7 Ways to Stay Competitive in Today’s Executive Search Landscape
What happens when senior tech leaders meet with executive search pros to talk about the current job market? Refreshingly honest advice, for both sides of the hiring table. This is a recap of our dinner conversation with the team at Egon Zehnder.
1. Be vulnerable about where you took risks and failed
Clients and hiring managers are looking for passion and fit, not just capability. Being vulnerable is increasingly important in leadership evaluation. Your resume is full of accomplishments, but the interview is your chance to share your mistakes and what you learned from them. That's what sets candidates apart.
2. Demonstrate curiosity and a learning mindset
How quickly you learn from your stumbles matters more than whether you made them. Show interviewers that you're someone who actively reflects, adapts, and grows. This applies on both sides of the table - recruiters who share honest context about the role and the organization doing the search signal the same quality.
3. Treat the interview as a two-way process
You are evaluating them just as much as they are evaluating you. Come prepared to discuss your past successes and failures, and how those lessons will help your next organization succeed. The best interviews feel like conversations, not interrogations.
4. Build a relationship for the long-term
The best recruiters build relationships before a role exists. Even if you’re not right for a current opening, respond to outreach anyway. Share a referral or feedback on the JD. Stay in touch with a quick quarterly or biannual check-in to keep the connection warm. It will pay off when the right moment arrives.
5. Show how you actually use AI, don't just mention it
It doesn't matter which tool you use. What matters is that you're playing around with these technologies in your own time, for your own reasons. Telling a recruiter you built a chess app for your kid using an AI tool is infinitely more compelling than listing a certification on your resume.
6. Be honest with yourself about what you actually value
If work-life balance matters to you, don't put yourself in a position to interview for something that was never going to honor that. It saves everyone time. Clarity about your values isn't a weakness, it's a signal that you're a self-aware leader who knows how to make good decisions.
7. Be upfront early about salary expectations and relocation
Raise these practical realities early in the process. Holding them back doesn't help you, it just creates awkward conversations later when everyone has already invested time. Recruiters should be open about the company’s expectations as well. Honesty on both sides accelerates finding the right fit.
