Keller Executive Search

80% of CHROs say their companies are doing more to optimize workforce costs than they were 12 months ago. Not by cutting headcount. By being more deliberate about where every hire, reskilling bet, and role redesign dollar actually goes. That shift is why the CHRO-CFO relationship is becoming one of the most consequential in the C-suite. When workforce spending is held to the same standard as any other capital decision, talent strategy stops living in HR alone. Hiring priorities, succession plans, and org design all start running through a shared lens of business return. The companies getting this right are not just filling roles. They are funding the capabilities that drive the next phase of growth. Keller Executive Search works with leadership teams navigating this shift. If your next executive hire needs to operate at the intersection of people strategy and financial accountability, that is the work we do. Visit https://lnkd.in/dFrWfwEC #CHRO #CFO #TalentStrategy #ExecutiveSearch #WorkforceROI The CHRO-CFO alliance is reshaping how companies invest in talent. Here is what that looks like in practice.

Employees who make an internal move are nearly 20% more likely to stay with their employer at the two-year mark, but only about 15% of those questioned say their organization has actively looked to encourage them to pursue one. In a recent Workplace Learning Report from LinkedIn, 93% of organizations questioned said that they are worried about keeping employees around. When you compare that to another report from Gartner that found that 44% of HR leaders believe their organizations do not have compelling career paths, you can notice a clear career growth issue that may worry employees. That gap is why career pathing is rapidly shifting from a development perk into a board-level retention metric. How is your organization closing the career pathing gap? Share your perspective in the comments below. Curious how top employers are turning career paths into their sharpest retention tool? Step inside Keller's latest thinking at https://lnkd.in/dTQ2KNK7 #EmployeeRetention #CareerPathing #InternalMobility

$259 million in back wages was recovered by the U.S. Department of Labor in FY 2025 alone, affecting nearly 177,000 workers. For employers, this is a strong reminder that pay classification mistakes carry real financial and operational risk. The challenge is that the rules have become more complex over time. After the 2024 overtime rule was vacated, the federal salary threshold reverted to $35,568. That puts employers back under the prior standard, but it does not remove the need for careful classification decisions. Exempt status still depends on three tests:  1. Salary basis  2. Salary level 3. Duties  If your organization is relying on outdated policies the risk of misclassification rises quickly. The real question for leadership is whether your teams are applying updated rules consistently and documenting those decisions properly. We put together a practical guide covering exempt vs. non-exempt classification, common mistakes, real-world examples, and a governance checklist for employers: https://lnkd.in/dBtSJg9R #EmploymentLaw #OvertimePay #FLSA #Exempt #NonExempt

More than three-quarters of S&P 500 companies now link executive incentives to ESG metrics, up from roughly two-thirds in 2021. The question is no longer whether ESG should appear in executive pay. It is whether the metrics are strong enough to hold leaders accountable. When targets are vague, easy to satisfy, or hard to verify, incentive design stops driving performance and starts rewarding optics. For boards and compensation committees, the challenge is not adoption. It is building measures that stand up to scrutiny, shape the right behavior, and support long-term value creation. See how leadership advisory can strengthen reward and governance design: https://lnkd.in/dbTGtqif #ExecutiveCompensation #CorporateGovernance #BoardLeadership #ESGStrategy #LeadershipAdvisory

42% of senior decision makers expect hiring uncertainty to continue, but the most strategic companies are not waiting for clarity to act. A global survey of more than 130  hiring managers found that while a large proportion of  organizations have paused or slowed hiring, they are simultaneously accelerating internal change. Redesigning roles and strengthening culture. Companies are cautious about adding headcount, but ambitious about transforming how work gets done. That makes every leadership appointment more consequential. The organizations that adapt best will be those that hire leaders for what comes next, not for what worked before. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/dygvSQG2 #WorkforceStrategy #ExecutiveSearch #LeadershipHiring #TalentStrategy #FutureOfWork

Wishing our clients, candidates, and partners a restful and happy Easter. We hope you enjoy the long weekend with the people who matter most. We look forward to reconnecting with you refreshed and ready for what's ahead. In the meantime, explore how we help organizations find exceptional leadership at: https://lnkd.in/dTQ2KNK7 #Easter2026 #EasterWeekend #PeopleFirst #RelationshipsMatter #Keller

Only 1 in 5 employees believe they could actually make an internal move at their company. That should concern talent leaders. LinkedIn's Workplace Learning Report found that just 33% of employers have formal internal mobility programs. When there is no real infrastructure behind internal movement, people stop believing it is possible. They leave. And organizations end up paying external hiring costs to replace talent they already had. What is holding internal mobility back at your organization: poor visibility into open roles, managers who hold on to top performers, or career paths that no one really trusts? The companies getting this right are building stronger pipelines from within and spending less to do it. See how that starts: https://lnkd.in/d-PZAmnx #InternalMobility #TalentStrategy #CareerDevelopment #LeadershipPipeline #WorkforcePlanning

Nearly 4 in 10 core workforce skills will not exist in their current form by 2030. The shift is not coming. It is already underway. Leaders are now expected to build AI fluency, strategic adaptability, and stakeholder influence at the same time. Few leadership teams are structured for that. The result is visible in stalled transformations, succession gaps, and executive hires that do not stick. The organizations that close these gaps first will set the pace. The rest will spend the next five years reacting. Strengthen your leadership bench before the gaps widen: https://lnkd.in/gQ4E6QpS #ExecutiveLeadership #TalentStrategy #FutureOfWork #SkillsDevelopment #HRLeadership

63% of employers say skills gaps are their top barrier to transformation, and the problem isn't just a training shortfall. It's a leadership blind spot. With nearly 40% of job skills projected to shift by 2030 and over 120 million workers at risk of redundancy, the real question isn't whether to reskill. It's whether leadership teams can identify future-critical capabilities fast enough to redesign hiring, succession planning, and internal mobility around them before competitors do. Where do you see the biggest mismatch between your organization's future strategy and its current talent capability? Share your perspective below. Closing capability gaps starts at the leadership level. Explore how strategic executive hiring helps organizations stay ahead of workforce transformation: https: https://lnkd.in/dB7d-3iD #SkillsStrategy #WorkforcePlanning #FutureOfWork #ExecutiveLeadership #TalentTransformation

Only 27% of managers worldwide are engaged at work. That number dropped three points in a single year, according to a 2025 State of the Global Workplace report. When 70% of team engagement is shaped by the manager, a decline at that level is not just an HR concern. It is a direct risk to retention, execution speed, and the strength of your leadership pipeline. How is your company responding to the manager engagement gap? Are you adjusting how you select, develop, or support people in these roles? Building a stronger leadership bench starts with who you put in the role and how you set them up to perform. Explore how the right search strategy fits into that equation: https://lnkd.in/dDiYD-mq #ManagerEngagement #LeadershipStrategy #TalentStrategy #HRLeadership #EmployeeEngagement