ON Named Prominent HR & Diversity Search Firm

For the sixth year in a row, ON Partners is named on Hunt Scanlon’s most prominent executive search firms in HR and Diversity list

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ON Partners, the pure-play retained executive search firm is proud to be named to the HR and Diversity Power 70 Recruiting list, announced by market research firm Hunt Scanlon.  The list encompasses the leading executive search firms specializing in human resources and diversity, equity & inclusion. This is the sixth year in a row ON has been placed on this prominent ranking.

41% of all search assignments ON has undertaken have resulted in diverse executive placements in the last year. We have placed more than 200 diverse executives in leadership positions in the last few years.

{Download our 2024 Women’s Report to explore the complex terrain of gender equity and compensation parity at the executive level.}

As executive search consultants who partner with organizations to place C-level and board executives across a range of industries, we understand our responsibility in helping to shape what the future of business looks like. As a group of non-conformists, we recognize that you can’t craft effective solutions using outdated methods and practices. So, we don’t have a “diversity and inclusion practice” and we don’t partner with a diversity firm. We consider every search we undertake to be an inclusive search.

In the Executive Search Report published by Hunt Scanlon, ON Partners’ chief product officer, Jin Ro, weighs in on one of the biggest topics surrounding diverse and inclusive executive hiring practices. Generative AI continues to be a key topic of conversation throughout industries and the search industry is no different. While there are plenty of potential applications for this novel technology, using it as a means of promoting diversity at organizations as well as assisting with DEI initiatives more broadly is a widely held belief. Nevertheless, the overarching sentiment is that AI is still a tool so it must be used with awareness and care rather than seen as a solution or a replacement to humans.

AI has become an integral part of our lives, revolutionizing industries and transforming the way we live and work, and the same can be said for the search industry and DEI initiatives within organizations.

“Depending on which side you ask, AI will lead to either a data-driven meritocracy or a DEI crisis,” said Ro. “In an ideal model, AI provides a wide aperture to a larger and more diverse pool of candidates where the best fit would emerge based solely on merit and fit.”

“Nevertheless some limitations exist with this tool that must be considered when using it,” Ro said. “There are built in social biases. AI models are only as good as its training data. Additionally, there is no recognition of recent events where a situation might require nuance or care. Finally, the internal workings and process are unclear to the user so it is difficult to parse through the source of the output. Nevertheless, AI has incredible potential to help recruiters find a wider pool of talented and qualified talent.”

{Download our 2024 Variance Report which anticipates four shifting leadership trends that will resonate in tomorrow’s boardrooms}

Additionally, the dynamic landscape of workforce and HR strategies, companies continually face the intersection of innovation and tradition, where pivotal decisions shape their future trajectories.

At ON Partners, we consistently engage with top Chief Human Resource Officers (CHROs) and Chief People Officers (CPOs) across a variety of organizations, learning their core business objectives and challenges to help drive talent management solutions.

In our recent article, “4 Critical Areas Shaping the HR Landscape”, Seth Harris summarizes four pivotal trends dominating the minds of CHROs today. From managing the hybrid workforce to CHRO burnout to merit pay, HR leaders face a variety of workplace opportunities and challenges to solve in 2024.

Ongoing DEI Survey

For the past few years, we’ve been listening to our ON community to better understand where they are in their diversity journey and ultimately to help them build more diverse and inclusive organizations. Our ongoing DEI survey has been shining a light on what actions they are taking, where the challenges are, and what organizations they admire for their inclusion initiatives.

To continue to build on these learnings, we want to hear from you.