James Neil

Some great content here for Leaders in the Consulting space. If you are thinking about what 2025 may hold from a growth and talent retention stand point, this should make for an interesting read. Thanks Stephen Haigh and Charlie Pitt for pulling this together!

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How to improve executive succession planning. Lots to think about and my discussion with colleague Clancy Murphy will I hope give you some good insights.

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“Exploring the Value of Executive Recruiters in Attracting Top Talent, Part 3” In my previous blogs, we laid the groundwork for understanding why executive search firms justify their fees, initially focusing on the critical, often overlooked factors of Expertise and Casting a wider net. In today's blog, I will delve into another crucial reason why executive search consultants are worth what they charge: cost. Employers persist in misinterpreting the actual cost of recruiting for high-value leadership positions. This can be divided into two key categories: direct recruitment costs and, more significantly, the cost of making a poor or incorrect choice or mishiring. From a tactical standpoint, recruiting costs extend beyond simply posting a job on platforms like LinkedIn and Indeed. It encompasses the salaries and benefits of the recruiting and employment staff and the line managers involved in the hiring process (who are not as productive in their regular roles while engaged in recruiting activities). Additional hidden or often overlooked costs include travel and entertainment expenses for in-house recruiting staff, external research, and source development costs, ATS/CRM databases and maintenance expenses, reference checking and degree verification, and clerical costs associated with managing responses from numerous unqualified candidates. They add up quickly and should be considered when estimating the true cost of recruitment. The cost of mis-hiring is not to be taken lightly: Misplacements lead to displacements that necessitate replacements. According to the Conference Board, 50% of senior-level hires leave within 18 months. That is a staggering statistic. It's a common misconception that the replacement cost is solely measured in the hard costs listed above. However, these only represent one-third of the true cost of a mis-hire. The remaining two-thirds encompass mistakes, missed opportunities, lost business, disruptions, lawsuits, etc. Depending on the source, the true cost of a mis-hire can range from five to twenty-five times an executive's base compensation. For instance, for an executive with a $250,000 base salary, a mis-hire could cost between $1.5 million and $6 million. Engaging a reputable Executive Search firm is not just a cost but an investment in risk mitigation and enhancing your business value. #retainedexecutivesearch #leadership #careers #talentacquisition #management

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A few months ago we were invited to bid on a Piece of work to hire a team of Data Engineers in Spain by a client who had a deadline. We put in a proposal with three tiers of option ( Daddy Bear, Mummy Bear and Baby Bear) ( retained, retainer, contingent) and were ultimately pipped by an agency who were price led and went in at 10% across the board. This was led by their Business Development person who then would only have to pass the roles back to the consultants to be filled. Its a model that works for some businesses but you need to do your Due Diligence. Ultimately the client came back to us after waiting for 2.5 months for some success as they had received a poor level of service from the chosen ones and were now in dire need. In most recruitment businesses, the recruiters receive a commission based on the value of the placement. Therefore if you are paying around half market rate dont be surprised if you dont receive the levels of service you were promised at the initial meeting by a very enthusiastic BD person who gets paid to simply sign up new clients. The person doing the leg work naturally sends the best candidates to the clients paying the higher fees as it directly impacts their earning potential and you find yourself low on their list of priorities and not receiving the service you were promised. This isnt a " our recruitment model is better then your recruitment model post" as not all agencies operate like this. Some dont have commissions based on revenue, but most do, and its worth you asking the extra questions before committing to the cheapest. Something about peanuts and monkeys...... #ifyouknowwhatswhatweknowwhoswho #wddesp (any excuse to post the first gif from day one of the internet)

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How To Handle Underperforming Directors: The recently released PwC 2024 Annual Corporate Directors Survey reveals that director discontent with their colleagues is at an all-time high. According to the report, 49 percent of directors surveyed said at least one director on their board should be replaced and 25 percent said two or more directors should be replaced. The report suggests boards should: develop clear plans of action that ensure accountability after a full board assessment; conduct their own individual director assessments; and consult with outside experts for solutions and have board leadership set the right tone concerning board performance. https://lnkd.in/e3dxJT5P Addressing growing dissatisfaction among directors requires stronger accountability, individual assessments, and proactive leadership.

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Here you can Review the SC Search+ Process:

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I've recently written a short article on hiring Private Equity Interim CFOs in the eyes of the search consultant across EMEA. When GPs hunt for interim CFOs at their portfolio companies, the best approach is one that begins with technology, but never ends there... https://lnkd.in/gpKSgegJ #privateequity #valuecreation #operatingpartner #talent #cfo #humancapital #transformation

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⚽ Football could be coming home, but what about Private Equity dealmaking? Bain & Company's excellent PE Mid-Year report suggests the answer is a 'tentative yes', with dealmaking having stabilised in the first half of 2024. The report provides a balanced view and doesn't shy away from some of the challenges still impacting the industry, but those elusive 'green shoots' of recovery are starting to show. I remain optimistic for the second half of 2024 and look forward to seeing how the market evolves. 🚀 #PrivateEquity #CorporateDevelopment #Strategy #ValueCreation

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KRS-Associates is hiring recruiters for both our Surrey and London-based offices across numerous levels. If you have experience in recruiting for strategy consultancies and are open to a new challenge, there are a few key points about KRS that are worth noting. 1) Our commission structure hits 40% and we have zero thresholds (e.g. you're earning commission immediately upon billing). I've heard of some strange commission structures recently which seem deliberately opaque or unrealistic. We genuinely like rewarding those who have achieved. 2) We are highly specialised, focused exclusively on the consulting sector. Everything internally is aligned (training, coaching, collaboration, peer-support) to the consulting sector only. This deep specialisation has helped us navigate the tougher market and continue to grow. 3) Your career path can be tailored to being client-centric, an independent biller or a team manager - the choice is yours. If you display the right ability and characteristics, we'll co-create the path with you. For more information on opportunities available, please reach out to Meredith Hone or myself directly for a confidential discussion. #krsassociates #hiring #recruitment #strategyconsulting #managementconsulting

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Our Page Executive 2024 UK Salary Guide is here! Access our report to help inform your benchmarking exercise on compensation, bonus and benefits for C-suite and senior leadership roles across multiple functions and sectors. The guide also includes market insights from our reputed principals and partners who have successful track records placing leadership talent to help UK businesses transform and grow. Download today: https://lnkd.in/dTDx_UzF #salaryguide #executivesearch #leadership #unitedkingdom #uk #marketinsights #csuite

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Fascinating article about the significant disparity in executive compensation between the UK and the US. On average, UK executives are paid significantly less than their American counterparts, which poses a risk of talent migration from Britain to the United States. Could this gap in pay undermine the competitiveness of the UK's capital markets and its ability to retain top executive talent? One might wonder if we'll see an increasing trend of executives moving to financially rewarding markets such as New York. https://lnkd.in/ePMVq7SC

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We hosted Josh Bersin and leaders from Talent Acquisition and Human Resources in our new London headquarters to discuss insights from our latest Talent Climate Series report with The Josh Bersin Company. We explored TA's shift to becoming a more strategic business partner, the role of AI in transforming recruitment strategies, how internal culture is key for attracting and retaining the right talent and addressing skills shortages. To learn more about these trends redefining the future of talent acquisition, check out our latest Talent Climate report: https://lnkd.in/gMxaaQyy #Talent #TalentAcquisition #HR #TalentClimate #TalentClimateResearch #WeAreAMS #TalentIsOurWorld

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Check out the latest blog post from Elite People Partners: How to Cultivate Top Talent While Navigating a Volatile Job Market

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Another excellent article by Jo Major (She/her) of Diversity in Recruitment exclusively for The HR World A big topic and well worth 10 minutes of your day!

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👉 If you want to know the top reasons for attrition among top performers (and how to prevent it)! ✨ And how to build better relationships with your employees so you can get the best of them! Then this Tuesday's lunchtime webinar, Strategies for Retaining Top Performers and C-Suite with Impactable, is for you! I'm honoured to be a guest speaker alongside Lucinda Reader where I'll be talking through the above and more. All the details and registration link are below 👇 What do you think are the best strategies for retaining talent? I'll do my best to include them. Let me know your ideas in the comments ☁️

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What are the latest trends in healthcare Investment? Tracey Alper, the leader of our Investor-led CFO and Finance Executive Search division, has written an insightful article on the latest trends in healthcare investment. This article covers: - How the healthcare sector is evolving - Specialist funds are retaining top talent - What this means for generalist healthcare funds Read her article today: https://lnkd.in/eAzF2Jpu #HealthcareInvestment #Biotechnology #Innovation

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