The Challenges of Executive Recruiting in an Evolving CPG Industry

Executives within consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies have had to keep up with the sweeping changes that have occurred with the emergence of ecommerce. Over the past decade the CPG Industry has had to adapt to radical change—it’s a level of upheaval that’s made the uniquely challenging work of industry leaders even more demanding. And in turn, it has made the filling of those roles with STAR talent even more difficult and imperative. As a result, those facing the prospect of filling executive and C-level positions are increasingly turning to executive recruiting firms.

The Complications and Complexities of an Evolving CPG Industry

As is the case with virtually all retail, the CPG industry’s transformation is chiefly due to the internet marketplace. While brick-and-mortar CPG business growth has remained modest, CPG ecommerce has exploded, with Nielsen and Food Marketing Institute research suggesting that by 2022, American consumers could be spending around $100 billion a year on online groceries alone.

A combination of mass retailers operating online like Amazon and Walmart, and smaller, niche and subscription services (such as online mail-order razor clubs and meal kits) have been snapping up huge shares of the market. While the industry scrambles to adjust to this new normal, the traditional concerns CPG businesses deal with, minute-by-minute buying trends, logistics, marketing, and the rest, haven’t gone away.

The Increasingly Dynamic Role of the CPG Executive

Today’s CPG executive is dealing with an industry that was historically brick-and-mortar-centric. With evolving consumer behaviors that have disrupted the industry, CPG leaders have been forced to stay relevant and current. CPG executives have become experts on environmentally and socially responsible products, social media and brand engagement, brand management, brand loyalty, SEO, SEM, and more. And that’s all while hunting for the best recruiting firm to help with data science and analytic recruiting for C-level talent for your data science team.

Leadership is also tasked with ensuring their marketing strategy is optimized for mobile devices. They’re incorporating real-time customer insight while also determining strategies to make their search algorithms more complex and checkout process simpler. As tough as the position has always been, yesterday’s CPG C-level executive simply wasn’t making decisions about the future of drone delivery while also developing subscription-based, on-demand ecommerce services.

Why an Effective CPG Executive Recruiter Is Crucial

A working dynamic as tumultuous, chaotic, and fast-evolving requires executive and C-level talent that’s exceptionally capable and adaptable. That’s precisely what makes partnering with an exceptionally capable executive recruiting firm so important. Consider one of the top producers for specialized executive recruiting: BrainWorks. Their industry-dedicated team of CPG recruiters brings decades of experience to the table. Additionally, they’ve developed a suite of proprietary talent identification, vetting and analysis, and recruitment tools to source the best in the industry. Which is especially important considering that when it comes to finding the best candidate for the position, they’re happily working somewhere else.

A dedicated recruiting firm with CPG specialization understands the industry and know its trends and its challenges. Their recruiters are astute and partner with their clients to not only find top talent, but top talent that will be the best fit for your company. And, most importantly, when you partner with a trusted executive recruiting firm with expertise in the CPG industry, you’ll be working with experts who have years of experience sourcing STAR candidates for C-level roles.