The ECG Process

Four Phases.
One Complete Candidacy.

Every engagement follows the same four-phase architecture — because every stage of the executive evaluation process demands a different type of preparation. We leave nothing to improvisation.

01
Discovery
02
Narrative
03
Delivery
04
Alignment
Discovery and strategic assessment

Step 01 — Discovery

Discovery & Strategic Assessment

We map your candidacy from four angles: genuine differentiators, board concerns, strategic alignment, and competitive threats. This analysis drives everything that follows. No document is produced without this foundation in place.

Narrative development

Step 02 — Narrative

Executive Narrative Development

Your biography and resume are rebuilt — not refreshed. Written in the language boards evaluate at: transformation, governance, scale, and impact. Every word is chosen to survive the scrutiny of a retained search partner.

Document delivery and refinement

Step 03 — Delivery

Document Delivery & Refinement

Every document is reviewed together. We refine until every word reflects the leader you are — not a generic version of your career. Revision is built into the process, not offered as an afterthought.

Interview and opportunity alignment

Step 04 — Alignment

Interview & Opportunity Alignment

We prepare you for the room — stakeholder mapping, talking points, behavioral question banks, and the exact protocol for presenting each document. You enter every conversation already knowing how it ends.

In Detail

What Happens at
Each Stage.

The ECG process is designed to be sequential and cumulative. Each phase builds directly on the last. Skipping ahead produces weaker documents. We follow the sequence because it consistently produces better outcomes.

01
Phase One — Typically 1–2 Business Days

Discovery & Strategic Assessment

The engagement opens with a 60 to 90-minute discovery session — a structured conversation that covers your career history, your target mandate, your competitive context, and your current materials. This session is not intake. It is strategy.

We build an Executive SWOT Analysis from this session: a written strategic document that maps your genuine differentiators, the concerns a board evaluator will likely raise, the opportunities your profile is best positioned for, and the competitive threats you face from comparable candidates. This document drives every positioning decision in the engagement.

60–90 minute strategy session
Executive SWOT Analysis document
Career Positioning Blueprint
Target mandate definition
Competitive landscape review
Document scope and timeline confirmed
02
Phase Two — Typically 3–7 Business Days

Executive Narrative Development

Using the positioning blueprint developed in Phase One, we build your executive narrative from the ground up. Biography first — establishing the leadership thesis and the frame through which every subsequent document will be read. Then the resume: rebuilt entirely, not edited, around achievement and impact rather than responsibility and scope.

For Complete Finalist and Total Dominance engagements, Phase Two also includes the Leadership Impact Portfolio — four to six structured case studies that provide the evidence base for the claims made in your biography and resume. These are the documents that close the deal in final-round evaluation.

Executive Biography (full + condensed)
Board-Level Executive Resume
LinkedIn Profile Transformation
Leadership Impact Portfolio (4 or 6 cases)
Consistent narrative thread across all documents
Draft delivery for review
03
Phase Three — Typically 2–3 Business Days

Document Delivery & Refinement

All documents are delivered together for a structured review session. We do not send documents and wait for comments. We review them together — walking through the positioning logic, the language choices, and the strategic decisions behind each section. This ensures you understand what every line is doing and why.

Revision is then completed based on your feedback. For Board Entry engagements this is one revision round. For Complete Finalist and Total Dominance engagements, revision continues until every document meets the standard. We do not close an engagement until the documents perform at the level they should.

Structured document review session
Positioning logic walkthrough
Feedback collection and integration
Revision round(s) per package
Final documents delivered in all formats
Usage and deployment guidance
04
Phase Four — Ongoing Through Active Search

Interview & Opportunity Alignment

Documents get you into the room. Phase Four determines what happens once you are there. For executives in Complete Finalist and Total Dominance engagements, Phase Four includes the full Executive Interview Prep Kit — seven documents covering everything from company research and stakeholder mapping to behavioural question frameworks and offer negotiation strategy.

Advisory sessions are structured around active opportunities: specific roles, specific organisations, specific panels. We do not run generic interview preparation. Every session is built around the actual room you are about to walk into — the evaluators, the likely questions, and the positioning approach that gives you the highest probability of advancing.

Executive Interview Prep Kit (7 documents)
Company and role analysis briefing
Stakeholder mapping document
Behavioural question bank and frameworks
Talking points and narrative delivery
Offer negotiation strategy and support
Timeline

From Strategy Call
to Complete Candidacy.

Day 1–2
Phase 01

Strategy session, SWOT analysis, positioning blueprint confirmed

Day 3–9
Phase 02

Biography, resume, LinkedIn, and portfolio built and delivered for review

Day 10–14
Phase 03

Review session, revisions, and final document delivery in all formats

Ongoing
Phase 04

Interview prep, advisory sessions, and negotiation support through placement

Process Questions

What to Expect
From Your Engagement.

The first session is a 60 to 90-minute strategic discovery conversation. We cover your full career history, your target mandate, your competitive context, and your current materials. This session forms the basis for your Executive SWOT Analysis and positioning blueprint — the strategic foundation for every document we build.
Beyond the initial discovery session (60–90 minutes) and document review session (45–60 minutes), most of the work is done by ECG. You will be asked to review and respond to draft documents, which typically takes 30 to 60 minutes per document. Total time commitment for most engagements is 4 to 6 hours across 10 to 14 business days.
Yes. For executives with active processes and urgent timelines, we offer expedited engagements. The Board Entry package can be completed in 5 to 7 business days with priority scheduling. Please mention your timeline during the strategy call so we can confirm availability and structure the engagement accordingly.
We review your existing materials during the discovery session and use them as a source of information — not as a starting point for editing. ECG rebuilds rather than revises, because the structural issues in executive documents cannot be solved through editing alone. We start from the positioning strategy, not the existing document.
Every engagement includes structured revision rounds, and we do not close the document delivery phase until the materials are performing at the right standard. If a specific element is not meeting the brief after revision, we address it. We have never delivered a final document that a client did not feel confident presenting.

Ready to begin the process?

Book a complimentary strategy call and we will assess your current materials and recommend the right engagement for your mandate.

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