Not Actively Looking Broadens Services, Adds New Members
August 16, 2016 – Not Actively Looking, a U.K.-based global matchmaking platform for senior executives and executive search firms, has broadened its services to include non-executive directors (NEDs) and interim executives.
“Enabling the platform for NEDs and interim executives is a natural extension of our service,” said Joseph Blass, chief executive officer. “NEDs are often in a permanent executive role and act as an NED on a part time basis. Interim executives choose variety, flexibility and the opportunity to create an instant impact over the security offered by a permanent role.”
“We place a great many NEDs each year in Europe, Asia and the USA. Our clients come to us because they see the value in hiring high-impact board members, with directly relevant sector and functional experience, rather than appointing someone from their network who may only have generic board experience,” said James Brocket, managing partner of global technology search firm Calibre One. “We feel that this new functionality will make Not Actively Looking even more useful for us and we think it is a no-brainer for NEDs – or potential NEDs – keen to notify the executive search community of their availability for a new board appointment.”
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Steve Dengel, managing partner at Osprey Clarke Interim Executives, said that by nature of their position, “interim executives tend to change jobs more frequently, and at Osprey Clarke’s interim department, we make a big effort to keep up to-date with the interim community. We’re pleased that Not Actively Looking has added interim executive services. This way, it is easier for the interim executives and the relevant search firms to stay in touch.”
Temporary Workers As a Hedge
“The U.K. labor market is going through an unsettled patch,” said REC chief executive Kevin Green, “with uncertainty around Brexit” now the leading cause for concern. Employers, he said, are turning to temporary professionals and contractors to provide a flexible employment hedge against any possible change to the U.K.’s relationship with Europe, and the implications this would have for the nation’s economy.
Charles Matthews, a consultant in the interim practice at leadership advisory firm Marlin Hawk, said “businesses are likely to delay decisions on permanent hires and take a shorter term ‘wait and see’ approach, following Brexit. That makes interim management an attractive option,” he suggested, “as experienced professionals can come on board and keep critical initiatives going, but can be shed without financial consequence.”
Some websites, said Mr. Blass, “offer potential NEDs the ability to look at thousands of available ‘openings’ and to be found directly by thousands of employers. What sets Not Actively Looking’s NED and interim platform apart is that the members’ profiles will not be in the public domain and cannot be found by thousands of potential employers.” While less exposure might seem limiting, he added, companies in fact looking for senior NEDs and senior NEDs looking for a position will tend to be more discreet about their business affairs and personal aspirations and would seek the advice of a trusted search firm in making such a key placement, leading to a more positive outcome for all parties.
Not Actively Looking also just expanded its network with the addition of 10 new search firms:
- Employer Solutions Group is based in Minnesota and work across a variety of industries.
- Langeveld Bestuursadvies is headquartered in the Netherlands and offers local and global search services.
- Friisberg & Partners UK offers services to recruit, retain and develop senior management.
- Hawker Chase, with offices in London and Hampshire, specializes in the cyber, defense and security sectors.
- ExeQFind places senior executives across the U.S. and Latin America.
- White Ocean is based in India and offers executive search and consultancy services.
- Latin America Executive Search Consultants has offices throughout Central and South America and offers a variety of search services.
- O’Connor Executive Search is Dublin based and works with Irish headquartered, international companies across all sectors.
“In total we have over 120 search firms on the site now,” said Anthony Harling. “The ultimate benefit to search firms is the ability to get hold of the most relevant candidates for an assignment quickly and easily. Even before that the firms are benefiting in other ways because we help them to manage the process for handling speculative candidate write-ins.”
If an executive registers through Not Actively Looking, he added, “it saves the search firm time and money in not having to load those details onto their in-house database.” Each executive will then individually keep that profile up-to-date in the future. “Each individual consultant can change his or her settings so that they get a personal notification when an executive relevant to their search practice connects with their firm,” he said.
Not Actively Looking made its debut last year in the U.K. as a global matchmaking platform for senior executives and executive search firms. The service allows executives to discreetly manage and update their CV for the benefit of executive search firms they hand pick. For recruiters, the service gives access to senior level professionals, whether they are actively engaged in a job search or not.
Contributed by Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor, Hunt Scanlon Media
