In the old world of traditional searches, candidates had far less control over when and if they were called by a search professional for a specific opportunity. While the science of finding the best roster of candidates for any given position may have changed, the equally important job of assessment has not changed much in my 20-year career. Assessment remains the most important factor in today's executive search process. It's an exciting time to be in the search business, and a great time to be aiming to move into an association CEO position. Keep in mind the following concepts.
Candidates have more power.
In this booming economy, the balance of power has shifted more to the supply side of the equation, to the candidates. There simply aren't enough executives to fill the top positions available-whether in the business world or the association world. Compensation is improving. Another advantage to being in the job market today is that with the acute shortage of CEO talent, more associations are offering compensation packages that are competitive with industry. People are moving from businesses to associations to government, and back again.