Why a written brief changes the search
A search is only as good as the description it starts from. Candidates read your brief, decide whether to speak to you and then judge every conversation against it. If the brief is vague, you receive vague candidates and spend the first meetings explaining what you should have written down.
The checklist on this page asks for real answers, not ticks. Each of the eleven sections has questions you answer in your own words. As you fill them in, the one-page brief updates, and you can see which sections are still empty.
Do not aim for perfect prose. Short plain sentences beat polished ones. What matters is that each answer is specific enough that a stranger could act on it.
Mandate, outcome and decision rights
Start with the mandate. One sentence on the outcome, and one on why the need exists now. People skip the second one and then candidates guess. If the reason is a departure, a growth step, a lender request or a board concern, say which.
Decision rights come next and cause more trouble than anything else. Write what the person can approve alone, what needs your agreement, and who they can hire or release. A senior candidate who finds out soon after starting that they cannot make a purchase will leave or stall.
Be honest if the limits are tight. Tight limits are fine for the right engagement. Hidden limits are not.
Reporting line, team and stakeholders
Name the role they report to, not the person, and describe the rhythm of meetings. Then list the people below them by role and what each does well and badly. Candidates do not need gossip, but they do need to know whether the team is strong, stretched or missing a layer.
Stakeholders deserve their own list. Internal ones are the owner, the board, department heads and anyone who has opinions about this seat. External ones are lenders, advisers, key customers, regulators or a parent company. A candidate who knows who they will have to win over can say whether they are the right person.
Mark anyone who is sceptical. It is more useful than hoping nobody notices.
Known problems and what has been tried
This is the section people most want to shrink. Write the top three issues as they really are. Then write what has already been tried and what happened. If an outside firm looked at the problem, say so. If a previous leader tried to fix it and failed, say what got in the way.
Candidates are not judging you for having problems. They are judging whether the problems are solvable and whether you are honest. A brief that admits the mess earns trust. A brief that sounds like everything is fine gets a polite decline from the best people.
If you are unsure what the problem is, say that too. A scoping conversation can help sort it out.
Systems, data and success measures
List the systems and reports the person will use, by name or type, and who will grant access. Delays at the start usually come from missing logins, not from the work. Writing the access plan now removes a lot of frustration later.
Success measures belong to you. We do not hand you a list. Write the measures you would use to say the engagement worked, one per line, and name who confirms them. Keep them observable: a report delivered, a process running without the leader, a decision made, a team in place.
Avoid measures that cannot be checked, such as improved culture. If the goal is cultural, describe the behavior you want to see.
Handover, confidentiality, logistics and board context
Say what done looks like and who receives the handover. Interim and fractional work ends, and the end is easier when it is written at the start. If the handover goes to a permanent hire who has not been found, say so.
Confidentiality needs a clear rule. Decide who may know about the search and who may not, and whether the company can be named to candidates early. Then add start logistics: on site, remote or mixed, and your timing in your own words.
Last, give the board or investor context in a few lines: what they expect and which milestones are coming. Candidates will ask.
When every section has real answers, send the brief. We come back with candidate profiles, and a senior team member or a senior team member will talk through what we find.