Association Executive Search Case Study

The Company

Columbus REALTORS® is a membership organization and professional trade association serving realtors in greater Central Ohio, with 9,500 members. As the senior leadership team has grown, so has the expectation of how each function should perform, and how clearly information should move across the organization.

Context and Opportunity

By mid-2024, Columbus REALTORS® engaged Paramount to lead a retained executive search for a new Senior Director of Finance and Operations, the most recent of the senior-level appointments made with Paramount’s support.

This was a search with a strong candidate pool. Several highly qualified people were in contention. Functional expertise wasn’t the differentiator.

What mattered most to CEO Brent Swander was fit. Not the kind that simply means getting along, but the kind that meant having hard conversations, challenging thinking when it mattered, and contributing to a senior team built around honesty and mutual challenge. Brent was explicit: he didn’t want yes people.

The candidate who stood out came from outside the association world entirely, with a background in healthcare and insurance. Their technical credentials were strong. The decision came down to the personality assessment.

Key Challenges

• Several highly qualified candidates; final decision was genuinely difficult
• Required someone willing to challenge as well as contribute
• Leading candidate came from outside the association sector
• Decision ultimately turned on culture and working style, not qualifications alone

How We Approached the Search (Behavioral Assessment + Benchmarking)

1. Clarified what "fit" actually meant

Before shortlisting began, we facilitated an ideal candidate session to define what this role needed, not just in terms of technical skill, but in terms of how someone would work inside the team. Brent was clear about the kind of leadership culture he was building. That shaped the brief and the assessment process from the outset.

2. Used behavioral assessments to differentiate a strong shortlist

When candidates are similarly qualified, gut feel isn’t a reliable way to make the decision. Assessment data gave the hiring team a clearer view of how each person would show up under pressure, across the team, and over time. That made a competitive shortlist navigable.

3. Supported the process, then stepped back

As with every Columbus REALTORS® hire, Paramount provided consultation and insights and led the process throughout. Then stepped back. The final hiring decision belonged to Brent and the leadership team.

What Happened Next

The appointment changed how financial information moves through the organization.

Financials became clearer, more concise, and easier for leadership and the board to work with. The incoming Senior Director brought a perspective shaped by different sector standards for clarity and transparency, and that showed quickly. Conversations at the leadership level improved as a result.

Results

• Structured searchmanaged across a strong and competitive candidate pool
• Behavioralprofiling used to distinguish between similarly qualified finalists
• Hire made fromoutside the association world, based on skill and cultural fit
• Financialreporting made clearer and more transparent across the organization
• Improved qualityof conversations at the leadership and board level
• Hire still inpost in 2026, with zero staff turnover across all Paramount placements

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"Bringing a fresh perspective to our financials and our operations has been an incredible asset. Providing financials in a more clear, concise, transparent manner has really helped." - Brent Swander, CEO, Columbus REALTORS®

Why This One Stuck With Us

The most telling moment in this search wasn't the brief, and it wasn't the shortlist.

It was when the decision came down to the assessment data. Brent had highly qualified candidates in front of him. The question wasn't who had the strongest CV; it was who would push when it mattered, and contribute to a team built on trust and honest challenge.

That's exactly what the process was designed to surface. And it did.

If you're hiring for a pivotal leadership role in the association sector, finance, operations, or the C-suite, Paramount’s retained executive search and behavioral benchmarking process helps you reduce hiring risk and choose leaders who strengthen culture, performance, and long-term retention.

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