We just wrapped a retained search for a Business Unit Head. High stakes. Hard search.
The client needed a very specific profile: international Japanese talent with deep rare disease experience. They had to speak English well and, critically, have a track record of launching products. Finding candidates wasn’t the issue. Plenty of top-tier people fit the bill. The real problem was the process.
The Talent Trap
Our client’s Talent Acquisition (TA) Director was phenomenal. Truly one of the best. She screened the candidates, got them excited, and sold the company perfectly. Remember, we were headhunting these people; they weren’t applying cold. The company needs to impress them, too.
But once the candidates moved past the TA stage, other stakeholders stepped in. Good people, all of them. They all presented the company well, which is important. But they were also trying to interview and assess skills and cultural fits at the same time.
It was a classic case of too many cooks. There were many voices, but no one was driving the bus.
The Missing Veto
The feedback came in—and it was mixed. One person would say one thing; another would say the opposite. No piece of information was a deal-breaker. It was simply a lack of alignment.
The search had no direction. The TA Director, while brilliant, didn’t have the authority to make the final call. No one had the veto power to step up and say: “I hear everyone’s points. We won’t find perfect. This is the candidate we’re moving forward with.”
The process stalled. It dragged.
A Change in Command
Then, everything changed. An offer was being prepared, but before it went out, a new APAC Director was brought in. She immediately took the leadership reins.
She directed the process. She made the decision.
Suddenly, everything smoothed out. One interview led cleanly to the next, and the candidate was successfully placed.
The contrast was stark. Scenario A was a committee with no ultimate authority. Scenario B was clear, direct leadership.
The lesson is simple: In high-stakes, competitive searches, you need a single, empowered leader. Someone who can consider all feedback but has the authority to make the final, decisive move. Without that leader, even the best candidates can slip away.
