Executive search and music might seem an unlikely pairing, but for me they have always gone hand in hand. Every stage of a search campaign has a soundtrack, from building candidate lists to celebrating successful appointments.
Music has always been a huge part of my life, and it helps me through good times, challenging times and celebratory times. There is always a song on the go.
At Moon Exec Search, we use music and songs throughout the day, and I have memorable music memories which support my working day.
Numbers
Numbers are a huge part of my job, particularly telephone numbers, recognising them and responding to each call. My go to song is ‘634-5789’ (Wilson Pickett). It is not so much the lyrics, but a phone number which is what I do all day!
Short lists - When we are at the final stage of our search process – I like good odds and prefer to have at least three candidates on my final list so the song ‘Three Is a Magic Number’ is my song for the final stage of the campaign. When we present a strong, diverse shortlist of candidates, clients have genuine choice and confidence in the appointment process.
Progress - We are lucky that most of our campaigns go well but very occasionally when campaigns are complicated or super confidential, we may have to look at the search from a different angle and start afresh. There have been occasions when a confidential search has not immediately found the right audience. Those are the moments when ‘Pick Yourself Up’ starts playing in my head, reminding me that persistence and creativity are often what lead to success. It is so joyful, your feet are tapping straight away and you are ready to ‘go again’.
Work life – I could not do this without mentioning Dolly Parton and our working day at Moon. ‘9 to 5’ means more to me than just my working day but the opportunity for everyone to have fair pay and equal treatment. Equity – equity and fairness is hugely important to us at Moon and we work as a whole rather than a silo’ d business where everyone has a voice. ‘Respect’ sung by Aretha Franklin for me embodies this narrative around dignity and combining that with the workplace, the two songs are a winning combination.
All about the Moon – being super ambitious for Moon and also a huge Take That fan, I could not finish without mentioning ‘Rule the World’ as I look forward to 2027.
Music reminds me that every search is ultimately about people. Whether we are helping an organisation appoint a transformational leader or supporting a candidate with the next step in their career, there is always a song somewhere in the background accompanying the journey.
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