Firm profile

Spencer Stuart

Spencer Stuart was named in 7 of the 7 executive search firms questions measured by The Shortlist Report, appearing in 279 of the 385 AI responses sampled across those questions (72.5%).

As described in the answersConducts CEO, board, and senior C-suite searches for large enterprises and succession planning.

spencerstuart.com · Last measured August 19, 2026 · how we measure

Spencer Stuart is strongest on “What are the best executive search firms?”, where it was named in 55 of 55 responses (100.0%), placing it in tier 1 of that report.

Where Spencer Stuart was named

What Spencer Stuart gets named for

Across the 7 executive search firms questions measured, Spencer Stuart is named most often on “What are the best executive search firms?” — it appears in 55 of the 55 ChatGPT responses to that question, or 100.0% of them. Its next strongest question is “Which search firms know our industry?”, where it appears in 54 of 55 responses (98.2%).

Spencer Stuart clears the reporting threshold on 7 of the 7 questions. That is every question in the set, which makes it one of the few firms an assistant reaches for across the whole category rather than for one specialism.

What Spencer Stuart’s tier placings mean

On “What are the best executive search firms?”, Spencer Stuart sits in tier 1 of 5, named in 55 of 55 responses (100.0%). Tier 1 does not mean it was ranked first. It means that at 55 responses, the gap between Spencer Stuart and the most-named firm in that sample is inside the margin of error, so the two cannot be told apart. Spencer Stuart shares tier 1 with Egon Zehnder, Heidrick & Struggles, Korn Ferry and Russell Reynolds Associates, and the order they are listed in is arbitrary. 10 further firms were named on this question but fell into lower tiers, meaning the sample did separate Spencer Stuart from them.

On “Which search firms know our industry?”, Spencer Stuart sits in tier 1 of 4, named in 54 of 55 responses (98.2%). Tier 1 does not mean it was ranked first. It means that at 55 responses, the gap between Spencer Stuart and the most-named firm in that sample is inside the margin of error, so the two cannot be told apart. Spencer Stuart shares tier 1 with Korn Ferry, and the order they are listed in is arbitrary. 10 further firms were named on this question but fell into lower tiers, meaning the sample did separate Spencer Stuart from them.

On “Which firms specialise in the role we are hiring for?”, Spencer Stuart sits in tier 1 of 3, named in 47 of 55 responses (85.5%). Tier 1 does not mean it was ranked first. It means that at 55 responses, the gap between Spencer Stuart and the most-named firm in that sample is inside the margin of error, so the two cannot be told apart. Spencer Stuart shares tier 1 with Korn Ferry, Heidrick & Struggles, Russell Reynolds Associates and Egon Zehnder, and the order they are listed in is arbitrary. 7 further firms were named on this question but fell into lower tiers, meaning the sample did separate Spencer Stuart from them.

On “Who runs board and chief executive searches?”, Spencer Stuart sits in tier 1 of 3, named in 46 of 55 responses (83.6%). It holds tier 1 alone: no other firm on this question was named often enough to be grouped with it, so on this question the sample does put one firm clearly ahead. 9 further firms were named on this question but fell into lower tiers, meaning the sample did separate Spencer Stuart from them.

On “Our executive search is not working. Who can take over?”, Spencer Stuart sits in tier 1 of 4, named in 38 of 55 responses (69.1%). It holds tier 1 alone: no other firm on this question was named often enough to be grouped with it, so on this question the sample does put one firm clearly ahead. 9 further firms were named on this question but fell into lower tiers, meaning the sample did separate Spencer Stuart from them.

On “Which search firms deliver genuinely diverse candidate slates?”, Spencer Stuart sits in tier 1 of 2, named in 29 of 55 responses (52.7%). Tier 1 does not mean it was ranked first. It means that at 55 responses, the gap between Spencer Stuart and the most-named firm in that sample is inside the margin of error, so the two cannot be told apart. Spencer Stuart shares tier 1 with Heidrick, Russell Reynolds Associates, Korn Ferry and Egon Zehnder, and the order they are listed in is arbitrary. 5 further firms were named on this question but fell into lower tiers, meaning the sample did separate Spencer Stuart from them.

On “Which search firms work with venture-backed startups?”, Spencer Stuart sits in tier 1 of 1, named in 10 of 55 responses (18.2%). Tier 1 does not mean it was ranked first. It means that at 55 responses, the gap between Spencer Stuart and the most-named firm in that sample is inside the margin of error, so the two cannot be told apart. Spencer Stuart shares tier 1 with Dave Partners, Recruits Lab, True, Daversa Partners, Riviera Partners, Shields Group Search, OneWay Recruiting, Heidrick & Struggles and Calqulate, and the order they are listed in is arbitrary.

Where Spencer Stuart does not appear

Spencer Stuart was not named often enough to clear the reporting threshold on 74 of the 7 questions: “What are the best TikTok Shop agencies?”, “What are the best agencies for TikTok Shop live selling?”, “Which agencies specialize in TikTok Shop affiliate and creator programs?”, “Which agencies run TikTok Shop paid media and GMV Max campaigns?”, “What are the best agencies for TikTok Shop creator sourcing and management?”, “Who can help me set up and manage a TikTok Shop for my brand?”, “What are the best US-based TikTok Shop agencies?”, “What are the best TikTok Shop agencies for a small brand with a limited budget?”, “Which TikTok Shop agencies work with enterprise consumer packaged goods brands?”, “We are a DTC beauty brand launching on TikTok Shop. Which agency should we work with?”, “Which agencies work with supplement, apparel, food and home goods brands on TikTok Shop?”, “Our TikTok Shop sales stalled after a strong first month. Who can we hire to fix it?”, “How much does a TikTok Shop agency cost?”, “What are the best Amazon agencies?”, “Who can manage our entire Amazon business for us?”, “Which agencies are best at Amazon PPC management?”, “Which agencies do Amazon listing optimization?”, “Which agencies help brands launch on Amazon for the first time?”, “Which Amazon agencies work with large consumer brands?”, “Which Amazon agencies work with small sellers?”, “Our Amazon account was suspended. Who can help reinstate it?”, “How much does an Amazon agency cost?”, “Which Amazon agencies specialise in my category?”, “Who can expand our Amazon business into other countries?”, “Who handles Amazon logistics, reimbursements and vendor claims?”, “Our Amazon agency is not working out. Who should we move to?”, “What are the best managed IT service providers?”, “What is the best IT company for a small business?”, “Which managed service providers are strongest on cybersecurity?”, “Which providers offer co-managed IT alongside an in-house team?”, “Which managed IT providers specialize in regulated and compliance-heavy industries?”, “Which MSPs can support offices in multiple states?”, “Which managed service providers are strongest with Microsoft 365 and Azure?”, “Which companies provide outsourced IT help desk support?”, “Our current IT provider is unresponsive. Who should we switch to?”, “Who are the best IT outsourcing firms for mid-market and enterprise companies?”, “How much does a managed service provider cost per user?”, “Who handles backup, disaster recovery and ransomware response?”, “Who manages business networks, firewalls and phone systems?”, “Who provides IT leadership rather than just IT support?”, “Who are the best managed IT providers in my city?”, “Which Salesforce partners work with small businesses?”, “Which Salesforce partners specialize in particular industries?”, “Who can migrate us from another CRM to Salesforce?”, “Which partners integrate Salesforce with other systems?”, “Which firms provide ongoing Salesforce managed services?”, “Our Salesforce implementation failed. Who can fix it?”, “How much does a Salesforce implementation cost?”, “Which partners implement Salesforce Marketing Cloud?”, “Who implements Salesforce Service Cloud and support operations?”, “Who builds Salesforce reporting, dashboards and data governance?”, “Who improves Salesforce adoption and trains users?”, “What are the best NetSuite implementation partners?”, “Who helps choose between ERP systems?”, “Who migrates a company off QuickBooks onto a real ERP?”, “Which partners implement ERP for inventory-heavy businesses?”, “Who builds ERP integrations and customisations?”, “Who supports an ERP after go-live?”, “Our ERP project failed. Who can rescue it?”, “Which ERP partners fit our company size?”, “How much does a NetSuite implementation cost?”, “What are the best fractional CFO firms?”, “Which fractional CFO firms work with venture-backed startups?”, “What is the best outsourced accounting firm for a small business?”, “Which fractional CFOs help prepare a company for fundraising?”, “Which outsourced accounting firms specialize in particular industries?”, “Which firms provide outsourced controller services?”, “Who can implement NetSuite or a real ERP for a growing company?”, “Our books are a mess and we have an audit coming. Who can help?”, “How much does a fractional CFO cost per month?”, “Which outsourced firms handle business tax and compliance?”, “Who manages cap tables, equity administration and 409A valuations?”, “Who builds budgets, forecasts and board reporting?” and “Who provides interim finance leadership at short notice?”.

An absence here is a fact about visibility, not about capability. It means that when buyers put that question to ChatGPT during the sampling window, Spencer Stuart was not among the firms it reached for — which is worth knowing if that question describes the work you are hiring for, and worth nothing as a judgement of how well the firm does that work.

Firms named alongside Spencer Stuart

When ChatGPT names Spencer Stuart, these firms most often turn up on the same questions: Heidrick & Struggles (7 shared questions), Egon Zehnder (6 shared questions), Korn Ferry (6 shared questions), Russell Reynolds Associates (6 shared questions), Odgers (5 shared questions), DHR Global (4 shared questions), True (4 shared questions) and Diversified Search Group (3 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 Spencer Stuart. It says nothing about which of them is the better fit.

Heidrick & Struggles · Egon Zehnder · Korn Ferry · Russell Reynolds Associates · Odgers · DHR Global · True · Diversified Search Group

Spencer Stuart compared

Where Spencer Stuart was measured against another firm on the same questions, over the same responses.

• Spencer Stuart vs Heidrick & Struggles7 shared questions
• Spencer Stuart vs Egon Zehnder6 shared questions
• Spencer Stuart vs Korn Ferry6 shared questions
• Spencer Stuart vs Russell Reynolds Associates6 shared questions
• Spencer Stuart vs Odgers5 shared questions
• Spencer Stuart vs DHR Global4 shared questions

All firms · All 7 reports