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OQ Index

A sharper lens on leadership.

The OQ Index brings intelligence into the way we understand and assess leadership talent — adding another layer of insight to executive search.

How the OQ Index works

Evidence moves through a system.

  1. 01CandidateProfile enters the role context
  2. 02AI-driven simulationRole-specific patterns
  3. 03Human reviewEvidence weighed by experts
  4. 04OQ IndexA structured evidence view
  1. 01

    AI-driven simulation

    We model how a candidate is likely to perform in this specific role, based on patterns from similar hires — what worked, what didn't, and why.

  2. 02

    Human expertise

    Experienced search consultants weigh the evidence and make the final call. No algorithm hires your next CFO alone.

None of this replaces judgment — it gives judgment something solid to stand on.

Optics vs. reality

Every candidate looks great in an interview. We examine what’s actually true.

Optics

Résumé · Pitch · Narrative

Reality

  • Verified track record

    What the numbers did when nobody was watching.

  • Behaviour in a down-cycle

    Decisions made when the plan stopped working.

  • Context of the win

    Tailwind, inheritance, or genuine authorship.

  • How the team describes them

    Off-list references, not curated ones.

  1. Optics

    Confident answers about growth years.

  2. Reality check

    How did they behave in a down-cycle?

  3. Probe we actually use

    “Tell me about your hardest year as CEO — not your best one.”

The assessment model, probe library and evidence calibration sit behind the work itself. We walk boards and CHROs through it directly.

See the full evaluation framework

Leadership Persona Index

Beyond the profile: how we read leadership persona.

Interview Presence
Pressure Response
Core Drivers
Role fit
Interview Presence
How they show up when things are working — the strengths the room actually sees.
Pressure Response
How judgement and decision-making shift under pressure or scrutiny.
Core Drivers
What they are actually optimising for when the trade-offs become real.

Worked example — CEO

Drive and Overreach, paired with low Openness to Challenge, predicts a leader who doubles down publicly rather than course-correcting.

Power of Network

Who would actually take your call tomorrow?

Network is one of the easiest things to overstate in an interview and one of the hardest to verify without real reference-checking.

A CBO's network has to be personally transferable — relationships that move with them, not ones that only worked because of a previous employer's logo.

Borrowed network

Access attached to a title, platform or previous employer.

Ownership
Platform
Relevance
Unproven
Response
Uncertain

Transferable network

Relationships with enough trust to move with the leader.

Ownership
Personal
Relevance
Role-fit
Response
Verified

Compensation Index

Before we talk numbers, we talk architecture.

The mandate, consequence and maturity of the seat shape compensation before a benchmark does. We read the hierarchy qualitatively, then calibrate the package to the role.

Qualitative shape · no false precision

SeatWhere the band sits
  1. CEOEnterprise consequence
  2. CFO · COOCapital and execution
  3. CHRORising toward the tier above
  4. CBOVariable mandate · widest dispersion
Lower architectureHigher architecture

Let’s bring the right player to the team.

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