The Intuition Index

THE INTUITION INDEX THE CRITICAL ROLE OF INTUITION IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

“The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honours the servant and has forgotten the gift.�

Albert Einstein

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CONTENTS

THE INTUITION INDEX

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

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THE CRITICAL ROLE OF INTUITION IN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

DEFINING INTUITION

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SECTION 1: 8 INTUITION IN CULTURE AND COMPANIES SECTION 2: INTUITION IN LEADERSHIP

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SECTION 3: INTUITION IN PRACTICE

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CONCLUSION 19

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Intuition

= from the

Latin intuitionem meaning “a looking at”

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The word Intuition originates from the Latin intuitionem meaning “a looking at”, which gives the sense of an ability to see things instinctually for what they really are. At Signium, we believe that in business this ability to see past, or see through, the detail in order to make sound judgement is vital. According to the research in this report, 96% of business leaders agree.

We wanted to understand the value people place on intuition and its importance to business leaders.

It is a quality that is often unacknowledged so requires understanding and definition to quantify its use and place in commercial decision making; does it even have a place? Our research aims to answer this question.

The research, conducted by Censuswide, shows that intuition is a highly desirable business asset across the globe; in fact, in three countries as diverse as the UK, Brazil and South Africa, 100% of respondents said that intuition is important in the culture they work in. Despite this, the value of intuition is often underestimated in boardrooms, commercial conversations and in the wider public debate, particularly in an increasingly data-driven world.

The research was commissioned by the global executive search and leadership consulting firm, Signium, to discover the true value of intuition to

business leaders across the world. 606 business leaders from 12 countries – the UK, US, Mexico, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan, China, South Africa, Canada and Brazil – were surveyed using a combination of quantitative research and additional qualitative in depth interviews. The aim was to determine the value they personally place on the use of intuitive judgement, as well as its value within wider business culture, in companies, in leaders, and in relation to specific tasks.

The findings have been organised on the basis of narrowing criteria – beginning with assessing the general value of intuition and its use in making business decisions, then quantifying its importance in leadership, and finally looking at its use in specific actions such as recruitment of staff. The data and explanatory notes are interspersed with case studies of business leaders and insights from specific industries, in order to show the value of intuition in practise.

‘At Signium, we have always believed that the success of senior leadership appointments is about getting the right fit between the company, the role, the individual and mutual expectations– specifically a combination of ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ issues. And we know that it is often the less easy to measure ‘soft’ characteristics that are the difference between a great hire and an average one. In this report, the evidence is clear that business leaders around the world put a lot of emphasis on the value of intuition, something that is hard to assess, difficult to develop and yet, according to them, a vitally important business skill.’ Alastair Paton, Chairman, Signium

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KEY FINDINGS

96% say intuition in business is important: Intuition is regarded as a highly prized quality in business contexts, with the vast majority of people saying it is important.

96% 96%

Intuition Intuition

82% in large companies say intuition is very important versus 62% in smaller companies: There is a direct correlation between company size and the value placed on intuition. The larger the company a person works for (measured in terms of both number of employees and turnover), the more importance they attached to intuition, and the greater the likelihood that they will report seeing intuition used effectively by the leaders they most respect.

Brazil

Brazil

76% of business leaders versus Japan59% of HR leaders value intuition: Business decision makers are shown to prioritise intuition Japan more than HR decision makers.

24% said that men are best at using intuition successfully: When comparing the intuitive skill of men and women, whilst there is significant variation between different countries, just over half of respondents (56%) said that men and women are equal in their intuitive capacity.

Brazil

Brazil

Japan

Japan

100% of Brazilian leaders value intuition versus 88% in Japan: Country variations show that respondents from Brazil placed the most value on intuition, whilst Japan had the highest number of respondents who do not value intuition.

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DEFINING INTUITION The award-winning German psychologist Gerd Gigerenzer has called intuition ‘the highest form of intelligence’ because of its ability to cut through, to understand which information is unimportant and can thus be discarded. The Ancient Greeks also understood intuition to be the grasp of universal principles through raw intelligence.

The respondents in this research were given one of many dictionary definitions – “the ability to understand something instinctively, without the need for conscious reasoning” – as a starting point for their thinking, and many ideas and associations were sparked. The words articulated spoke of gut feelings, speedy reactions, unconscious knowledge, hunches, bypassing rationality, immediate apprehension or perception, even spirituality.

Certainly it is a multi-faceted, nuanced word which requires nuanced handling, both in terms of our language and in our practise. Several of those interviewed remarked upon the importance of being in the right state of mind when exercising

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intuitive judgement in business, for only from a place of emotional intelligence and self-awareness can one avoid the pitfalls of unconscious bias. All agreed that in the right hands, intuition can indeed be the vital tool that cuts through the superfluity to recruit the right person, to make the right decision, and to seize the right business opportunity.

Gerd Gigerenzer, German psychologist

IN THEIR OWN WORDS…

Intuition is the ability to unconsciously synthesise inputs and draw quick conclusions based on the stimuli you have received. Intuition is unconscious intelligence.”

European Regional President, global consumer food company

A gut feel based on something subjective. Good leaders just pick up on the things that are going to be important, before others do.”

Chief Financial Officer of one of Europe’s leading business organisations

Intuition is implicitly there in business decision making all the time.”

Group HR Director of a

Russian energy business

Intuition is all about understanding something instantly without having to understand every single detail.”

Managing Director of a UK construction company

The best business decisions are made with a combination of rationality and experience. Intuition is to stand out using the combination to make informed business decisions.”

Chairman of one of Australasia’s largest publicly listed corporations

At its best intuition is super-logic, your subconscious brain is working, making connections at a speed your conscious brain can’t keep up with. It’s only when you stop and work backwards that the conscious brain can decode the links.”

Executive Chair of a leading global brand consultancy

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SECTION 1:

INTUITION IN CULTURE & COMPANIES

Business cultures and individual companies will vary in the emphasis they place on intuition. The variation may depend on the reliance on fixed processes within an industry, on how much intuition is actively fostered within a particular office, on the subtle balance between data analysis and consensus within an organisation, and perhaps on the particular leadership style of those setting the tone in a business culture.

But there can be no assumptions: even organisations that work with large amounts of data require advanced levels of intuition to interpret it, and even in creative industries where intuition is perhaps more expected, briefs can be rigid.

remaining 96% of respondents saying that the ability to make intuitive judgements is important, with 68% of these stating that it’s ‘very’ important.

However, the research shows that there is a common currency in the language of intuition and certainly a shared value. Across many business sectors, only a tiny minority - just 4% of respondents – said it is not important in the culture they work in, with the

It is also significant that the importance of intuition varies depending on sector. In healthcare, education, and construction, 100% of respondents said it was important, compared to 89% in the travel and transport sector and just 50% of people in the legal sector.

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As the criteria narrowed, honing in to interrogate the approach of particular companies and in the specific application of business decision-making, the value measure dropped a fraction, with 92% of respondents reporting that their company places value on intuition when discussing business decisions, with 54% saying they place ‘high’ value on this. Just 1 in 12 respondents said their company places little or no value on intuition when discussing business decisions.

The importance of intuition by sector 100% 100% 100% 99% 97% 96% 95% 93% 92% 89% 50%

Healthcare Education Construction & Engineering IT & Telecoms Finance Sales, Media & Marketing Retail, Catering & Leisure HR Manufacturing & Utilities Travel & Transport Legal

DOES SIZE MATTER?

96%

The added variable of company size also affected the results: the larger the company in terms of number of employees and turnover, the greater the value placed on intuition. 82% of respondents in a company size of 5,000-10,000 employees said that the ability to make intuitive judgements is ‘very’ important, compared to 61% of respondents in a company size of 250-500 employees. This was also borne out when it came to company turnover, with over three quarters (77%) of respondents with a company turnover of $500 million or over reporting that, in the culture they operate in, the ability to make intuitive judgements is ‘very’ important, compared to 61% of respondents in companies with a lower turnover of $50 million-$100 million.

of respondents said that the ability to make intuitive judgements is important INDUSTRY INSIGHT: CONSTRUCTION The Managing Director of a UK construction company explains how she applies intuition to both recruitment and strategic business decisions…

“In making business decisions, I seek to be brave. For example, in recruiting people with poor competency fit but high attitudinal fit. This is because I know the business well and can use intuition to help judge future potential. Intuition is also critical if you are trying to look forwards, whereas data is more useful in looking at what has happened in the past. If you are looking at

new things and the future, intuition is a critical factor to consider. For example, when making a big strategic investment decision, the assumptions that are made are often incredibly rational, but in fact many aspects of something new are not defined yet, so the decision will often need some judgement to define parameters. This is the application of intuition.”

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SECTION 1

INDUSTRY INSIGHT: PUBLISHING The Chief Executive of an international publishing house says that intuition is vital in making bold and creative publishing decisions….

“Intuition is listening to my inner voice. I know what the next right thing to do is and I need to find time and space to listen to this inner voice. Problems arise when we don’t listen to this voice. It can be spiritual. I try not to confuse impulse and impatience with intuition - the most successful people ally intuition with a good attitude and positive behaviours.

“Taking on new authors is a highly intuitive process.

It is also inherently risky. Costings and analysis are of limited help in this area. Signing authors comes from the heart and is instinctive. I have to take risks to move the business forward. We have had successes taking on authors whose sales success has proved much greater with us than with their previous publisher. This comes from having the right instincts and then applying a robust business to that author’s work.”

BUSINESS VS HR

COUNTRY COMPARISON

The research showed that there is a different emphasis placed on intuition depending on the person’s role within a company, with the business decision makers seeming to prioritise the quality more than HR decision makers. Just over three quarters (76%) of business decision makers said that the ability to make intuitive judgements is ‘very’ important in the culture they work in, compared to 59% of HR decision makers.

The UK, South Africa and Brazil are the countries which report prizing intuitive judgment most highly, with 100% of respondents here saying that intuition is important in the culture they work in. In comparison, respondents in Japan are least likely to say this is important (88%). In fact, 9 out of 10 South Africans went further and said it is a ‘very’ important business characteristic.

But this fell further on both measures when the question becomes company-specific. Under two thirds (64%) of business decision makers said their company generally places high value on intuition when discussing business decisions, compared to 44% of HR decision makers.

100% 80% 60% 40% 20%

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76% business versus 59% HR

In the culture you work in, how important is it to make intuitive decisions?

UK

Business leaders value intuition more than HR leaders:

SECTION 1

INDUSTRY INSIGHT: FINANCE The former Chief Marketing Officer of one of the UKs largest high street banks told us how he uses intuition in recruitment and understanding consumers...

“I use a lot of instinct in hiring people. I look at the data as well as listen to my gut feel by asking myself gut feel questions, such as if I were sat next to this person on a long-haul flight and my heart sunk then they probably weren’t the right person. It’s not only that reaction, I use many questions to help my intuition flow.

“I work in the creative industry, and there’s a lot of research that shows 80% of consumer reactions to advertising are emotional not rational, so you can’t just use rational thought to get to something that has an emotional outcome - you have to use gut feel and experience. To connect with people you can’t just be rational.”

GENDER COMPARISON There were some interesting results in comparing the intuitive qualities of women and men. Just under a quarter (24%) of respondents said that men are best at using intuition successfully in making business decisions. Japan was the country where the most number of people (58%) reported this view, compared to 0% of respondents in the US. A fifth of respondents said that women are best at using intuition successfully in making business decisions. Chinese respondents were more likely to select a particular gender as opposed to seeing them as equal, in contrast to the US, Canada and UK where the majority of respondents viewed men and women as equal in their use of intuition.

Respondents from Japan said that men are the most intuitive (58%), whereas leaders from Mexico and Which gender is best at using intuition successfully in business decisions?

Italy were more likely to rate women higher than men (38% and 29% respectively).

Just over a quarter (26%) of respondents in a company size of 250-500 employees said that women are best at using intuition successfully in making business decisions. This is compared to 13% of respondents in a company size of over 10,000 employees.

3 in 10 (30%) respondents with a company turnover of $1 million-$10 million said that women are best at using intuition successfully in making business decisions. This is compared to 15% of respondents with a company turnover of $500 million or over.

Regional variation regarding which gender is best at making intuitive decisions

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Women

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96%

of people think the best leaders are those who are good at using intuition

SECTION 2:

INTUITION IN LEADERSHIP

This section refines the question of intuition further and applies it to individuals, asking respondents about the best leaders they have worked for and how effective they were at using intuitive judgement.

The results showed that intuition is clearly desirable for leaders, with 96% of people saying that the best leaders they had worked with were good at using their intuition to make better business decisions, with 52% of respondents stating that they were ‘very’ good.

The recurring theme in the extended interviews with senior business leaders was that intuitive leadership is vital in this digital age with our increasingly reliance on big data. Data does not eliminate the need for intuitive judgement – rather, strong leaders are needed to convert the data into useable information, discerning which parts are important and need acting upon, generating insight which leads to action.

One of the qualitative research interviewees, the European regional president of a global consumer food company, says that leadership of this kind also results in greater efficiency. “There is sometimes a disconnect

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between what the data says and what your intuition tells you. In such cases it is important to pressure test the inputs to find the reality. Gathering data often takes time, intuition is normally much quicker. I often use my intuition to form a hypothesis and then seek data to support or contradict my initial view.”

“Data is only as good as the people that produce it and it still needs to be interpreted in order to make effective decisions,” agrees the HR Director of a leading UK investment firm. “You can have a lot of performance data in a company but most of it is subjective, especially in people related businesses. For example, the best salespeople in terms of results may be successful through exhibiting bad behaviours which is not necessarily a good thing for the organisation overall.”

DOES SIZE MATTER? Once again, it seems that the larger the company, the greater the need for intuitive skill. Two thirds (68%) of respondents with a company size of 5,000-10,000 employees said that the leaders they encountered were very good at using their intuition to make better business decisions. This is compared to 46% of respondents in companies with 250-5,000 employees.

The same applies to turnover: over 3 in 5 (63%) of respondents with a company turnover of $100 million-$500 million said that their best leaders were very good at using their intuition to make better business decisions. This is compared to 37% of respondents with a company turnover of $10 million-$50 million.

How good were the best leaders you’ve worked for at using intuition to make better business decisions?

Company size $500 Million or over $100 Million - $500 Million $50 Million - $100 Million $10 Million - $50 Million $1 Million - $10 Million $100,000 - $1 Million Under $100,000 0%

#1

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#2 #3

TOP 10 INTUITIVE LEADERS

#5 #4 #6

#7

#8 #10

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Donald Trump, President USA

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Barack Obama, Former President USA

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Steve Jobs, Apple Founder

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Bill Gates, Microsoft Founder

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Jack Ma, Alibaba CEO

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Nelson Mandela, Former President South Africa

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Elon Musk, Tesla CEO

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Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook Founder

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Justin Trudeau, President Canada

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Richard Branson, Virgin Founder

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SECTION 2

Intuition is often necessary when a ‘leap of faith’ decision is required - without it, leaders may well stick to what they know rather than embracing radical change.”

Executive Chair of a leading global brand consultancy

It is important for new leaders to develop and to trust their judgement and intuition and for managers to let them do this and give them space to fail!”

Managing Director of a UK construction company

The most effective CEOs and leaders take the data and analysis away and then apply their judgement, which will incorporate intuition, to make a final decision.”

Group HR Director of a leading UK investment firm

BUSINESS VS HR As seen in section 1, business decision makers seem to have encountered leaders with greater powers of intuition, more so than in the experience of HR decision makers. 63% of business decision makers said that the leaders they admired in their field were very good at using their intuition to make better business decisions. This is compared to 41% of HR decision makers in observing the leaders they respect.

COUNTRY COMPARISON Intuition is clearly shown to be important in leadership across all countries, especially in Brazil where 100% of respondents said that the best leaders they have worked with in business were good at using their intuition to make better business decisions.

This is compared to 92% of respondents from South Africa and Japan.

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Business leaders v HR leaders - each rated the leaders they have worked for as ‘good’ at using their intuition 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Very good

Good Business leader

Not very good

Not good at all

HR leader

100%

of respondents

in Brazil said the best leaders use intuition, versus 92% in South Africa and Japan

SECTION 2

INDUSTRY INSIGHT: HOSPITALITY The UK Managing Director of one of the world’s leading hospitality groups argues that potential leaders can learn intuition, a vital modern leadership quality in cutting through the data…

“At the start of your career, you don’t have the experience necessary to apply intuition to decisionmaking. I relied on mentors and coaches to draw on their intuition. As you develop your career, you have more experience and so can make judgements and achieve more. The secret to success as far as I am concerned, is to listen to older people, drawing on their experience and intuition to help you learn.

“If data alone would inform the decision I wouldn’t be needed. There is no such thing as a decision that is taken without the application of some kind of intuition.

The more technology there is in the world, the more you need people to give perspective on the huge amounts of data and analysis that is provided. Data is only helpful when you can draw insight from it. I think of it as a loop of data-insight-action. I am so often presented with data but without the insight that comes from it.”

INDUSTRY INSIGHT: CONSUMER The Chief Operating Officer of a global consumer food company believes that intuition is a leadership skill that needs honing through practise…

“I try and develop my intuition capability, in three ways.

First, through learning agility – having humility and listening to new ideas. Also by trusting it – trust your intuition and it will develop: be aware of it, respect and listen to it. Finally, by taking time to look inwards.

When making decisions one combines rational process

with intuition. When both align, it gives confidence that the decision is right. In situations where I am truly conflicted, I tend to blank my mind, count to five and listen to my inner voice – I use this voice not necessarily to make the decision, but to act as a tie breaker.”

INDUSTRY INSIGHT: TRANSPORT We spoke to the Senior Vice President of Culture and Leadership at a global car manufacturer about how to develop intuition…

“Being intuitive is being able to act without it taking too much time - and doing it in the right state of mind. You cannot be intuitive if you feel stress, fear, anger, or are too self-centred. You cannot be intuitively smart if you are in the red zone - I strive to be in the right state of mind to be intuitive.

“The idea is to create harmony and make people genuinely curious about themselves and others. Wanting

to understand where others come from, what situation and environment he or she comes from. It becomes important to be able to reflect and develop oneself.

Then I can use my intuition. Being intuitively smart is about: 1) being in the right state of mind and 2) training to use the right side of the brain. Society and education systems are often good at encouraging use of the left side: structure, templates, facts, etc. I have practised and learned to activate the right side.”

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SECTION 3:

INTUITION IN PRACTISE

Finally, the research investigates the value of intuition when applied to specific actions and situations. Respondents were asked how essential they think intuition is for predicting the future and making decisions in an uncertain world: over 9 in 10 (95%) respondents said it was important, with 54% of these stating that it is ‘very’ important.

Moreover, when applied to the tasks of recruitment, 96% of respondents think that intuition is important when you are personally looking to hire or promote someone, with 61% of these saying it was ‘very’ important. When interviewed, the Chief Financial Officer of one of Europe’s leading business organisations argued that “it must be one of the deciding factors in recruitment. The people context is where intuition is strongest – in recruiting and promoting people – perhaps most crucial in deciding who to promote based on intuition about future performance.”

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95%

think intuition is important for predicting the future in an uncertain world

STORIES FROM REAL LIFE We asked respondents from across 12 countries for examples of when they used intuition to make a decision that had a significant impact. Here are some of the most interesting responses…

“Intuitively believing an underperforming staff member was capable but needed a certain form of management style to bring out the best in her.”

“Deciding who to hire between two equally qualified people.”

“Switching jobs for a lower starting salary but I could feel there was more potential in the future.”

“Discerning when employees are not engaged in their work and trying to fix the culture to rectify the situation quickly.”

72%

of leaders in large companies believe intuition is important when predicting the future, versus 46% in smaller companies

“When I changed the company’s whole marketing strategy - following that decision we achieved some surprising results!”

“Anticipating the crypto-currency explosion far earlier than it happened.”

“Opting to stick with a lower value contract because I sensed that the big contract was going to fall through.”

“Trusting someone who I knew wouldn’t let me down.”

DOES SIZE MATTER?

Consistent with previous findings, there is more emphasis on intuition in larger companies: 72% of respondents in a company size of 5,000-10,000 employees said that intuition is important when predicting the future and looking to make decisions in an uncertain world, compared to 46% of respondents in a company size of 250-500 employees.

Similar findings emerge when applied to recruitment decision making: 73% of respondents in companies with over 10,000 employees think that intuition is very

important when one is personally looking to hire or promote someone, compared to 57% of respondents in companies with 250-500 employees.

Furthermore, the higher the company turnover, the greater the focus on intuitive prediction and action.

62% respondents with a company turnover of $500 million or over said that intuition is very important when predicting the future and making decisions in an uncertain world, compared to 44% of respondents in companies turning over $10 million-$50 million.

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SECTION 3

67%

BUSINESS VS HR Intuition clearly plays a vital role in recruitment (over 96% report it is important) and yet surprisingly this opinion is more widely held by business decision makers, than it is amongst HR decision makers. Over two thirds (67%) of business decision makers think that intuition is very important in hiring and promotion of staff, compared to 55% of HR decision makers.

COUNTRY COMPARISON The country-specific data continues to show that the value of intuition varies in countries and cultures, with only 38% of people in Japan reporting that intuition is very important when predicting the future and making decisions in an uncertain world. This is compared to 73% of respondents in Brazil.

business leaders think intuition is important for hiring staff, versus only 55% of HR leaders Country comparison of the importance of intuition for making future predications or business decisions in an uncertain world 73% 71% 64% 59% 56% 56% 52% 48% 46% 44% 41% 38%

Brazil South Africa Mexico Italy France Spain UK Germany US Canada China Japan

INDUSTRY INSIGHT: CONSUMER GOODS: The Chairman of one of Australia’s largest publicly listed FMCG corporations reflects on the value of intuition in courageous decision-making…

“I was running a company where popular opinion was to keep the nice, expensive packaging that customers liked and what the market leader was using. However, they ignored the negatives about the old packaging.

I was presented with a new company looking to get their packaging into the UK and I made the intuitive decision to change to this new type of packaging that subsequently made the product become a market leader.”

The European Regional President of a global consumer food company explains why intuition

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is so necessary in this market to understand the consumer mindset…

“In the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) industry, intuition often plays an important role because everyone is a consumer. In our company we put the consumer first. Proximity to the consumer helps build intuition. Intuition and experience are linked – the greater the experience the better the intuition, and this can help you move faster than the competition.”

SECTION 3

INDUSTRY INSIGHT: INVESTMENT & ACCOUNTING The HR Director of a leading UK investment firm argues that intuition is vital in making the right call in investment management services…

“Data can help you to model new products but ultimately it is down to people to spot gaps in the market that will make the products successful. This is particularly true in the investment sector. Predictive data may suggest X% margin and Y% growth but if you just follow predictions, no-one would make money as everyone has access to the same data, e.g. annual reports. We pay investment directors to make judgement calls and much of this can be intuitive.”

The Chief Financial Officer of one of Europe’s leading business organisations agrees that intuition is the tool needed for turning data into useful, person-centred information…

“Intuition is very important in accountancy which is so data driven. Without intuition we would just be the person presenting the numbers. So intuition helped me understand who would respond well to the numbers, how I should communicate, interpret and nuance the figures, and how to socialise the figures amongst colleagues. This learning has helped as my management career has developed in the broader business environment, and in leadership helping me see issues from the audience’s point of view.”

CONCLUSION The research, perhaps surprisingly, has shown that intuition is regarded as a very important characteristic in business today, irrespective of job title, company size or geography, with almost all business leaders (96%) saying it is important to them.

The amount of value invested in intuitive thinking, however, does vary between countries, with Brazil, South Africa and the UK prizing intuition most highly, compared to Japan and China where fewer people said it was a high priority. The importance of intuition will also differ depending on each person’s role within an organisation, with business decision makers placing greater emphasis on it than HR decision makers.

However, even where there is huge value placed on intuition, there is an increased awareness of the

need for self-regulation in its use. Self-awareness and clear state of mind are thought of by many to be a prerequisite for intuitive judgement, as well as healthy respect for the data which the intuitive decisions are based on. We are no longer in an age when business leaders can boast of ‘making up their mind about a person in the first minute’ – we seek objectivity, evidence, fairness and self-improvement as much as we prize risk taking.

But perhaps in this new paradigm, intuition has become even more of a vital skill, one to be honed and used carefully, not only as a way of seeing through the vast amount of information that surrounds us, but also as a mark of integrity in a world that more than anything craves transparency – of seeing and saying things as they truly are.

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METHODOLOGY This study has been commissioned by Signium, the global executive search and leadership consulting firm, and conducted by Censuswide.

It has been compiled using data gathered from 606 participants (303 Directors/Senior decision makers, and 303 HR decision makers) in companies of 250+ employees from 12 countries: the UK, US, Mexico, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan, China, South Africa, Canada and Brazil. The survey was conducted from a random sample of adults, using a combination of multiple choice and open-ended questions.

As well as quantitative data, the research also gathered qualitative analysis, forming a set of 12 anonymous

Signium is a global executive search and leadership consulting firm, helping clients recruit, develop and retain the best talent around the world.

With 50 offices in 30 countries, we combine global reach with deep local knowledge, helping clients around the world make the right decisions

cross-industry case studies, compiled from one to one interviews conducted by Signium Executives.

The research was conducted in Q4 2018.

at moments of strategic importance.

We look beyond the qualifications and experience of an individual candidate to look at the fit with culture and values of a client’s business, something we call the application of Intelligence and Intuition. www.signium.com