Episode
Why Boards Keep Hiring the Wrong Person for the Top Job
- Published
- Jul 14, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 2323
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Summary
Boards keep hiring hospitality leaders for operational experience instead of leadership capability, according to recruitment specialists Ian Stazicker & Grant Taylor of White Now, speaking with Michelle Pascoe, Certified Speaking Professional and hospitality training expert. The right club CEO needs strategic thinking, critical thinking and genuine leadership, not familiarity with gaming machines or years behind the bar. So what should a board actually be looking for when they hire their next CEO? In this episode, Michelle Pascoe sits down with Ian and Grant, the new owners of White Now Recruitment, the long-standing recruitment agency for Australia's registered clubs and hospitality industry. Ian and Grant bring something most recruitment consultants don't have: genuine operational experience inside a club, having turned around a struggling regional club together before taking ownership of White Now. That background changes how they work. The conversation also gets into why boards keep making the same hiring mistake. Boards work because they hire for leadership, strategic thinking, and critical thinking, not for familiarity with gaming machines or years spent pouring beers. That distinction matters more as clubs face a wave of senior retirements and a middle management gap that opened during Covid and never fully closed. If you're a CEO, board member, or people leader in hospitality, particularly in a regional club, this conversation will change how you think about your next senior hire. Key Takeaways Why accommodation is the first question regional club candidates ask, before anything about the role itself. How clubs can use spare land and repurposed property to solve the regional housing problem for incoming staff. Why boards keep hiring for operational familiarity…