Our Process

The boxes we tick to specify the leaders we want to hire are often not the same set of boxes that need checking to ensure they will perform on the job, in a new organization, new culture and more challenging markets.

As trusted advisors, the Top Gun Ventures partners, with decades of delivering and assimilating GameChanging leaders, know the right questions to ask to get our clients to their endgame and commercial success.  This outcomes based specificity identifies the type of ‘GameChanging’ leader we seek to acquire for you.

We begin every assignment by working closely with you to clearly establish a set of measurable objectives for the position. What do we want the leader to accomplish? How does that impact your endgame? and how will we know they’ve succeeded? In many cases, this process leads to a rethinking of the position’s objectives as our expertise helps you discover new ways that a true GameChanging leader could impact your organization.

We use the newly detailed criteria for success to define the position’s tasks, organizational role, desired culture fit and must-have requirements, while also calibrating the proposed compensation with the current industry conditions.

Our GameChanging  leader position specification serves as our guide as we find, attract and evaluate candidates, giving us a predictor of success that is more reliable than a candidate’s stated qualifications or previous titles.

As with every part of our process, each aspect of the actual search is planned and executed entirely by a Top Gun Ventures partner. There are no junior staff members or backroom team. There is also no reliance on an established database of stale candidates that are recycled for every search. The partner conducts original research and taps into their extensive professional network to identify relevant markets and industry verticals, then uses the position’s objectives to deliver a short list of proven performers from market-leading companies.

Not relying on a database of active job searchers enables us to identify an untapped market of exceptional candidates, and the direct involvement of the partner means that we can use an executive-to-executive appeal to successfully engage with hundreds of these passive candidates during a search.

The partner uses the Top Gun Ventures Precision Search Model to create a shortlist of candidates, perform the initial screenings and follow-up evaluations, conduct behavioral-based interviews, and rate each leader against the previously established must-have requirements and the desired GameChanger profile.

The result of the partner’s 100% involvement in the search execution is a higher-quality and better-vetted set of candidates, including many that aren’t actively looking for new positions. All delivered in significantly less time than traditional leveraged/junior staff search models.

To ensure that you get the best talent for your team, our selection guidance includes three key components, each customized to the previously created GameChanging Leader profile.

First, our proprietary GameChanging Leader interview model asks questions tailored to the desired profile and helps to identify truly GameChanging leaders. This also includes an in-depth written exercise called the Points of View (POV).

Next, we utilize the state-of-the-art assessment tools such as the Harrison Assessments™ system and The GC Index® to help predict the likelihood of job success, determine cultural suitability, identify the candidate’s onboarding needs, and estimate their immediate impact on the organization or team.

Finally, we thoroughly screen the finalist candidate(s) using our discrete reference-checking process and deliver a detailed candidate write-up summarizing the results of the entire process. This write-up addresses each candidate’s potential ability to succeed in the position, covering topics ranging from their capabilities and experience to cultural fit and character.

We typically begin presenting candidates within 2-4 weeks of beginning a search. Unlike traditional search firms, however, our involvement doesn’t end there. Because we don’t declare success until a placed executive delivers the results they were hired to achieve, we view onboarding and regular follow-up as critical parts of our process.

Our team guides the executive through Top Gun Ventures’ Fast Start onboarding program, a 100-day action template tailored to them, their new organization, and the desired GameChanging Leader profile. The plan focuses on building a foundation that will help them achieve the objectives established at the beginning of the recruiting process. We then conduct twice-yearly review sessions with the placed executive and client to track progress toward meeting their goals and discuss the support the executive is receiving to help them achieve these objectives.

This continued commitment to a placed executive’s success is backed by our 100% guarantee that they will achieve the position’s established objectives. If they are terminated without meeting these goals, we will conduct a replacement search at no charge.