Consumer Executive Talent Report 2022

• Highlights of recent executive talent appointments and partnering organizations within the consumer product and services sector in the first half of 2022

• ON reports record 81% growth over the last year with a strong focus on sustainability, cleantech, private equity, consumer technology, and life sciences

• New insights from partners on how consumer organizations are prioritizing their executive hiring to meet market demand and increase consumer loyalty and stability

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ON Partners Consumer Executive Talent Report First Half 2022

With record growth over the past year, ON Partners is proud to be the only pure-play executive search firm building diverse C-level and board leadership teams. We’ve placed 200+ executives in leadership roles thus far in 2022 and 40% of our closed searches were diverse executive appointments.

As non-conformists focused on taking an untraditional approach to executive search, ON consultants continue to place C-level, board, and senior executives across multiple industries and functions, including the consumer products and services space. Recent placements include C-level appointments for companies including Impossible, Logitech, Columbia Sportswear, Indeed, Blend and Cinch Home Services.

Partners specialized in the consumer sector weigh in on the shifts for executive talent in current marketplace conditions including predictions on functional roles in the highest demand moving into 2023.

Partner Joe Olson states, “Supply chain and operations roles will continue to be in demand, with finance a close second. With inflation and pricing pressure, it’s never been more critical to have a strong grasp of the core operating principles of your business. The commercial functions are always important but if you don’t have the strong foundation, the rest of the business will not fall in line.”

“When we look at some of our clients that have thrived during the recession such as Dick’s Sporting Goods and Crocs, one of the key themes is the ability to marry phenomenal branding and consumer experience with rock solid execution.”

Adds partner Sean Cantarella, “Highly technical hardware engineering roles such as product design and electrical engineering are in demand. These are difficult searches and there’s been a lot of movement over the past year. How quickly and efficiently a company can get a product to market will be key given factors like market conditions and supply chain issues.”

Read on to learn about the talent and organizations we’re partnering with in the consumer space, the industry recognition we’re receiving from the likes of Forbes and Hunt Scanlon, and the latest news and thought leadership from our consultants.

Recent Executive Talent Appointments With Leading Consumer Organizations

 

ON Partners consultants have placed a diverse group of senior executives within organizations across consumer products, services, consumer technology and online marketplace space this past year. Following are a few of the new leaders we recently placed; click on the links to learn more about each of them:

Brian Wehner, VP, supply chain, Rothy’s

Bill Rossi, chief executive officer, Bellwether Coffee

Sheila Dehdashti, chief people officer, Rent

Michele Ave, GM, Columbia Sportswear

Brian Klapac, SVP, technology, MindBody

Kyle Gelsthorpe, chief revenue officer, Cinch Home Services

Kelly Lavin, chief people officer, Niche

Larry Dolan, chief information security officer, Fanatics

Johanna Honeyfield, VP, finance and strategy, Impossible Foods

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Recent Executive Search Insights in the Consumer Sector

 

ON Partners experts within the consumer sector gathered to provide recent insights into the current marketplace conditions for executive talent hiring. See a few of our recent publications impacting the consumer executive talent market.

As a partner with ON Partners, Sean Cantarella specializes in placing senior executive talent primarily in the consumer products and services, consumer applications, and gaming sectors. In his recent publication, Cantarella shares insights into the boom of consumer gaming, its impact on the executive hiring market, and how in this candidate’s market, a company’s story and compensation flexibility have been key in attracting talent.

“We’ve been looking less and less at Big Tech because it tends to be overpriced and over siloed. Entrepreneurial, hands-on individuals with a mix of strategy and execution experience are most attractive for executive leadership positions. The scale has seemingly tipped to wanting a more technically adept senior leader, and the need to understand the possibilities of a product is greater.”

 

“For example, the SVP Technology for Viking Cruises came from Expedia and what was particularly attractive about this candidate was his knowledge of architecture and platforms, particularly in the travel industry, to help bolster Viking’s consumer experience. The ability to dive in deep and get up close to the details was very appealing, along with his ability to see things strategically. This leads to more diverse teams in terms of thought and strategy.”

Read more on the ongoing talent shift in consumer sectors from Sean Cantarella here.

Here, ON Partners consultants offer observations and insights on the executive jobs in demand, the types of leaders that can help PE-backed companies win, and a look ahead published in the Hunt Scanlon Global Private Equity Talent Leadership Report.

With growth and PE firms deploying capital at record-setting rates, the need for key executives to lead these companies is vital. The sharp growth in market demand has made it exceptionally difficult to acquire top talent, and the companies that are successfully bringing on top-tier executives are those moving swiftly and decisively, often exceeding compensation expectations.

“Product and digital leader roles are at the top of the list right now,” according to ON partner Lynda Robey. “Many businesses are broadening the scope of responsibility for these leaders to improve agility and responsiveness in this rapidly changing environment.”

ON’s Jeff Hocking echoed that comment, noting, “CEO and CFO are always in demand for PE backed companies, but we are seeing a big increase in chief product officer searches.”

Read the full report published by ON Partners expert consultants here.

Recent Executive Search Awards and Accolades

 

In the first half of 2022, ON Partners received several executive search awards across media publications including Forbes and Hunt Scanlon. Thanks to our executive community for continuing to put their trust in our tenured partners and experienced consultants.

Forbes partnered with market research company Statista to determine the annual ranking of America’s Best Executive Recruiting Firms—the top 150 firms specialized in filling positions with salaries of at least $100,000. ON Partners is proud to be ranked #45 on the list as the only pure-play executive search firm with organic growth in the top 50. Read more.

ON Partners, the pure-play retained executive search firm, is proud to be named to the 2022 Private Equity Recruiting Power 100 list, for the third consecutive year, by market research firm Hunt Scanlon. The list encompasses the nation’s leading executive search firms driving leadership results in the private equity sector. Read more.

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