Thrive TRM

Executive hiring just posted its strongest quarter since early 2022, with opened searches up 15% year-over-year. That's a striking result in a year when AI was widely expected to shrink the need for senior talent, not expand it. But the growth is far from evenly spread. Our new quarterly report breaks down where it's concentrating: 1. Record private-equity demand and the two strongest early-stage VC quarters we've recorded 2. Engineering leadership compensation rising while product leadership slips 3. A search cycle that remains quick to identify talent but slower to close

The two most critical decisions in executive search are finding the right leader and structuring the exact package that gets them to sign. Historically, the data private equity talent partners need to make that second decision has been slow, generic, and disconnected from the actual hiring pipeline. Thrive TRM is changing that. We're excited to announce the acquisition of Incentiv, a dedicated executive compensation data network built specifically for private equity. This acquisition allows us to bring real-time compensation intelligence directly into Thrive users' daily search workflows. With Incentiv you can: 1. Save time and effort gathering compensation information across your global portfolio 2. Gain full visibility into portfolio and market trends for executive compensation, board compensation, and management incentive structures 3. Make confident comp decision decisions powered by the richest dataset focused on private equity Incentiv will operate as a standalone subsidiary within Thrive TRM, maintaining the rigorous data standards its members trust. Read the full press release: https://bwnews.pr/4xMt16k

Most companies are asking for AI-fluent executives before they know how to define AI fluency. That is creating a real problem in executive search. Too many hiring teams still treat tool familiarity, AI buzzwords, or personal experimentation as proof of readiness. But those are weak signals. The better question is: Which leaders can actually turn AI into operating advantage? That takes more than tool adoption. It requires judgment, transformation capability, and the will to redesign how work gets done. In our latest blog, we share two frameworks for separating buzzwords from durable leadership signals in the AI era: https://bit.ly/4o2v3eg

Technical leadership talent may be migrating to early-stage companies. According to our Q1 2026 Quarterly Report, engineering leadership searches at the Seed and Series A stages doubled quarter-over-quarter. Product leadership searches were up 67%. At Series D+ companies, engineering leadership demand dropped by nearly 45%. While late-stage companies may be full at the executive level, early-stage founders are snapping up the talent capable of architecting AI-native organizations from the ground up. For Late-stage companies and enterprises, this may be an early signal of talent flight risk for high-potential product leaders drawn to earlier stages by the promise of equity and a clean roadmap.

If you track Days to Close and noticed your numbers ticked up in Q1, you aren't alone. Public company time-to-hire jumped to 100 days, up from 55 in Q4. Series D+ searches now stretch to 109 days after a candidate is identified. Seed and Series A velocity slowed to 97 days total. Stakeholders are hesitant, but they are still paying for the right fit. Public company OTE for new execs rose 18% this quarter—the sharpest increase of any asset class. In this environment, data is your best lever to manage stakeholder expectations. Read the full Q1 quarterly report for more details.

The "AI chill" was supposed to thin demand for executive hiring. The data says otherwise. Q1 2026 just posted the strongest year-over-year growth since the post-COVID boom. But there’s a catch: The growth isn't even. While public companies are hesitant, early-stage VC demand is exploding. Read the trends from our Q1 Quarterly Report to see where the hiring momentum has shifted.

Standard recruiting metrics fail in executive search. At our latest in-house community roundtable, talent leaders tackled a shared frustration: high-volume recruiting gives internal stakeholders false expectations about pipeline velocity. The most effective workflow solution? Applying the Total Addressable Market (TAM) framework to talent. This shifts the conversation from volume to the actual number of viable candidates who fit exact search parameters. Here's how it works to reset stakeholder expectations: 1. Define your baseline TAM using exact search parameters 2. Apply progressive relaxation to remove constraints 3. Expand your candidate pool strategically 4. Present clear trade-offs between speed and quality 5. Focus on controllable metrics like time to candidate introduction Spend less time debating dashboards and more time connecting with leaders.

Stop obsessing over the AI model, obsess over your data. That's Gergely "Nemo" Nemeth's advice for executive search leaders facing pressure to become data-driven and AI-first overnight. In our latest newsletter, Nemo shares practical advice on how to nail your foundational architecture, define your key metrics, and clean up your processes before even thinking about AI.

In the past two weeks, headlines about SaaS selloffs have dominated. The fear? These business models are becoming obsolete thanks to AI agents. We don't yet know what this means for executive leadership demand. Will clients pause searches? Will volume take a dip in Q2? If we look at history, we have a roadmap. Last year, an end-of-Q1 market selloff stunted Q2 hiring. The market rebounded, but hiring didn't bounce back until Q3. That created a one-quarter pause. The most optimistic talent leaders, who engaged in proactive work and relationship-building, had a leg up when search volume returned. If the market takes a breath, how will you pivot? #ExecutiveSearch #LeadershipHiring

The frustrating truth about AI: It's only helpful when powered by clean data. Our 4-step framework walks you through how to go from spreadsheets to real talent intelligence you can act on.