85. Executive Recruiters

When a Fortune 500 company needs a new leader, it turns to a well-connected headhunter who assesses candidates with psychological tests and mock TV interviews. Zachary Crockett activates his network.  

• SOURCES:
  • Julian Ha, partner at the executive recruiting firm Heidrick & Struggles.
  • Jane Stevenson, global vice chair of board and CEO services at Korn Ferry.

• RESOURCES:
  • "The Transformation of the CEO," by Stephen Langton, Rusty O'Kelley, Laura Sanderson, and Sean Roberts (Russell Reynolds Associates, 2024).
  • "Executive Paywatch" (AFL-CIO, 2023).
  • "Diversity matters even more: The case for holistic impact," by Dame Vivian Hunt, Sundiatu Dixon-Fyle, Celia Huber, María del Mar Martínez Márquez, Sara Prince, and Ashley Thomas (McKinsey & Company, 2023).
  • "CEO Tenure Rates," by Joyce Chen (Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governenance, 2023).
  • "Best Industries to Recruit for in the US" (Precision Global Consulting).