May 2023 - Cowen Partners

Could Your Startup Benefit from Outside Leadership? Look for These 5 Signs

Running a startup isn’t easy. With a smaller workforce, you may be responsible for growing sales, sustaining your operations, keeping in compliance and many other tasks. And when something goes wrong, you’re often the one that clients and employees turn to for help. So while company ownership is rewarding, being the leader and wearing so many hats

Search Firms Continue to Provide New Services for Clients

As the war for top executive talent heats up, search firms are feeling pressure to offer more comprehensive services beyond just pure retained search. In response, many firms are diversifying their offerings to include interim, development and coaching, assessment, and other tools in addition to their traditional search services. Talent experts Sandy Gross of Pinetum

Top Personality Tests Used by Employers | Top Executive Recruiters | Cowen Partners

Why Employers Can’t Afford to Let DE&I Initiatives Go

With predictions of an impending recession becoming louder and louder, more companies are seeking ways to reduce expenses and protect their profits. Often, some of the first things to go are human resources programs like leadership and diversity training. Nearly three years after the mass protests that shook the U.S. in 2020 — brought on

Preparing for an IPO in Today’s Economy 2023 - Executive Recruiters - Cowen Partners

Is Your IPO Delayed? Here’s What to Do

In the current business environment, some companies are choosing to delay their IPO plans in hopes that the markets will shift over the next year or two and allow them to launch in fairer economic waters. Startups that devoted much of the past few years to preparing their organization for an IPO are finding that

Carriers Hit Left & Right with C-Suite Changes

Several carriers have experienced turnover of C-suite leadership in the past five months as executives seek work-life balance, face termination, or retire. Part of the turnover can be attributed to demographics, with several executives nearing retirement. But another factor is a pandemic-driven shift in values toward less stressful careers. “We’re dealing with a lot of

The Fastest-Growing C-Suite Roles in 2023

LinkedIn recently posted some interesting data on the C-suite roles that are growing most rapidly. The list wasn’t full of the usual suspects, like CEOs or CFOs. Instead, the C-suite position with the highest growth was chief diversity and inclusion officer, with an astounding 168.9% increase in hires. Here are the top 10 C-suite positions

How to Choose the Right Leader in an ESOP

ESOP companies are unique among their publicly or privately owned business counterparts. Instead of the company being led by outside shareholders or other investors, its employees retain most of the organization’s ownership, and they typically participate in significant decisions that can impact the company’s future. When an ESOP company seeks outside leadership to guide its

CFO Dive: The dawn of the interim CFO

With financial leadership coming at a premium, interim CFOs are having their moment in the spotlight. “Many CFOs with decades of experience are also either looking to retire, or seeking promotion rather than lateral opportunities, said Shawn Cole, president of boutique executive search firm Cowen Partners. The jump from the CFO to the CEO seat is “way more commonplace” today than

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky calls out RTO mandates from execs ‘going away to the Hamptons’ and Europe this summer

In an interview earlier this week, Airbnb CEO and co-founder Brian Chesky pointed out that a revival of return-to-office pushes are often coming from executives with the most amount of flexibility. “I guarantee you that many of these CEOs who are calling people back to the office in New York City are going away to the Hamptons

Shawn Cole in the The Wall Street Journal

CFO Hiring Was Streamlined During Covid, But More Thorough Vetting Is Back in Vogue Increased corporate activism and a desire for ‘wartime’ finance chiefs with experience during downturns are driving companies to beef up hiring practices “This concept of a wartime CFO has reasserted itself, and that was something that was referred to during the