Establishment of an internal executive search function with measurable success. To become independent of external support and to fill international leadership positions more quickly, a dedicated in-house executive function was established for the German, Asian, and Middle East regions of adidas.
Adidas faced the challenge of not having an in-house executive search function at its German headquarters in Herzogenaurach. Management positions were filled either through external agencies or by the US recruiting team. This resulted in additional costs, limited control options, and lengthy recruitment processes – especially in key regions such as Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.
To accelerate the process and become more independent from external partners, the company began establishing its own executive search function. The in-house structure was redesigned from the ground up. Clearly defined roles, requirement profiles, processes, and a company-wide KPI framework laid the foundation for the new executive search function. Improved reporting structures and close project management ensured a smooth implementation.
In the next step, executive search managers were specifically sourced, trained, and onboarded internally. In addition to an executive search position for the German market, a local position was also created for the Asian headquarters in Shanghai.
Qualified individuals were hired locally, working according to globally defined standards. This enabled the executive search function to be successfully expanded to the Asia, Middle East, and Africa regions.
This strategic approach created a scalable, high-performance framework for adidas' global executive search. Clearly defined processes and KPIs enabled leadership positions to be filled significantly more efficiently. Time-to-hire was reduced from 120 to 90 days – a measurable efficiency gain. At the same time, costs for external partners were reduced.
High-quality, data-driven reports also made it possible to regularly evaluate the success of executive searches and optimize them for long-term success in executive recruitment. Attractive and visually presented candidate dossiers also ensured high attention and strong relevance among top talent for the executive search function.
