Here’s why retained search stands apart:

A True Commitment to Quality
Retained recruiters work on an upfront engagement model, aligning their success directly with yours. This structure allows them to invest the time required to deeply understand your organization, culture, leadership style, and strategic goals. The focus is not speed alone – it is precision. The result is stronger candidate alignment and higher long-term retention.

A Comprehensive, Proactive Search Process
Rather than waiting for applicants, retained search firms conduct targeted market mapping, direct outreach, and discreet networking within niche talent pools. This proactive approach uncovers candidates who are not actively job-seeking but are often the highest performers in their field.

Confidentiality and Discretion
Senior, sensitive, or replacement searches require absolute confidentiality. Retained recruiters are experienced in running discreet processes that protect your brand, your leadership team, and your internal stability.

A Strategic Partnership, Not a Transaction
Retained search builds long-term advisory relationships. Your recruiter becomes an extension of your leadership team, offering insight on compensation trends, competitor movement, talent availability, and evolving skill demands.

Faster Results for Complex Roles
While executive and specialized searches are inherently complex, retained firms reduce time-to-hire through established networks, disciplined search methodology, and immediate access to high-caliber passive candidates.

Accountability and Transparency
With a retained engagement comes structured reporting, milestone updates, and clear communication. Clients gain full visibility into market feedback, candidate pipelines, and search progress at every stage.

Access to Passive, High-Impact Talent
Top performers are rarely applying to job boards. Retained recruiters specialize in engaging passive candidates with compelling, confidential conversations that open doors to transformational hires.

Customized, Brand-Aligned Search Strategy
Every organization is unique. Retained search allows for tailored recruitment strategies that reflect your culture, values, leadership expectations, and long-term vision—ensuring you attract not just talent, but the right talent.

While contingent recruitment can be effective for high-volume or urgent hiring, retained search offers a level of rigor, partnership, and strategic impact that is unmatched for mission-critical roles. For organizations focused on building leadership strength and long-term performance, retained recruitment is not a cost – it is an investment in the future of the business.

In this episode, Karen catches up with Bill Vlaad from Vlaad and Company, a standout executive financial recruitment firm in Canada. Bill shares his journey from investment banking to founding his own company, and talks about the lessons learned from his career changes and the importance of matching personal goals with career paths. The conversation also delves into how Vlaad and Company specializes in connecting top finance firms with the right talent, navigating Canada’s unique financial sector with a tailored approach to recruitment across various fields like private equity and infrastructure. Bill provides valuable insights on adapting to the changing job market as well as strategic career planning advice for individuals and companies alike.

A panel discussion led by Vlaad and Company’s executive recruiters on financial recruitment and compensation trends for 2025 with guest speaker Tara Armstrong, Partner at Southlea.

Unfortunately, companies can’t just quickly hire their way into a culture of diversity and inclusion overnight. Nor is it enough to simply rejig company policies to become DE&I compliant. Employers must first understand–and if necessary, address–their own cultural gaps, internal attitudes towards diversity, and receptiveness to change. Only then can hiring initiatives identify talent that complements and is well received by the firm. Finally, to keep it all in place, companies need a structure that ensures best practices are sustained, improved on, and reinforced on an ongoing basis into the future.

Understanding and addressing unconscious bias
Organizations and individuals harbour implicit attitudes, beliefs, and stereotypes about groups that are different from themselves. Think of these as mental short cuts in perceiving and responding to other people. The problem is that these biases tend to cloud information we receive and they can systematically advantage some people at the expense of others. In the hiring context, bias can prevent us from finding and hiring the best candidates.

Biases are persistent, but can be altered with effort. To conquer bias, management needs to lead by being inward-looking, honest, and open-minded. That can be uncomfortable but there are tools to get us there. Education and participation are key at all levels of the organization. The catalyst for this exercise can be a consultant or full-time hire with the desired background to work alongside the leadership team and inform and evaluate the current business. This takes real commitment and can’t be learned over a couple of lunch meetings. Equity committees can be struck to encourage engagement, allowing sufficient safe space for discussion and feedback. These are normally standing committees that support DE&I in creating positive working environments.

Planning and hiring for DE&I
Employers must build an objective assessment of their talent needs based on the characteristics and qualifications they lack. The context for this is the existing culture and receptivity to difference within the company–there needs to be a fit between the current organizational mindset and potential new hires. companies can’t simply “become” more diverse and inclusive by expanding their cultural make-up through recruitment. The firm must be ready to welcome the new hires, be open to change, and treat difference as a learning opportunity.

Identifying qualified candidates often means that employers will have to alter or add to their search and referral sources in order to find more diverse candidates. Our own referral networks tend to be filled with people like “us.” This can result in a talent pool that entrenches “sameness,” even to the point of nepotism. Employers need to recognize that diverse candidates will not appear on their radar screen unless they can tap sources, contacts, or advisors with access to a much broader universe of eligible hires.

Retaining and reinforcing equity and inclusion
Once you’ve done all the work to build up your diverse workforce you don’t want to lose people for failure to treat everyone equitably. There is a policy aspect to this, which includes review and maintenance of company practices, including salaries, incentives, and career advancement. But there is also the cultural aspect, which requires people to feel respected, heard, and included. The latter is often the more difficult task, since cultural diversity necessarily brings added complexity in terms of different social norms, roles, styles, and means of messaging. There’s a heightened risk that employees get their signals crossed. Indeed, the very diversity that companies strive to gain can actually make rapport more challenging. To address this, continual communication should be fostered both formally, through regular meetings and feedback mechanisms, as well as informally, through work team activities and social events.

DE&I brings many benefits to an organization, both tangible and perceived. But these don’t come without a clear appreciation of the company’s existing culture, a willingness to accommodate and embrace people’s differences as they are onboarded, and creating accommodative structures that retain those diverse qualities by reinforcing principles of equity and inclusion going forward.

Observe tone and tenor

Compensation discussions require diplomacy on the part of those hiring and being hired alike. No candidate wants to appear intransigent or to be putting the cart (pay) before the horse (role). Personality and likeability help pave the way. You can navigate these discussions more smoothly if you stay open and approachable. There’s a big difference in tone between “I must have x” and “Can we look at x?” Consider the full package if the role interests you and ask about other aspects such benefits, vacation, and signing bonuses, which are all part of the equation.  

Know the market and your worth within it

You might perceive your value differently than perspective employers do.  Know the conditions of the market and your area within it. What is the demand at your skill level and within the specific sector?  Have there been layoffs or shortages in the industry? What are typical salary bands and prevailing trends?  Are there regulatory changes afoot that are moving the goalposts?  It’s not always about how much you earned before. 

This is another instance where access to a recruiter can reap benefits.  You may have a good sense of your intrinsic value as an employee, but a recruiter will normally be a better gauge of the employer’s needs and the conditions of the market.

Apply leverage prudently

Of course, negotiating skill also depends on leveraging you position where appropriate. Your talents, the employer’s needs, and the context of the market all play a part here.  It’s OK to imply that you are considering other options or to highlight issues important to you, as this is consistent with being open.  But negotiating in good faith implies respect for the employer’s situation as well.  If you know the hiring party has an urgent need, don’t delay your responses intentionally as a tactic or create unnecessary roadblocks to buy time. This becomes obvious and can quickly end the conversation. If an offer is presented, bring up key points promptly so that they can be addressed right away.

Be aware of the shifting legal landscape

Depending on your jurisdiction, the law regarding disclosure of salary info is changing for both employer and employee. In Ontario, for example, publicly-advertised job postings are required to show a salary range and employers cannot prevent employees from discussing compensation with peers. At the same time, some jurisdictions are prohibiting potential employers from asking job candidates about their previous compensation.^[i]

Get a written offer with all terms included

On a more formal note, it’s never a good idea to accept a verbal offer from a new employer. It’s perfectly fine to express your appreciation and that you look forward to reviewing the offer letter. Practically speaking, you can’t evaluate an offer properly until you’ve seen the full package in one document with all its pros and cons. Seeing the entire proposal in writing first enables you to modify or counter the offer without appearing to backtrack. 

Use the recruiter as a buffer

If you’re working with a recruiter, it’s often easier to be transparent with them up front, without having to raise delicate compensation issues with the employer too early and risking a negative impression.  You can speak frankly with the recruiter, and gain clarity to help align pay expectations between you and the employer from the outset.

How, when, and with whom

Don’t be afraid to raise the money issue during your discussions, as it may be more awkward to broach after the offer arrives.  However, it’s critical to know how, when, and with whom to engage.  Know your worth within the market, but pay special attention to your tone.  Remember that the recruiter can be an important buffer on matters of compensation, which can avoid ruffled feathers on both sides. Keep the lines of communication open, and be aware that drawing a hard line in the sand might just confine you to your own side!

[i] Labitoria, C., Asking applicants their salary history – is it illegal? HRD, 21 Apr 2022, available at https://www.hcamag.com/ca/specialization/workplace-health-and-safety/asking-applicants-their-salary-history-is-it-illegal/403293

Most job candidates lead with their autobiography, covering time and position in previous roles. This misses the mark in at least two respects. First, it’s often geared to their subjective view of career milestones rather than the skill deficits the employer is looking to fill. Second, it challenges the attention span of anyone listening, as it takes a long to deliver and listeners tune out.

What’s your “6 in 60”?

Attention spans are short. You’ll need to be concise, and focused, which means condensing your perfect pitch down to its key elements. That brings us to the “6 in 60” approach, where you distill your six most compelling attributes into a 60-second delivery. Why only 6 points? That’s generally enough for the employer to get a read on you. And it’s also the maximum number of points you can heap onto a listener without starting to overload them.

Keeping your highlight reel to 60 seconds doesn’t mean the rest of your feature film is left on the cutting room floor. It just means you’ll have a better chance of getting to the next stage of the hiring process, where the bigger plot can unfold. Recruiters and employers are much more likely to devote time attention to you after the preview has caught their interest.

Address the employer’s needs

It’s only natural for job candidates to gravitate to the accomplishments that make them feel most proud. “I spent 10 years in…”, or “I led a team of 20 people doing…” Or “my annual reviews were exemplary in…” The downside of this pitch is that it contains a lot of chaff that buries the wheat. The interviewer is left to sift, search, and translate in order to find the kernels they are looking for. Employers and recruiters have their own pain points, which drive the way they hire. They are focused on specific needs or gaps and are interested in how you can address those. To be noticed, you need to flip your approach to the employer’s perspective and present your offering to address their needs.

How do you know what the employer needs?

Of course, it might seem harder to know what the employer wants to hear than what you might think. The good news is, there’s a bit of homework you can do in advance to avoid making this mistake. Sometimes a job ad will spell it out for you, though more often you’ll need to do some digging. Where is the company light on expertise? Can you find someone in the firm who could give you a sneak peek at their wish list? Remember that being hired is a process, and often the earlier interview stages are the best times to learn about employer gaps before you have to show your cards. Practice your active listening skills, with lots of open-ended questions (see Nailing Your Job Interview). All of this helps to create your 6 in 60.

Example: Matching yourself to the employer’s criteria

Your 6 most marketable attributes are going to be the ones that best resonate with the specific employer. So, let’s assume you’ve identified the employer needs listed in the lefthand column below. The object, then, is to describe your characteristics, skills, and achievements that correspond with those needs.

A look at financial recruitment trends for 2024 with guest speakers Farhang Farid, Laura Paglia, and Andrew Willis.

The interview process is normally a series of interactions between yourself and the potential employer.  It involves every encounter along the way, including emails, referrals, phone calls, coffee get-togethers, and more formal interviews.  This means you are on display throughout –  your attitude, confidence and composure at each stage contribute to the impression you make.  But it also means that you can use these interactions for different purposes, to help you in information gathering and in assessing your own cultural fit. And where there is a recruiter involved, you can benefit from their input at each stage.

It’s not about you

The employer initiates a hiring process because they have a particular spot to fill.  It’s not about your needs, unless yours happen to coincide with the employer’s.  So, the first objective is to understand what the job opportunity entails – something that only comes from active listening. Demonstrate your interest by being fully present in the conversation, ask open-ended questions, paraphrase and reflect back what you’ve heard, and withhold judgement.  Again, it’s a process, and the earlier interview stages are the best times to learn all you can about whether the job is right for you and how you can cater your responses to the employer’s needs. 

Keep yourself focused

You’ve done many impressive things in your career but some are not relevant here. Once you know what the employer is looking for, you can afford to be brief and concentrate on your skills and experience that fit the opportunity.  Be cognizant of time and focus on what you need to deliver.

Being focused means being prepared. Research the company and the job, but also your own history. Be ready to explain how your specific experience matters and what you’ve learned.  What deals or assignments can you point to? How did these prepare you to step in and help the employer?

Don’t be afraid of dead air. Take time to formulate your answers or to regroup. But don’t keep talking just to fill the space or try to take over the interview.  And when you’re finished answering a question, stop talking.  If that results in dead air, it’s not on you.

Show a positive vibe

Interviewers like glass-half-full individuals who are upbeat and optimistic.  You can show your enthusiasm with positive responses, but also with questions about the opportunity that demonstrate your interest. If you’re showing reservations about the job, it’s a clear sign that you’re not a fit.  The same goes for talking about the next steps in your career if they don’t relate to the current position.

Avoid risks and red flags

It may be a Canadian thing, but employers are often concerned with limiting their exposure when considering a new hire. Try to anticipate your own weaknesses, such as gaps in your resume, and volunteer information to address them. Avoid providing strong opinions on matters that aren’t being raised, as you may inadvertently wander into a minefield.   When you are asked for your views, answer frankly, backing up your position.  But honest differences of opinion are normal and you can’t expect to be all things to all people.   

Take guidance from your recruiter

A recruiter wants to know whether you are a good fit for the opportunity, so they have an interest in making sure you are well informed about the company and the job.  And if they believe the fit is a good one, they’ll also want you to have the chance to put your best foot forward. A good recruiter will know the steps in the process, the personalities involved and how best to satisfy the criteria for the job. 

The job interview is a process – not a simple interaction.  But with the right preparation, focus, attitude and guidance from your recruiter, you can nail it!