‍NEW YORK, NY (October 19, 2020) -- Launching today, AboveBoard is a revolutionary solution for building executive and board diversity that radically changes how companies recruit for the most senior roles. Filling c-suite, board, and other senior-level positions is typically a closed process. AboveBoard flips the recruiting model by providing executives who sign up for the platform with unprecedented access to opportunities that previously would have been hidden. This openness connects companies to a broader, more inclusive pool of qualified executives than they would otherwise reach. 

More than 350 openings for senior-level positions are already listed on AboveBoard. Leading private equity and venture capital firms including Warburg Pincus, Audax Group, Summit Partners, and Insight Partners, and some of the hundreds of companies in their portfolios are also hiring through AboveBoard. AboveBoard has already helped ACV Auctions add two key independent board members and has partnered with groups including Seizing Every Opportunity, Commune Angels, and Valence to increase opportunities for their executive members. The platform is free for executives, and anyone VP-level and above or with similar career experience can sign up at www.aboveboard.com. 

“For years companies have pledged to increase diversity in their executive ranks and on their boards and have struggled to make any true progress. Companies cannot continue to use the same hiring methods and expect a different outcome. AboveBoard opens up the recruiting process and rebalances the power between candidates and hiring firms, to drive better results for executives and employers,”  said Lucinda Duncalfe, Founder and CEO of AboveBoard. “Executives should get hired based on what they know, not who they know. AboveBoard makes this possible.”

“The importance of diversity, equity and inclusion as core values of leadership teams is undeniable,” said Asheesh Gupta, Managing Director, Audax Group. ”As we work to expand our practices and resources to widen the applicant pool for portfolio executive searches beyond our traditional sources, we are excited to partner with AboveBoard as they launch this new platform focused on helping firms attract diverse talent.”

Until AboveBoard, there have been only two options for executive hiring: retained executive search and networking. Because both of those methods are based on personal relationships, they are inherently exclusionary and limiting for both executives and employers. Job boards are not tuned to the nuances of executive hiring so senior-level positions are not listed on these platforms and executives do not use them. AboveBoard is the only platform that puts the executive in the power position, able to see the opportunities that have always been hidden and to connect with those who are hiring. Ultimately, AboveBoard provides an inclusive, cost-effective and efficient process that yields better outcomes for both executives and employers.

“We are at an inflection point as a country and Summit Partners is encouraged by companies vowing to build more diverse and inclusive leadership teams,” said Dayton Ogden, Head of Talent & Recruiting, Summit Partners. “We urge our peers and portfolio companies to go beyond verbal commitments and take concrete actions like this to change their recruiting processes."

Hundreds of live opportunities for full-time and board positions are currently listed on AboveBoard by global companies across industries including technology, finance, consulting, fashion and more. The platform’s early focus is on the growth ecosystem, including venture capital and private equity-backed companies and digital and technology positions at large corporations.  Examples of jobs currently listed on the platform include: Chief Executive Officer, Chief Technology Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Marketing Officer, VP Sales, VP Marketing, Head of Product, and Head of Finance. 

AboveBoard was founded with the support of True Search, the seventh largest search firm in the Americas and the fastest growing large firm globally, and has received seed funding from several strategic angel investors. The company’s Board of Directors includes Jonathan Mildenhall, CEO of TwentyFirstCenturyBrands, and former CMO of Airbnb. AboveBoard’s Board of Advisors includes Frances Frei, Professor at the Harvard Business School and former Senior Vice President of Leadership and Strategy at Uber; Nick Caldwell, Vice President of Engineering at Twitter; David Olivencia, Co-founder of Hispanic IT Executive Council; and Viola Maxwell-Thompson, President & CEO of the Information Technology Senior Management Forum.