined phases each draw on a defined toolkit: the craft of executive search

01
Define

Define success before the search begins

Establish strategic priorities, leadership requirements, cultural considerations and stakeholder expectations, and the performance outcomes expected across the first 12 to 24 months.

Deliverables
  • Leadership mandate
  • Success definition
  • Stakeholder alignment map
Executive Search
Success profile / position specification Leadership competency model & scorecardstructured hiring scorecard (Smart & Street, “Who”) Must-have versus desirable calibration
Strategic Advisory
Leadership Mandate Canvassingle-page artefact aligning the board on one definition of success Stakeholder mappingMendelow power / interest matrix Strategy & context framingSWOT / PESTLE Performance-outcome definitionBalanced Scorecard / OKRs
Premium advisoryScoped to the mandate
Appointment pre-mortemKlein method: assume failure at 18 months, work back Strategy-to-leadership translationMcKinsey 7S Value-creation thesisvalue-driver tree, for private-equity mandates Future-capability mapscenario planning for the three-to-five-year requirement
02
Diagnose

Assess organisational readiness

Evaluate the environment a leader would inherit: commercial infrastructure, strategic clarity, and stakeholder & governance alignment. Name the gaps before the search, not after.

Deliverables
  • Readiness diagnostic
  • Risk & gap assessment
  • Recommended sequencing
Executive Search
Board & hiring-manager calibration interviews Stakeholder alignment audit
Strategic Advisory
Premium advisoryScoped to the mandate
Organisational readiness diagnosticMcKinsey 7S Fit between strategy, structure & peopleNadler-Tushman Congruence Model Drivers of performance & changeBurke-Litwin model Commercial diligencepipeline-truth and forecast-discipline review Governance & decision rightsRACI mapping Readiness Scorecard (RAG)rates each dimension red / amber / green with a sequencing plan Change-readiness pulseLewin force-field analysis of drivers versus resistors
03
Search

Map the market and engage

A thorough, discreet search that maps the full landscape rather than the merely available, every approach managed with the confidentiality your reputation, and theirs, demands.

Deliverables
  • Market map
  • Calibrated longlist
  • Qualified shortlist
Executive Search
Talent / market mappingtarget-list and “no-go” list construction Confidential approach & engagement Boolean & X-ray sourcing Calibrated shortlist reviews Balanced-slate trackermonitors the diversity of the slate against the brief
Premium advisoryScoped to the mandate
AI-assisted talent intelligenceautomated org-charting and market-signal scanning Live market-map dashboardclient-facing view of landscape coverage in real time
Strategic Advisory
Competitor & talent benchmarking
Premium advisoryScoped to the mandate
Labour-market supply / demand analysis Total-rewards / compensation benchmarking
04
Assess

Assess, reference and validate

Evaluate leadership capability, commercial effectiveness, strategic thinking, change-leadership, cultural fit and motivational drivers, understanding not just what a leader achieved but how, and whether they can repeat it here.

Deliverables
  • Structured assessment report
  • Psychometric & leadership profile
  • In-depth referencing & due diligence
Executive Search
Structured behavioural interviewingSTAR / competency-based evidence In-depth chronological interviewtopgrading approach In-depth & back-channel referencing Background verification & due diligence
Premium advisoryScoped to the mandate
AI-assisted reference synthesismulti-source theme extraction across referees
Strategic Advisory
Premium advisoryScoped to the mandate
Psychometric & personality assessmentvalidated instruments, e.g. Hogan, SHL OPQ, applied proportionately Leadership simulations & case exercisesassessment-centre method Learning agility & adaptability measures Culture-fit / values-alignment indexscored against the environment defined in Phase 01
05
Integrate

Integrate and accelerate the first 100 days

Support onboarding, stakeholder alignment, early-win identification and team effectiveness across the decisive opening months, helping the leader build credibility quickly.

Deliverables
  • Integration plan
  • First-100-days support
  • Structured check-ins
Strategic Advisory
Premium advisoryScoped to the mandate
First-100-days supportWatkins, “The First 90 Days”, STARS situational model 30, 60 and 90-day plan New-leader assimilation session Stakeholder influence mapping & early wins Executive coaching Team-effectiveness diagnostice.g. Lencioni / Hackman conditions 100-day onboarding dashboarda shared client and executive view of milestones 90-day stakeholder pulsean early-warning check before issues compound
Executive Search
Structured check-ins through the guarantee period Placement & retention tracking

Confidential Conversations

The toolkit is applied proportionately to the mandate, so boards can see the evidence behind the recommendation and the support the leader needs to succeed.