What is Boyden known for?

ChatGPT names Boyden most often on the question “What are the best executive search firms?”, where it appeared in 108 of 235 sampled responses (46.0%). Across the 9 executive search firms questions measured by The Shortlist Report, Boyden cleared the reporting threshold on 3.

Is Boyden a good executive search firm?

This measurement cannot answer that. It counts how often ChatGPT names Boyden when asked buyer questions, which follows how much has been written about the firm online rather than how well it works. Boyden was named in 185 of the 705 responses sampled on the questions it appears in. A firm named rarely may still be excellent, and a firm named often may not suit a given brief.

Why is Boyden in tier 4?

Boyden reaches tier 4 at its best. Tiers group firms the sample cannot statistically separate from that tier's leader, using McNemar's test at 95%. A lower tier means the sample could separate the firm from the leading group on that question.

Which firms compete with Boyden?

The firms most often named on the same questions as Boyden are DHR Global, Egon Zehnder, Heidrick & Struggles, Korn Ferry and Russell Reynolds Associates. That overlap indicates which firms a buyer asking the same questions is likely to see alongside Boyden; it is not a judgement of which is the better fit.

Firm profile

Boyden

Boyden was named in 3 of the 9 executive search firms questions measured by The Shortlist Report, appearing in 185 of the 705 AI responses sampled across those questions (26.2%).

boyden.com · Last measured October 1, 2026 · how we measure

3 / 9Questions named in

185Responses naming it

26%Of 705 sampled

4Best tier reached

Boyden is strongest on “What are the best executive search firms?”, where it was named in 108 of 235 responses (46.0%), placing it in tier 4 of that report.

What Boyden is surfaced for in executive search firms

Based on the measured answers, Boyden is most likely to be surfaced when buyers ask about “What are the best executive search firms?”, “Who runs board and chief executive searches?” and “Our executive search is not working. Who can take over?”.

How the answers describe the firmConducts confidential senior executive searches, especially mid-market and international.

In this sample, Boyden was named on 3 of the 8 executive search firms ranking questions measured. These are the buyer questions where it appeared most often:

Executive search firms — named in 108 of 235 responses (46.0%), tier 4.
Executive search enterprise and board — named in 61 of 235 responses (26.0%), tier 4.
Failed executive search — named in 16 of 235 responses (6.8%), tier 4.

This describes when the firm is surfaced, not whether it is the right firm to hire. The sample measures recommendation visibility, not client outcomes.

Every question in executive search firms

Boyden was named on 3 of these 8 ranking questions. The rest are questions buyers ask that it did not come up for — with whoever did.

Leader is the most-named firm on that question. The last column shows where Boyden placed, or a dash where it was not named often enough to clear the reporting threshold. Every row links to the full report.
Question	Leader	Boyden
What are the best executive search firms?235 answers	Egon Zehnder99%	46% · tier 4
Which firms specialise in the role we are hiring for?235 answers	Korn Ferry90%	—
Which search firms work with venture-backed startups?235 answers	Riviera Partners35%	—
Who runs board and chief executive searches?235 answers	Spencer Stuart87%	26% · tier 4
Which search firms deliver genuinely diverse candidate slates?235 answers	Russell Reynolds Associates60%	—
Our executive search is not working. Who can take over?235 answers	Spencer Stuart62%	7% · tier 4
Which search firms know our industry?234 answers	Spencer Stuart93%	—
Which executive search firms report measurable search outcomes?30 answers	Heidrick & Struggles23%	—
How much does an executive search firm charge?pricing · 235 answers	what firms charge	—

Who leads executive search firms overall: Spencer Stuart tops 3 of 8 · Egon Zehnder tops 1 of 8 · Heidrick & Struggles tops 1 of 8 · Korn Ferry tops 1 of 8 · Riviera Partners tops 1 of 8 · Russell Reynolds Associates tops 1 of 8. See all reports.

Where Boyden was named

One row per report in which Boyden cleared the reporting threshold. Reports where it was not named often enough to clear that threshold are not listed. Each report states its own sample size and collection window.
Question	Tier	Responses	Share
What are the best executive search firms?	4	108 of 235	46.0%
Who runs board and chief executive searches?	4	61 of 235	26.0%
Our executive search is not working. Who can take over?	4	16 of 235	6.8%

What Boyden gets named for

Across the 9 executive search firms questions measured, Boyden is named most often on “What are the best executive search firms?” — it appears in 108 of the 235 ChatGPT responses to that question, or 46.0% of them. Its next strongest question is “Who runs board and chief executive searches?”, where it appears in 61 of 235 responses (26.0%).

Boyden clears the reporting threshold on 3 of the 9 questions. The spread matters as much as the peak: a firm named across several different questions is one an assistant reaches for generally, where a firm named on one is attached to a single specialism.

What Boyden’s tier placings mean

On “What are the best executive search firms?”, Boyden sits in tier 4 of 6, named in 108 of 235 responses (46.0%). That places it below the leading group on this question, where the top firm was named in 99.1% of responses against Boyden’s 46.0%. It shares tier 4 with Odgers, which the sample cannot separate from it. 4 further firms were named on this question but fell into lower tiers, meaning the sample did separate Boyden from them.

On “Who runs board and chief executive searches?”, Boyden sits in tier 4 of 5, named in 61 of 235 responses (26.0%). That places it below the leading group on this question, where the top firm was named in 86.8% of responses against Boyden’s 26.0%. It shares tier 4 with ON Partners, Crist Kolder Associates and DHR Global, which the sample cannot separate from it. 1 further firm was named on this question but fell into lower tiers, meaning the sample did separate Boyden from it.

On “Our executive search is not working. Who can take over?”, Boyden sits in tier 4 of 5, named in 16 of 235 responses (6.8%). That places it below the leading group on this question, where the top firm was named in 61.7% of responses against Boyden’s 6.8%. It shares tier 4 with Stanton Chase and DHR Global, which the sample cannot separate from it. 2 further firms were named on this question but fell into lower tiers, meaning the sample did separate Boyden from them.

Firms named alongside Boyden

When ChatGPT names Boyden, these firms most often turn up on the same questions: DHR Global (3 shared questions), Egon Zehnder (3 shared questions), Heidrick & Struggles (3 shared questions), Korn Ferry (3 shared questions), Russell Reynolds Associates (3 shared questions), Spencer Stuart (3 shared questions), Caldwell (2 shared questions) and JM Search (2 shared questions).

That overlap is the closest thing this data holds to a shortlist: these are the firms a buyer asking the same questions is most likely to see beside Boyden. It says nothing about which of them is the better fit.

DHR Global · Egon Zehnder · Heidrick & Struggles · Korn Ferry · Russell Reynolds Associates · Spencer Stuart · Caldwell · JM Search

What this page is, and is not

It is a count of how often AI assistants named Boyden when asked buyer questions about executive search firms. Nothing here is a review, a rating, or an assessment of the firm’s work.
Boyden did not submit this listing, was not contacted about it, and cannot pay to change it, move up, or be removed.
A firm named in few responses may still be excellent. Share follows what has been published about a firm online, which is what an AI assistant reads.
Wrong details, or a firm merged with another of a similar name? We fix those.

All firms · All 9 reports