Nick Irving

I’d describe executive search like this: if you want somebody to audit your organisation you might bring in EY or Deloitte. If you want to headhunt a new board member or director, you talk to us.

My first recruitment role was with Asda’s resourcing team. I then jumped the fence to Michael Page, where I first met [ZD co-founder] Zac Clements. For more than a decade I’ve specialised in executive search, straddling the more-connected-than-you-might-think worlds of retail and aviation, and advising chief executives and HR leaders on talent issues.

I’d watched Zac from afar as he developed this amazing retail recruitment business. Occasionally, if I received a volume hire request for store managers or similar, I’d refer the work to ZD because they are exceptional at that.

When Zac told me he wanted to create a new executive search division of the business, it coincided with my wanting to express my entrepreneurial spirit a little more. Zachary Daniels is a business that lets you do that. It’s already extremely well regarded in the recruitment world. Now, Joanna Penney, Zac and I are working to ensure its reputation extends to executive search in the UK and Europe.

I’m supporting ZD through my retail connections and, naturally, my retail executive search work. Just as valuable, though, is my understanding of the foundations and infrastructure required to build a credible executive search function.

I’m also supporting Zac in ensuring we present ZD’s executive search capability to the market in a way that disrupts (with a small ‘d’), removing some of the traditional stuffiness, but doing all the things an executive client expects.

I am obsessive about doing amazing client work. I’m pleased to say that’s something that very much aligns with ZD.