From Costly Mistakes to Better Outcomes: Getting Executive Hiring Right

Executive hiring is one of the costliest mistakes most companies keep making. We’ve seen the data. We know the risks. Anyone can point out all the things that go wrong.

But as my dad — who was a mechanic — used to say: “Anyone can strip a car down. The real skill is putting it back together again without any parts left over.”

That’s the challenge with executive hiring too. Spotting the problems is the easy bit. Putting the process back together — in a way that consistently delivers the right outcome — is where most organisations fall short.

What better looks like

Over the years, I’ve worked across industries where executive appointments can make or break the future. And while every context is unique, the fundamentals of a strong hiring process are surprisingly consistent.

Here are the areas that shift outcomes:

1. Clarify the role and context – not just a job description. Context matters. Externally, that might mean competitive pressures, market shifts, or regulatory change. Internally, it might be transformation, downsizing, or accelerated growth. From this flows a clear role profile and a person specification that actually describes what success looks like — not just vague bullet points like “10 years’ experience.”

   
   

2. Align stakeholders – CEOs, Boards, HR, and other decision-makers need to be clear and united on what “good” looks like. Without this, you end up with different people pulling in different directions, undermining the process before it’s even begun.

   
   

3. Define success up front – and make sure the search firm is working to it. This isn’t just about competencies on a CV. It’s about clarity: what will count as success in this role, in this organisation, at this moment in time?

   
   

4. Assess capability, fit, and potential rigorously – don’t leave it to unstructured interviews where each leader asks whatever’s on their mind. Use structured conversations, agreed criteria, robust assessments, and evidence-based decision-making.

   
   

5. Plan for success in onboarding – appointment isn’t the finish line. Leaders need to be set up for success starting ideally from before day one: clear expectations, support, and structured integration into the business and culture. And that means going well beyond hygiene factors and meet-and-greets.

Why this matters

Getting this right doesn’t just save fees. It accelerates impact. It enables strategy execution, builds trust with shareholders and employees, strengthens culture, and gives customers the confidence they’re dealing with a business that knows where it’s going — and how to manage change.

Executive hiring will never be easy. But it can be done well — and it must be, given the cost of failure.

The evidence is clear: the organisations that treat executive hiring as a strategic discipline, rather than a rushed transaction, are the ones that see sustainable performance.

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Reflection Prompt

What’s one change you could make in your executive hiring process that would have the biggest impact on outcomes?