News & Insights

I Am Not a Robot: AI and Leadership Hiring - Part III

Thu, 06 Feb 2025 12:00:00 Z

Watertight oversight: The role of Boards

In March 2025, an employee of software company Intuit claimed that its use of an automated video interview platform unfairly blocked her promotion. She blamed AI-driven biases related to her disability and race. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed charges on her behalf against Intuit and HireVue, the tech firm she said used AI in a discriminatory way. Both denied the accusation. Intuit stated that it provides reasonable accommodations to all applicants. HireVue denied that Intuit even used AI in this instance.¹

Law firm Fisher Phillips say this emphasizes the need for organizations using AI hiring tools to conduct regular accessibility audits, review vendor agreements, train HR teams about possible AI biases and legal requirements, and allow for human review during an interview process. They should offer clear and simple pathways for applicants needing accommodations, monitoring and adjusting AI usage to address potential biases.

Given the stakes surrounding senior hires in particular, should boards be involved in guiding AI use in talent management strategy? Let’s recall the board’s core activities of Control (protecting shareholder wealth), and Service, helping the firm create value, aligning shareholder and societal interests.²

I Am Not a Robot: AI and Leadership Hiring - Part II

Thu, 06 Feb 2025 12:00:00 Z

Pitfalls, Risks & Solutions

While AI offers efficiency and scale in executive search, some pitfalls are currently limiting its effectiveness in high-level hiring. None are insurmountable.

In Part 2 of our series examining how AI is transforming executive search and its impact on global executive talent acquisition, senior Amrop Partners unpack the downsides in data-driven leadership hiring processes.

How can AI users get the best of both worlds in executive and board hiring?

I Am Not a Robot: AI and Leadership Hiring - Part I

Thu, 06 Feb 2025 12:00:00 Z

Part 1 | Mapping a Shifting Landscape

Artificial Intelligence is reshaping leadership hiring - accelerating processes, enriching relationships, and opening new possibilities for executive search. Yet, it remains a tool that demands judgment and restraint.

In this three-part series, Amrop explores how AI is transforming executive and board-level recruitment - its opportunities, risks, and what the future may hold. Could AI ever replace the headhunter?

Drawing on insights from senior Amrop partners and board members, early adopters and active contributors to the firm’s global AI governance, this first article examines how the technology is taking shape inside the executive search ecosystem.

Survival of the Fittest: How C-suite Roles Are Evolving

Fri, 05 Apr 2024 12:00:00 Z

Part One | Ecosystem

In 1836 a young naturalist was returning from a five-year expedition aboard the HMS Beagle. As his ship neared the English coastline, Charles Darwin jotted down a big idea: species might not be fixed. Thirteen years later ‘On the Origin of Species’ was published and with it, evolutionary biology arose: a scientific theory that populations evolve through natural selection.

If we consider the corporate world as an ecosystem and each C-suite domain: finance, operations, human resources and technology as a genus, what is happening to the species within those domains? How are C-suite roles evolving, and what does this mean for leadership teams?

In this series we consider the evolution in C-suite roles and the optimal Leadership Team For What’s Next. Based on the insights of senior Amrop partners from around the world and Amrop’s global data set, we examine five roles: the CEO, the CFO, the COO, the CHRO and the CIO.

The Amrop Digital Interviews: İrem Yüksel Göğüş, Türkiye

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 12:00:00 Z

“There's a natural alignment between the strengths that female leaders bring and Amrop's core values.”

İrem Yüksel Göğüş is the Managing Partner and shareholder of Amrop Turkiye and the CIS, and a member of Amrop’s Global Digital Practice.

We spoke to her about being a female leader in the corporate world, the overlapping requirements for the new generation of leaders in FMCG and the digital sectors, being a member of the Amrop's Digital Practice Team, and the broader transformation within the Turkish tech landscape.

The Amrop Digital Interviews: Mikael Norr, Sweden

Fri, 10 Nov 2023 17:01:38 Z

Mikael Norr is the Managing Partner at Amrop Stockholm's office and a member of Amrop Global Digital Practice. We spoke to him about leadership in the sector.

Q: Mikael, you’ve been with Amrop for 14 years. Can you talk a little about your professional experience prior to joining the firm and how it’s helped you shape your career within the company?

A: Looking at my experience prior to coming on board with Amrop, one of the most valuable things is probably that I come from an HR background and that I also had line management roles. I believe that this gives me a bit of a broader view on how companies – our clients actually work with recruitment and development of people. As consultants we always tend to think that what we do is the most important thing on our clients’ agenda, but, having worked at a large company with an HR department, I’m aware that they might have other things on their mind too! I sometimes say to my colleagues: if they don’t immediately answer your emails, there might be a “fire” happening somewhere else! Another thing I had been doing before joining Amrop was investing in some small start-ups and was on the board of directors for some of them, as well as I did some M&A with them. I find this experience valuable for our line of work at Amrop too. Having worked with hyper-growth companies, it’s easier to work with digital scale-ups now than if I would have been if I had spent my professional life in a corporate environment.

The fastest path to the CEO roles: stereotypes and reality

Sun, 01 Oct 2023 12:00:00 Z

Aiga Ārste – Avotiņa, AMROP Estonia and Latvia managing partner

Getting into leading positions is one of the topics surrounded by the greatest number of myths and prejudices, thinking about leadership and the path of professional growth. The stereotypes and reality are so different from each other that I decided to summarize my observations on what is the fastest way to get to the desired management position.

One of the most common assumptions about a safe path to the top of your career is something like this – you need to graduate from a prestigious business management program, then start working in a large, stable, well-known company and move slowly, patiently, without major shocks up the career ladder. Undoubtedly, a good education is the right starting point for career development. However, it is not a catapult to the seat at the leadership table. Also, a place in a large, stable corporation will not guarantee that after a few years of patient work there will be an opportunity to work at the highest management level.

ESG Leadership in Private Equity

Mon, 18 Sep 2023 12:50:33 Z

Private equity’s mission of creating an ESG-friendly economy.

As the drive for Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) in private equity accelerates, its senior decision makers have a rocky mountain to climb. Moving away from exclusively financially driven investment and management patterns is a complex endeavour.

For true transformation, private equity leaders must integrate ESG into all levels and dimensions of their portfolios. They must communicate clearly with critical stakeholders. Install monitoring and reporting systems that deliver consistent quality of information. And translate ambition into action by changing core business habits.

Unsurprisingly, progress is uneven.

Sustainable Success Stories: Interview with Jakub Karnowski, Ukrainian Railways

Mon, 18 Sep 2023 10:49:00 Z

Jakub Karnowski is an independent member of the Supervisory Board and Chair of the Transformation Committee of Ukrzaliznytsia (Ukrainian Railways), as well as an independent member of the Supervisory Boards and Chair of the Audit Committees of Allianz Life and Non-life Insurance Poland, Allianz Investment Fund Poland and Euler Hermes Poland and Ukrposhta (Ukrainian Post).

He’s the former CEO of Polish State Railways as well as former CEO & Chair of the Investment Committee of a leading mutual fund in Poland. He holds a PhD in Economics and works as an Assistant Professor (adjunct) at the Warsaw School of Economics, in addition to being a World Bank consultant specializing in railway restructuring.

Viesturs Liegis, Managing Partner at Amrop Ukraine, lead the team that collaborated with JSC Ukrzaliznytsia in selecting and appointing four of the independent Supervisory Board members in February 2022, just before the outbreak of the war in Ukraine. Viesturs spoke to Jakub about the role of Supervisory Boards in a time of crisis, the current and post-war strategy of Ukrzaliznytsia, and representing the economic and political interests of Ukraine in Poland.

The C-Suite Sustainability Struggle

Mon, 18 Sep 2023 09:08:27 Z

Environmental and social responsibility have been a feature of the business landscape for a surprisingly long time. And yet the place of sustainability on the corporate agenda, how it is addressed, and by whom, is in a state of revolution.

The road to sustainability is still under construction. But is it even headed in the right direction?

In this report we take a hard look at the current context of sustainability in business and why it is such a headache for hard-working organizations. We open the box on why the ever-expanding function of the Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) is only a partial answer to these challenges.

Amrop Announces Opening of New Office in Spain

Thu, 20 Apr 2023 12:00:00 Z

Amrop, a leading global executive search and leadership consulting firm, announces the opening of a new office in Madrid, Spain. This strategic expansion marks an exciting milestone for Amrop as it grows across EMEA and challenges the existing local executive search landscape.

Kui kandidaat lihtsalt haihtub - räägime candidate ghostingust

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 12:00:00 Z

Kui mõned aastad tagasi räägiti palju recruiter ghostingust ja siunati ettevõtteid, kes kandideerijatele tagasisidet ei anna, siis praeguseks on iga endast lugupidav firma värbamisprotsessid, s.h tagasisidestamise automatiseerinud. Probleem on nüüd kaldunud hoopis teisele poole lauda – kandidaadid, kes töövõimaluse vastu huvi üles näitavad, kaovad protsessi jooksul või lõpusirgel lihtsalt pildilt. Linkedini tehtud uuring leidis, et lausa 95% värbajatest on kogenud kandidaadi kadumist pärast intervjueerimist.

Tiheda konkurentsiga tööturul saavad juhitaseme kandidaadid sageli mitu tööpakkumist korraga. See võib viia selleni, et uuritakse mitut võimalust ilma ühelegi pühendumata. On kandidaate, kes tulevad konkursiga kaasa pelgalt uudishimust, turu uurimiseks kui ka enda konkurentsivõime testimiseks. Pahatihti võib aga protsessi jooksul selguda, et pakutava rolli sisu pole selline nagu esialgu tundus ja pettutakse nii ettevõttes kui värbajas.

Amrop Opens New Offices in Turkiye & Azerbaijan

Fri, 13 Jan 2023 09:15:55 Z

Global executive search firm Amrop appoints a new team in Istanbul, marking its re-entry to the Turkish market

With headquarters in Istanbul, the new Amrop Turkiye offers Executive Search and Leadership Advisory services across C-suite, Board and top management functions. They focus on a broad range of sectors including but not limited to the Industrial, Consumer, Retail, Life Sciences, Healthcare, Digital and Technology sectors.

The business has been operating in Turkey since 1998. From their offices in Istanbul’s prime business district, the firm serves a client base that includes Turkish and multinational corporations, as well as medium-sized family owned companies, with a tailored consulting approach driven by context and quality.

Visit www.amrop.com.tr

The Amrop Digital Interviews: Steve Meynen, Belgium

Fri, 06 Jan 2023 12:00:00 Z

“I’m not afraid to open doors in order to grow my business!”

Steve Meynen is a Partner at Amrop Belgium and a member of Amrop’s Global Digital Practice.

We spoke to him about his extensive experience in the IT industry, growing businesses from scratch, developments, and requirements of the rapidly developing digital sector, collaborating with VCs in the SaaS subsector, and not being afraid to “put his boots on and get back into the mud” to get things done.

Välismaalt värvates saab töötajaga kaasa ka pere

Wed, 28 Dec 2022 12:00:00 Z

5.04.2022 Personalipraktik

Võidujooks talentide pärast on täies hoos. Mitte ainult Eestis, vaid üle kogu maailma. Võidab see, kes mitte ainult ei paku parimat palka, vaid turvalist, kõrget elukvaliteeti ja kogu pere heaolu silmas pidavat paketti. Üha rohkem expat’e teeb oma töövaliku selle järgi, kus on kõige turvalisem ja lihtsam oma pere sisse seada ning kus lapsed saavad võimalikult hea hariduse ja abikaasa leiab sobiva professionaalse eneseteostuse võimaluse. Välismaalasest töötaja värbamisel tasub meeles pidada, et kui teie uus kolleeg välismaalt saabub Eestisse koos perega, siis saab ka sellest perest teie organisatsiooni kaudne liige.

A Case of Sustainability in Leadership: Financial Services

Sat, 17 Dec 2022 12:00:00 Z

How Amrop secured a business-driven Head of Sustainability for a leading financial services group.

The financial services industry plays a pivotal role in the economy and society: facilitating access to capital and spending. Its activities deeply affect the lives of people, businesses, government and civic institutions. When it comes to sustainability, financial services has a key role to play, and the journey has just started.

How does it all play out in practice? Read on to discover how Amrop helped a major financial services player secure a sustainability leader with business acumen, domain expertise and passion.

The Amrop Talent Observatory

Tue, 08 Nov 2022 12:00:00 Z

What motivates leaders to join one kind of organization, and avoid another? What are their deeper criteria for career decisions? What sources are they using to ‘audit’ potential employers, and what are their attitudes to the use of AI in the hiring process? What factors are fueling executive departures and how have recent global events affected their confidence in making a career move?

To find out, we personally approached senior executives from across the world who had recently been shortlisted for a senior position with a hiring organization. As such, they were in a reflective and ‘organization-assessing’ state of mind. The study followed a central hypothesis: that their needs are profoundly changing.

The Amrop Digital Interviews: Caroline Søeborg Ahlefeldt, Denmark

Mon, 13 Jun 2022 12:00:00 Z

"'Leaders for What’s Next' for me is about finding leaders who can navigate the transition towards a sustainable approach and make sure that companies serve societies and help with the new challenges we all have."

Caroline Søeborg Ahlefeldt is a Partner at Amrop Denmark and a member of Amrop's Global Digital Practice, bringing over 30 years of experience as a seasoned executive and Board professional.

We spoke to Caroline about her extensive experience in the technology sector and boards, being a member of the national prime minister-lead Disruption Council in Denmark, seeking out the opportunities to link technological development with sustainability and the rewarding chance to use her vast experience and network in her new field – executive search.

Estonian Cell sai uue tehase juhi

Mon, 18 Apr 2022 12:00:00 Z

18.04.2022 Äripäev

Alates märtsist on Estonian Celli juhatuse liige ja tehase juht Rain Pärn, kes asus tööle Austriasse naasnud endise juhatuse liikme Heinz Schnedli asemele.

Pärn töötas pikalt ABBs ning sealt 2014. aastal eraldunud äriüksuses Quant Estonias juhatuse liikmena.

Pärn ütles, et tema rolliks Estonian Cellis on tehase ehk kogu tootmisprotsessi juhtimine, alates toorme varumisest kuni väärindamiseni. Ta sõnas, et ettevõttes on tandemjuhtimine, kus finants ja müügi pool on teise juhatuse liikme ehk Siiri Lahe vastutada ning ülejäänud on tema vastutusvaldkonnas.

Estonian Celli juhatuse liige ja finantsjuht Siiri Lahe ütles, et Rain Pärn valiti välja 2021. aasta teises pooles toimunud konkursi tulemusel, arvestades tema mitmekülgset juhtimiskogemust ja rahvusvahelisel tasemel koostööd erinevate tootmis- ja tehnologiaettevõtetega.

Estonian Celli ainuomanik on juhtiv puitmassi ja tselluloosi ning pakendipaberite tootja Heinzel Holding GmbH Austriast.

A Case of Sustainability in Leadership: Pharma

Mon, 04 Apr 2022 12:00:00 Z

How Amrop secured a sustainability change leader for an ambitious pharmaceutical company.

One of the world’s largest industries, pharma underpins the health not only of people but of entire economies. Today the sector is being forged by a series of big structural factors: post WWII infrastructure, an ageing population, a lingering focus on curing rather than preventing disease.

There is an overriding need for a holistic approach to health, with government and industry working hand in hand.

Amrop Suspends Operations in Russia

Fri, 01 Apr 2022 12:00:00 Z

1.04.2022

As the war in Ukraine continues, we want to provide you with an update on how the Amrop Partnership is responding to the situation. We strongly condemn the facts of aggression and violence and our thoughts are with those who are suffering as a result of this conflict.

The Amrop Partnership is an international network of independently owned and independently managed affiliated companies who offer Executive search, Leadership and Board Advisory services around the world. The Amrop Partnership does not have a wholly owned office, nor employees in Russia. However, we have a long-standing cooperation with our representative office in Moscow that has been operating in the Russian market and has delivered undisputed quality services for more than 20 years.

Based on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and in compliance with international sanctions implemented by the EU, UK, US, Canada, Japan and Australia, we have decided to suspend our working relationships with our partner firm in Russia. This decision is also aligned with our company values.

Effective immediately and until we lift the suspension, our partner company in Russia will continue serving client organizations as an independent company that is not part of the Amrop Partnership global network.

The Amrop Board will continue to adapt our response according to the evolving situation.

Annika Farin - Chair, The Amrop Partnership

Tippjuhi otsingud meenutavad üha enam Eesti presidendi valikut

Sun, 06 Feb 2022 10:28:00 Z

6.12.2021 Edasi

Otsitakse tarka, võimekat ja mitmekülgset juhti, kes näeb nii suurt pilti kui ka detaile. Tal peab olema karismat, laia haaret, palju kogemusi ja julgust, et juhtida firmat ebakindlatel aegadel aga samal ajal ka inimlik, soe pale, mis aitab ühendada kriisis lõhestunud ettevõtet.

Nendele nõuetele vastamine eeldab mõnes mõttes superinimest, aga alla selle on koroonakriisi järel keeruline tippjuhi kohale tõusta – just seda näitab rahvusvaheliselt juhtide ja tippspetsialistide sihtotsingule keskendunud AMROP kogemus. Teisalt on kriisi käigus avanenud juhtidele uksed, mis varem olid suletud, samuti oluliselt avaramad tegutsemisvõimalused, mida veel hiljuti peeti võimatuks.

Amrop Marks 45 Years of Partnership

Mon, 31 Jan 2022 12:00:00 Z

As Amrop marks our 45th anniversary milestone, we celebrate our continued entrepreneurial spirit and ambition for quality which set our foundation in 1977.

In today’s war for talent, HR is everyone’s job

Mon, 31 Jan 2022 12:00:00 Z

The Cybersecurity and IT Audit fields in Luxembourg are facing significant talent shortage and the ability of the companies to attract and retain existing talent is more difficult than ever. ISACA Luxembourg, an international professional association focused on IT governance, hosted an in-person panel discussion on the subject, with the participation of representatives of Deloitte, RBC Investor Services, Luxair and Spire Global.

We spoke to Gabriela Nguyen-Groza, Managing Partner Amrop Luxembourg, who moderated the discussion on how companies are tackling these issues.

What Has Changed for SaaS Companies With Growth Ambitions?

Sun, 16 Jan 2022 12:00:00 Z

Given the current investment environment, executive search experts can bring a lot of value to SaaS companies, which struggle with remaining attractive to investors. It is paramount to bring the needs of the company in line with the right kind of capabilities of the candidates, which will manage the next stage in the company's development.

We invited Mikael Norr, Managing Partner at Amrop's Stockholm office and a member of Amrop's global Digital Practice, to share his insights on the way the situation has changed considerably for SaaS companies over the last year.