Foreign Lands Turn Hunting Ground for CXO Search Companies

CEO and CXO searches are going increasingly global as large Indian companies getting into new business areas or looking to enter overseas markets and MNCs expanding base are casting their nets wider. They are looking to rope in seasoned Indian professionals, said leadership search firms and company officials.

Executive search firms say about 30-50% of their CXO searches in the last six to 18 months have been looking at potential global candidates, up from about 10-15% a few years ago.

There is a preference for returning Indians fuelled by a push from companies and boards amid an increasing need for professionals with a keen knowledge and understanding of global markets. An acute demandsupply mismatch in the leadership talent market and the need to hire for specialist roles in high-tech manufacturing, automotive, electric vehicles (EVs), pharmaceuticals, chemicals, hardcore product engineering and services industries have underscored the trend, said experts.

“About one in three leadership searches that we conduct today are global, not limited to India, reaching out to people in Singapore, US, Canada, London, and Middle East, showing the rising demand for the global talent pool of Indians,” said Puneet Pratap Singh, partner-in-charge at Heidrick & Struggles India.

Making the Cut for Niche Roles

“There is a demand for global professionals in technology, for instance people who can build and run large data centres, cloud computing and storage… in addition to professionals with deep expertise in hightech manufacturing, automotive and EV, including autonomous vehicle technologies,” said K Sudarshan, MD, India, and regional chair Asia, EMA Partners.

"About 40-50% of our search universe will include global candidates and returning 

Indians apart from local candidates and typically about 20% resulting in appointment of global candidates,” he said. “Even in functions like HR sometimes we are also looking at global Indian talent pools.” Businesses are looking at returning Indians with international expertise to support their expansion plans, said Jyoti Bowen Nath, managing partner, Claricent Partners.

“Moreover, for certain niche and business critical roles there are skill gaps, more so in areas of digital transformation, ESG, sustainability, green hydrogen, solar, EV, and financial services, among others,” she said. Besides, with burgeoning opportunities across various sectors — EVs, solar, renewables, semi conductors — there is an increasing number of global Indians looking to return. 

“India is among the top five economies and more integrated with the global economy,” said D Shivkumar, operating partner, Advent International. “Companies look at the capability needed in the business for the future, essentially investing in new skill sets versus grooming skills in current candidates. Indians living abroad are a simple and effective cohort, who tend to think of coming back when their children are in their teenage years or they tend to return for aged parents. So the life stage of their emotions determines their openness.”