The Year in ACCUR Executive Search 2022
2022 has been another busy year for ACCUR Recruiting Services. As the economy rebounds from COVID, we are seeing a continued tight market for executive recruiting, especially in roles Director-level and above.
We’re always analyzing our internal data to help uncover trends that might be useful to our client base, and so wanted to share some our topline findings from a busy 2022.
From Food & Beverage to Sporting Goods
There are certain industries we return to again and again: food and beverage, wines and spirits and beauty. This year gave us new opportunities to work with innovators in those industries, as well as bridge new connections with unique and establish players in industries like:
- High-end men’s grooming
- Agtech and vertical farming
- Sporting goods including e-bikes
This year has also been a great opportunity to work with venture capital funds looking to inject new capital and talent into established businesses, which leads to our next takeaway…
Private Equity-Backed Companies Outnumber Privately Owned Ones
The lion’s share of our search engagements this year came from Private Equity-backed company (a full 42% of our searches this year).
Recruiting for Private Equity is a field that requires a special approach and we love the challenge of finding a growth-minded fit who will deliver the results that Private Equity Funds require.
Mix of Functions from Sales to Marketing to Finance
Sales and marketing positions were the most sought-after this year; with each accounting for 29% of searches.
Finance and e-commerce and digital roles were also popular, with each function accounting for around 10% of our searches.
The other functions we search for included CEO roles, human resources, and product development roles.
Geographical Diversity in Executive Searches
Where are the jobs? As you might have guessed, they are increasingly spread out across the globe, especially as more and more employers consider the upside of hiring fully remote. That said, our share of searches ranged coast to coast:
- New York City area (35%)
- Florida (27%)
- California (19%)
Entering the Board Recruitment Arena
This year we’ve fielded questions about recruiting for a Board of Directors, which naturally dovetails with our work cultivating relationships with executives with expertise ranging from luxury goods to beauty and cosmetics.
As you may know, most boards are recruited through word of mouth and internal referrals, but as many savvy companies are realizing the value of a diverse board that may include members outside of the traditional channels, working with a firm like ACCUR Recruiting Services can make a lot of sense.
We’ve therefore added Board Recruitment to our suite of services in the interest of advising both our client companies and pool of recruits on how they might join a board.
Average Salary Rises Above $200,000
The tight labor market and inflation in the economy has put a lot of pressure on salaries and we see that up close in our data: our average placement salary was above $200,000 in 2022.
While money remains the best way to attract the top executive talent, we always talk our clients through ways of attracting and retaining top executives through a variety of means, including compensation. We find this is more important than ever in today’s market.
“VP” Leads the Pack in Our Executive Searches
“VP” was a common title in our searches, which also encompassed C-suite positions such as COO and Controller. VP-level positions or above accounted for a quarter of our total searches, and encompassed a variety of areas including:
- SVP Sales
- VP of Finance
- VP of Trade Marketing
Our Thanks
Our sincere thanks to our clients, candidates and partners on making 2022 such an exciting year. We look forward to working with you in 2023!
