Conducting an Executive Search for Principal and Deputy Principal Roles to Enhance Strategic Leadership and Operational Excellence in a Leading Independent Catholic College
The Brief
A prominent co-educational independent Catholic College partnered with Future Leadership™ to appoint both a Principal and Deputy Principal to shape the school’s future direction.
Reporting to the College Council, the Principal was tasked with enhancing community engagement, promoting teaching and learning innovation, and strengthening stakeholder relationships. The Deputy Principal was expected to oversee day-to-day school operations, including welfare, campus administration, and the effective delivery of learning programs.
Candidate net Promote Score
Future Leadership combines truly personalised relationships with innovative technology solutions to ensure an approachable and efficient process for all our Net Promoter Score across clients, successful candidates and unsuccessful candidates is well above industry standard.
Candidates supported every year
We maintain genuine relationships with past candidates and continue to support them with leadership solutions long term, after they land their role.
Senior Women Appointed since 2002
Over half of the executive search assignments undertaken by our team have resulted in the appointment of outstanding female or LGBTQI+ leaders to high profile roles.
Candidate Retention Rate for 12 months since 2002
Our thorough briefing process and ability to engage passive candidates mean that we go to great lengths to find the right person for the role – long term!
The Process
Led by Liz Jones and Liam King, Future Leadership™ undertook a comprehensive dual-search process to recruit for both leadership roles:
- Principal Search:
- Conducted extensive briefing meetings with College representatives to define key attributes for the role.
- Launched a targeted print and online advertising campaign to maximise outreach.
- Developed a strong long list of candidates, with two rounds of panel interviews and presentations delivered to the Selection Committee by the final candidates.
- Deputy Principal Search:
- Held additional briefings to align the search with the Principal’s vision.
- Contacted 85 known leaders to identify potential candidates.
- Managed and assessed two internal applicants alongside nine external profiles, with final candidates presenting their vision for the school.
Emerging Capabilities
Strategy and Purpose
Develops and leads strategy for the function/organisation, taking a broad and long-term perspective. Communicates and gains buy-in to organisational goals and vision, promoting change initiatives.
Culture and Engagement
Fosters a positive culture, creating a sense of belonging and inclusiveness. Creates an environment that encourages diverse perspectives and facilitates a psychologically safe environment.
Governance and Compliance
Establishes, champions, and measures the effectiveness of an organisation’s regulatory and reporting systems. Identifies and evaluates risks and develops strategies to mitigate risk.
Stakeholder Relations
Establishes rapport with stakeholders, builds and sustains trusted and collaborative relationships. Identifies and draws on relevant and diverse perspectives and integrates them to support productive interactions.
Communication and Influence
Communicates with clarity and impact to facilitate individual and collective understanding, inspire action and enable information exchange. Leverages human-centric communication and storytelling to effectively influence stakeholders across the physical and virtual realms.
The Outcome
The Selection Panel appointed a seasoned Principal with over 30 years of experience in educational leadership, including extensive contributions to school improvement initiatives. This individual’s previous achievements in elevating academic outcomes and fostering excellence positioned them as an exceptional leader for the College.
For the Deputy Principal role, a candidate with 18 years of experience in independent schools was selected. This individual demonstrated innovative thinking, strong interpersonal skills, and a passion for developing educational excellence, aligning with the school’s ethos and strategic goals.
Future Leadership worked with College Council over a four month period to recruit both Principal and Vice Principal roles for our K-12 co-educational independent Catholic College.
From day one, Future Leadership were professional, honest, enthusiastic, skilled and realistic about the process we needed to undertake. They ran an inclusive, rigorous and transparent process that was caring and relatable to candidates and met the expectations of our Council.
At all stages of the process Future Leadership consultants were available, knowledgeable and ready to answer questions or deal with any concerns. Future Leadership lead two very successful processes and the College community and our partner organisations are thrilled with the results. We are looking very much forward to the future with our exceptionally strong new leadership team.
Ever the professional, Liam’s genuine interest and support made for a smooth recruitment process that could have otherwise been far more stressful and difficult. I would not hesitate to recommend Future Leadership.
