Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 LEADERS TALENT INSIGHTS REPORT For Leaders from Leaders

Transcription

1 Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 LEADERS TALENT INSIGHTS REPORT 2018 For Leaders from Leaders 1

2 Principal Connections Leaders in Executive Search LEADERS TALENT INSIGHTS REPORT 2018 For Leaders from Leaders Principal Connections Search & Advisory The Irish Arm of Agilium Worldwide LLC 95 Lower Baggot Street An Droichead, Bridge Street, Dublin 2 Gortnamona, Headford, Galway +353 (0) (0) info@principalconnections.ie 2

3 Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 CONTENTS Foreword 04 About 05 Methodology 05 Demographics 06 Research Findings 07 Summary 18 Consulting Team 19 3

4 Principal Connections Leaders in Executive Search FOREWORD Principal Connections is Ireland s leading retained executive search firm and the Irish Arm of Agilium Worldwide LLC, one of the world s largest and foremost executive search groups. Over the years we have advised on many of the most significant appointments that have emerged within all types of organisations across the Private, Public and Not-For-Profit sectors. With constant change now a significant facet of today s global employment market, many organisations are battling to determine how best to manage their leadership talent agendas to meet new and evolving organisational requirements. Between the months of June and August 2017, we undertook a comprehensive study among the senior executive community who lead the people agenda in Ireland. In this report, we consider what perspectives such leaders had towards a diverse range of topics including: recruitment, retention, development, performance, succession, diversity among other themes. For the purposes of the study, leaders were categorised as first line executive management and second line senior management. The results of the research undertaken provide a lens into how organisations have operated and more importantly, how they may operate in This is the first year of the research programme, the findings of which will enable us to build on similar future studies. We invite you to share this report with your colleagues and peers. Warmest regards, Pat O Donnell Pat O Donnell Managing Partner, Principal Connections search & advisory The Irish Arm of Agilium Worldwide Executive Search Group 4

5 Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 ABOUT Principal Connections is Ireland s leading Retained Executive Search and Leadership Consulting Firm. Our Mission is to deliver Superior, High Value, Accelerated and Customised Senior Executive Search, Headhunting, Advertised Selection, Interim Management, Non-Executive Director and Chairperson Recruitment in addition to a variety of Leadership Consulting Solutions. With office locations in Dublin and Galway, Principal Connections partners with Large Multinational Corporations, Small to Medium Enterprises, Start-up and Family Owned Businesses, Not-For-Profit, Semi-State and Public-Sector Bodies in the identification, assessment, and recruitment of key Management, Executive and Specialist leadership talent. Principal Connections is the Irish Arm of Agilium Worldwide Executive Search Group, one of the world s largest and foremost Global Executive Search Organisations. Together with our colleagues across 55 Offices in 30 Countries, each year we complete in excess of 1300 Assignments within most Major Industries and Functional Areas. Principal Connections is the only retained Executive Search Firm in Ireland to be Named Best in Practice for our Executive Search Services by the National Recruitment Federation (NRF), an achievement synonymous with our 98% Success Rate. We are also a Founding Member of the Voluntary Code of Conduct for Diversity for Senior Recruitment and Executive Search Firms in Ireland and operate to the rigorous industry and government recognised Code of Professional Practice and Standards of Excellence of the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC). METHODOLOGY Principal Connections designed a survey focused on the leadership talent agenda for organisations domiciled on the Island of Ireland. The survey was devised to understand what perspectives leaders of the people agenda had towards a diverse range of topics including: recruitment, retention, development, performance, succession, diversity among other themes. In this context leaders were categorised as first line executive management and second line senior management. The aim of the study was to inform the decision making of talent agenda leaders to optimally meet the new and ever changing organisational needs of today s business environment. The survey was conducted using an online survey methodology. Prospective respondents were ed directly by Principal Connections and invited to participate. Within the invite was an embedded link which led respondents directly to the survey. The survey was conducted in line with best practice as set down by ESOMAR the European Market Research Organisation and AIMRO the Association of Irish Market Research Organisations. All individual responses were anonymous and only aggregated responses are reported herein. 5

6 Principal Connections Leaders in Executive Search DEMOGRAPHICS In total, 202 respondents, senior executives who are leaders of the people agenda in their respective organisations completed the survey. Among the sample, 64% of respondents came from the Private Sector, while 24% came from the Not-For-Profit Sector and 1 of respondents came from the Semi-State and Public Sector respectively. Semi-State / Public Sector Not-For-Profit 1 24% 64% Private Respondents were also drawn from across each of our firms distinct practice areas; every major area of Irish industry was therefore represented in the respondent profile. This was broken out as follows: Education, Not-For-Profit and Public Sector 3 Consumer Goods and Services 16% Financial Services 1 Industrial 1 Life Sciences and Private Healthcare 9% Business and Professional Services 8% Technology, Media and Telecommunications 7% Other Services 2% Energy and Utilities 2% Private Equity and Venture Capital In terms of their career positioning, the largest proportion of respondents were Chief Executives, Managing Directors and Country Heads (precisely 50%); followed by Divisional Directors (CxO and Board First Line Senior Management) (27%); then Functional Head (Second Line Senior Management) (22%); and finally, Partner and Shareholder (). Partner and Shareholder Functional Head 22% 27% 50% Chief Executive Managing Director Country Head The survey was completed by respondents between the months of June and August Divisional Director 6

7 Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 Q1 Respondents were asked to select the 3 most important reasons why they believed leaders chose to join their organisations A significant 52% of respondents selected Exciting or Challenging Work as the primary reason why they felt leaders opted to join their organisations. This was followed closely by 50% of respondents who selected Opportunity to Impact or Meaningful Work while 46% of respondents selected organisational Brand or Reputation. It was interesting and rather surprising to find that a minority of only 18% of respondents selected Remuneration and Benefits as one of the primary reasons why leaders chose to join their organisations while Flexible Working Arrangements accounted for only 6%, and just 5% of respondents jointly selected Work Life Balance and Job Security. Top 3 responses: 52% Exciting / Challenging Work 50% Opportunity to Impact / Meaningful Work 46% Brand or Reputation Other findings: Career Advancement Culture and Values Alignment with Mission Remuneration and Benefits Learning and Development Opportunities Flexible Working Arrangements Location 6% 6% 12% 18% 28% 32% 35% Job Security Work Life Balance Corporate Social Responsibility Internal Relationships 5% 5% 7

8 Principal Connections Leaders in Executive Search Q2 Respondents were asked to select the 3 primary reasons why they felt leaders chose to leave their organisations An overwhelming 50% of respondents selected Career Advancement as the core reason why they felt leaders elected to leave their organisations. This was followed by 37% of respondents selecting Fresh Opportunity to Impact Elsewhere with Remuneration and Benefits accounting for a significant 35% of respondents. It was interesting to note that a minority of 20% of respondents said leaders leave their organisations due to feeling Undervalued while 16% were said to leave due to pursuing a Career Change, and 13% due to Change of Chief Executive, Managing Director, Board Members or Chairs. Top 3 responses: 50% Career Advancement 37% Fresh Opportunity to Impact Elsewhere 35% Remuneration and Benefits Other findings: Feel Undervalued 20% Career Change Completion of Term / Contract Change of Chief Executive, Managing Director, Board Members or Chairs Work Life Balance To join a Larger Organisation Unsuccessful as Internal Candidate Work no longer Exciting / Challenging Lack of buy into the Strategy Lack of Resources Lack of buy into the Leadership Retirement Culture and Values 16% 15% 13% 12% 12% 1 10% 10% 9% 9% 8% 8% Job Security Misalignment with Mission Learning and Development Opportunities Location Illness Flexible Working Arrangements Brand and Reputation 4% 4% 3% 3% 2% 8

9 Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 Q3 Respondents were asked to select the 3 key reasons why they believed leaders chose to remain with their organisations A clear correlation was evident between why leaders chose to join their organisations and indeed why they remain. Similar ranking to that of why leaders chose to join their organisations applied in this instance. 47% of respondents selected Exciting or Challenging Work and 4 of respondents selected Opportunity to Impact or Meaningful Work as the prime reasons to stay put. However, in contrast, a significant 35% of respondents said that Culture and Values followed by Alignment with Mission (33%) were among the top reasons why leaders chose to remain. It was particularly interesting to learn that 22% of respondents said that leaders stay with their organisations due to Internal Relationships, and 19% due to Career Advancement. It is worth mentioning that Location and indeed Corporate Social Responsibility were considered relatively insignificant in why leaders chose to join, leave or stay with organisations. Top 3 responses: 47% Exciting / Challenging Work 4 Opportunity to Impact / Meaningful Work 35% Culture and Values Other findings: Alignment with Mission Brand and Reputation Internal Relationship/s Career Advancement Learning and Development Opportunities Remuneration and Benefits Job Security Flexible Working Arrangements Work Life Balance Location 7% 15% 15% 13% 12% 1 19% 22% 24% 33% Complacency Corporate Social Responsibility 4% 9

10 Principal Connections Leaders in Executive Search Q4 Respondents were asked to describe to what extent they believed Diversity featured in the decision making of their organisations when recruiting leaders As a firm we at Principal Connections strongly believe in the value of diversity in the workplace. It was therefore reassuring to learn that 19% of respondents said that diversity was considered To a High Extent in the decision making of their organisations when recruiting leaders together with an additional 60% indicating that diversity was considered To a Moderate Extent. However, it would still certainly appear that there is room among organisations domiciled in Ireland to consider the value of diversity in the workplace with a 5 th of respondents indicating that they believed that diversity was considered To a Low Extent or To No Extent when recruiting leaders. To a Moderate Extent To a High Extent To a Low Extent To No Extent 3% 17% 19% 60% Q5 Respondents were asked to describe which one of the following was most important to their organisations when recruiting for leadership positions: Quality of Hire, Cost to Hire, Time to Hire and Diversity of Hire. An overwhelming 97% of respondents indicated that Quality of Hire was first and foremost the prime consideration for their organisations when recruiting for leadership positions. At a considerable distance, this was trailed by Cost to Hire (2%) and Time to Hire (). Although respondents could only select 1 of 4 options presented, it was interesting to note that in this context Diversity was considered inferior in particular to Cost to Hire and Time to Hire. Time to Hire Cost to Hire 2% 97% Quality of Hire 10

11 Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 Q6 Respondents were asked to describe which functional leadership role was most difficult for their organisations to fill Unsurprisingly our research series confirmed Information Technology based leadership roles (incl. Digital, Information, Data, Analytics etc.) as the most difficult for organisations to fill with 14% of respondents agreeing on this option. This was followed in 2 nd rank by 13% of respondents selecting Commercial leadership roles (incl. Sales / Business Development / Memberships / Customer Experience / Fundraising etc.), while 10% of respondents opted to select Operations (incl. Chief Executive, Managing Director etc.), 7% selected Finance and 7% Medical / Clinical / Dental functional leadership positions. Top 3 responses: 14% Information Technology (incl. Digital Information, Data, Analytics etc.) 13% Commercial (incl. Sales / Business Development / Memberships / Customer Exp ) 10% Operations Other findings: Finance (incl. Chief Executive, Managing Director etc.) Medical / Clinical / Dental Strategy (incl. Policy, Research, Innovation and Planning etc.) Legal (incl. Audit, Risk, Compliance and Regulation etc.) Engineering Communication (incl. Corporate Affairs, Advocacy and Representation etc.) Marketing Non-Executive Director / Chair None of the Above Project Management Product Administrative Quality (incl. Heath, Safety) Science Management Consulting Manufacturing 7% 7% 7% 6% 6% 4% 3% 3% 3% 3% 2% 2% 2% 11

12 Principal Connections Leaders in Executive Search Q7 Respondents were asked to select the option which best described the approach of their organisations to leadership succession planning The findings of this section were particularly striking. 25% of respondents indicated that their organisations had No Succession Plan in place, a further 25% of respondents suggested that their organisations had a Succession Plan Consisting of an Internal Talent Pool Only that was Regularly Reviewed, and 22% of respondents indicated that their organisations had a Succession Plan that was Not Reviewed Regularly (at least annually). It was somewhat concerning to find that just over a 5 th of those who completed the survey indicated that their organisations had in fact a Succession Plan Consisting of an Internal and External Talent Pool that was Regularly Reviewed. It would therefore appear that many organisations are underprepared and simply reactive when it comes to having next generation internal and external leaders identified. No Succession Plan Internal Talent Pool Only that is Regularly Reviewed Not Reviewed Regularly (at least annually) Internal and External Talent Pool that is Regularly Reviewed An Emergency / Contingency Plan External Talent Pool Only that is Regularly Reviewed 6% 25% 25% 22% 20% Q8 Respondents were asked to select what number of leadership positions their organisations had recruited for in the past 12 months 25% of those who completed the survey responded by indicating that 2 leadership appointments had been made in the last 12 months within their organisations, while 20% agreed that 1 such appointment had been made, and 17% said that 3 leadership roles had been recruited for. The findings confirmed that there has been a healthy appetite for the recruitment of first line and second line leadership talent in the last 12 months, with 6% of respondents indicating that their organisations had recruited for 5 such positions while 9% and 10% suggested that they had recruited for 5+ and 4 such positions respectively. 1 of respondents indicated that they had in fact made no such leadership appointments % 9% 17% 20% 25% 5 6% 12

13 Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 Q9 Respondents were asked to select what number of leadership positions their organisations will recruit for in the next 12 months 3 of those who completed the survey responded by indicating that 1 leadership appointment will be made in the next 12 months while 24% agreed that 2 such positions will be filled and 19% of respondents signalled that no leadership roles will be filled, in the next 12 months. When compared against the previous question, it was interesting to note the increase in the number of respondents who said that 1 leadership appointment will be made in the next 12 months went from 20% to 3; with a comparable respondent demographic indicating that 2 leaderships positions will be recruited for in the next 12 months. Markedly, there was a substantial drop in the number of respondents who indicated that 3, 4 and 5+ leadership roles will be recruited for when compared against the previous 12 months, while a similar number of respondents said that 5 leadership roles will be recruited for % 10% 19% 24% % 3% Q10 Respondents were asked to select what number of interim leadership positions their organisations had recruited for in the past 12 months Surprisingly, 54% of respondents in this instance indicated that their organisations had not in fact recruited an interim leader in the past 12 months with 25% suggesting that their organisations had recruited for 1 such role. 12% of respondents indicated that 2 interim leaders had been recruited, 6% indicated that 3 had been recruited, and finally, said that 5+ interim leaders had been appointed in the past 12 months. It would appear that the remarkable contribution that interim leaders can make is yet to be fully realised within the Irish business environment % 12% 25% 54%

14 Principal Connections Leaders in Executive Search Q11 In this section respondents were asked to describe the reasons why their organisations had recruited 1 or more interim leaders in the past 12 months 24% of respondents agreed on an Unexpected Leadership Gap as the core reason why their organisations had recruited 1 or more interim leaders in the past 12 months. This was followed closely by 23% of respondents who selected Transformation, Transition or Change. While 14% of respondents selected a A New Initiative or Project it was interesting to note that only 3% of respondents selected Crisis, Turnaround or Recovery. Based on those who chose to respond to the question 46% said that No Interim Leader was Appointed. No Interim Leader was Appointed Unexpected Leadership Gap Transformations, Transition / Change A New Initiative / Project Crisis, Turnaround / Recovery 3% 14% 24% 23% 46% Q12 Respondents were asked to select the option which best described the approach of their organisations to offering leadership development programmes It would appear from the findings that unlike succession planning there is a healthy approach among organisations to offering leadership development in Ireland. 46% of respondents who participated in the survey indicated that leadership development programmes were offered to Senior Executives, 45% indicated that such programmes were offered to Senior Management, while 45% of respondents also indicated that they were offered to High Potentials, and finally, 38% said that they were offered to New Managers. Although in the minority, 16% of respondents indicated that Leadership Development Programmes were Unavailable in their organisations. It is therefore fair to say that there is still room for improvement among organisations generally in Ireland while the vast majority see the value in investing in leadership development. Top 3 responses: 46% Senior Executives 45% Senior Managers Other findings: 45% High-potentials (irrespective of level) New Managers Managers New Senior Managers New Executives Leadership Development Programs Unavailable Board Members Diverse Groups 7% 16% 15% 29% 34% 38% 38% 14

15 Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 Q13 Respondents were asked to select the top 5 competencies in leaders they felt their organisations valued most. Within this section respondents were provided with a comprehensive list of 28 different competencies to select from. A convincing 60% of respondents selected Strategic Thinking followed next by 50% who selected People Management. Financial Acumen (28%) was then followed jointly by Vision (26%) and Integrity / Honesty (26%). Although respondents had a wide-ranging choice of competencies to select from, it was particularly interesting to find that only 24% of respondents selected Technical Competence and Expertise ranking it 7 th and 19% of respondents selected Communication ranking it 12 th on our competency list. It was very surprising to note that Learning Agility ranked 27 th with a respondent selection of only 5%. Top 5 responses: 60% 50% Strategic Thinking People Management 28% 26% Financial Acumen Vision 26% Integrity / Honesty Other findings: Entrepreneurship 24% Customer Service 15% Technical Competence and Expertise 24% External Awareness 15% Creativity / Innovation 23% Politically Savvy 14% Commercial Acumen 22% Decisiveness 13% Team Building 20% Adaptability 13% Partnering / Collaboration 20% Ethics / Social Responsibility 13% Communication 19% Technological Understanding 8% Influencing / Negotiating 19% Flexibility 8% Interpersonal Skills 19% Conflict Management 6% Developing Other 18% Learning Agility 5% Accountability 18% Leveraging Diversity Resilience 16% 15

16 Principal Connections Leaders in Executive Search Q14 Respondents were asked to select the top 5 leadership development methods utilised by their organisations 54% of respondents in this instance agreed on Mentoring as the top leadership development method utilised by their organisations. This was followed closely by a 53% respondent demographic who selected Individual Coaching by an External Coach. Additional Developmental Activities / Special Projects (46%), followed by Diploma / Certificate Programs (45%) and 360 Degree Feedback (40%) completed the top 5 leadership development methods. It was interesting to learn that just over 1 of respondents said that their organisations offered No Leadership Development while 15% selected Secondment, 2 selected Executive MBA Program and Coaching by a Trained Internal Coach accounted for 17%. Top 5 responses: 54% 53% Mentoring Individual Coaching by an External Coach 46% 45% Additional Developmental Activities / Special Projects 40% 360 Degree Feedback Diploma / Certificate Programs Other findings: Executive MBA Program Coaching by a Trained Internal Coach Job Shadowing Secondment Local Rotational Job Assignments No Leadership Development is Offered Outdoor Activity-Based Programs Assessment Centre 9% 5% 2 17% 16% 15% 12% 1 16

17 Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 Q15 Respondents were asked which of a number of options their organisations had used to recruit a leader in the past 12 months In this section it was found that a majority of 60% of respondents said that their organisations had utilised the services of a Retained Executive Search Firm in the past 12 months. This was followed at a distance by Direct Advertisement (38%), Internal Talent Pool / Succession Planning (27%) and Internal Referral (27%). It would appear that when it comes to recruiting leaders, Internal Recruiters (23%) and Contingent Recruiters (no win, no fee) are less trusted methods. It was very interesting to note that a minority of 9% of respondents said that their organisations had No Requirement to recruit a leader in the past 12 months. This confirms our own experience at Principal Connections that organisations have been busy recruiting at the top end. Retained Executive Search Firm Direct Advertisement Internal Talent Pool / Succession Plan Internal Referral Internal Recruiters Contingency Recruitment Agency No Requirement 9% 23% 22% 27% 27% 38% 60% Q16 Respondents were asked to select the 3 principal methods through which leadership performance and effectiveness were measured by their organisations Overwhelmingly, a majority of 75% of respondents in this instance felt that Business Results was the primary method through which leadership performance and effectiveness was measured by their organisations. This was followed at a distance by a similar number of respondents who selected Employee Feedback (46%), Board Reviews / Annual Reviews (45%) and Leadership Assessments (43%). It was somewhat concerning to find that 9% of respondents said that Leadership was Not Measured by their organisations, while it would also appear that there is still room for improvement in further integrating Customer Assessments into leadership performance and effectiveness assessment methods. Business Results Employee Feedback Board Reviews / Annual Reviews Leadership Assessments Customer Assessments Leadership is Not Measured 9% 27% 46% 45% 43% 75% 17

18 Principal Connections Leaders in Executive Search IN SUMMARY According to the findings of our study, the following conclusions can be drawn... Exciting or Challenging Work is the primary reason why leaders join... Career Advancement is the key reason why leaders leave... Exciting or Challenging Work is also the primary reason why leaders stay... Diversity is considered to a high or moderate extent when recruiting leaders Quality of Hire is the foremost consideration when recruiting leaders Information Technology based leadership roles are the most difficult to fill A Succession Plan of internal and external talent that is regularly reviewed exists only in a minority At least 1 leadership appointment was made in the past 12 months At least 1 leader will be recruited in the next 12 months The Interim Leader concept is yet to be fully realised in Ireland An Unexpected Leadership Gap is the core reason why interim leaders are recruited Leadership Development is encouraged among organisations in Ireland Strategic Thinking and People Management are the competencies valued most in leaders Mentoring is considered to be the top leadership development method Retained Executive Search Firms are the number 1 choice for leadership recruitment... Business Results are considered to be the top indicator of leadership performance and effectiveness 18

19 Leaders Talent Insights Report 2018 CONTACT US TODAY Principal Connections has the most successful team of management consultants in the executive search industry in Ireland. Over the years, our highly committed team has helped some of Ireland s biggest and best organisations find elite leaders to drive their agendas. Our firm is uniquely configured to deliver informed advice as well as foresightful and practical solutions while adopting the most efficient and effective methodologies to achieve optimum outcomes for our clients. We deliver solutions to organisations varying in size, structure and maturity. We do this across each of our distinct practice areas, whether private, public or not-for-profit, and draw on the deep expertise of more than 250 Consultants in 55 Cities and 30 Countries globally as the Irish arm of Agilium Worldwide LLC. Pat O Donnell Managing Partner & Director +353 (0) (0) pat@principalconnections.ie Hilarie Geary Partner & Director +353 (0) (0) hilarie@principalconnections.ie Darren McCabe Associate Director +353 (0) (0) darren@principalconnections.ie Deirdre Hughes Associate Director +353 (0) (0) deirdre@principalconnections.ie Mark Middleton Associate Director +353 (0) (0) mark@principalconnections.ie 19

20 Principal Connections Search & Advisory The Irish Arm of Agilium Worldwide LLC 95 Lower Baggot Street An Droichead, Bridge Street, Dublin 2 Gortnamona, Headford, Galway +353 (0) (0) info@principalconnections.ie