Media interviews for executive recruitment

Might your new CEO, director or Vice-Chancellor say something crazy to a journalist? Once captured by the media, what has been said  can’t be “unsaid” even if it’s wrong.

It’s not only what is said but how it is said. Body language speaks a thousand words.  Do your favourite candidates embody positive attributes? Are they open, enthusiastic, sympathetic, trustworthy, confident or complacent, self-serving and arrogant?

Wouldn’t it be good to know this before the appointment is made?

Our assessors are highly experienced broadcast journalists with experience on programmes such as Watchdog, Panorama and Newsnight.  We come armed with the usual set of journalistic “dark arts” to test the candidates politely but firmly in a style that is more Mishal Husain than Jeremy Paxman. All executive recruitment interviews are filmed and analysed before giving our considered feedback.

Skills tested include:

These executive recruitment interviews are especially appropriate for public-facing organisations such as  government departments, hospital trusts, universities and charities.

“I think it was a worthwhile and valuable part of the assessment process, which gave important insights into how candidates perform under pressure and in the absence of complete facts.  Compared to other media assessment exercises I have seen, the line of questioning was realistically aggressive, and was tailored very specifically to the candidate’s responses.”

Chair of selection panel – a Russell Group university