Director, Executive Recruiting

AutoNation

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Director of Executive Talent Acquisition & Advisory owns the strategy, design, and execution of AutoNation’s enterprise-wide executive recruitment lifecycle. This leader will build and manage an elite in-house executive search function, leading end-to-end recruitment for critical VP, SVP, EVP, and C-suite roles across corporate functions and business units. The position is an onsite role at AutoNation’s Fort Lauderdale corporate headquarters. This is a high-influence advisory position rather than a high-volume transactional recruiting role. The Director serves as a trusted partner to the CEO, Executive Committee, and Board of Directors, working at the intersection of talent acquisition and organizational strategy. The role optimizes executive hiring, elevates the candidate experience, partners on succession planning, and reduces reliance on external search firms. The Director will design and scale an in-house search model, lead executive searches from profile calibration and target-company mapping through compensation negotiation and onboarding, advise senior stakeholders using talent-market insights, maintain proactive and diverse executive pipelines, and manage retained search firm relationships when external support is necessary. The role also aligns executive sourcing with long-term corporate strategy and succession needs.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Human Resources, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
10 or more years of recruiting experience, including at least 5 years running VP, SVP, and C-suite searches.
Experience closing top-level executive searches per year, in-house or at a retained search firm; the number of searches is not specified in the posting.
At least 3 years managing recruiters, researchers, or search partners.
Direct experience advising CEOs, CHROs, and senior leaders on search strategy, slate decisions, and final selection.
Strong direct-sourcing skills, including target-company mapping, passive-candidate outreach, and market research without relying on agencies.
Experience structuring and negotiating executive offers, including base, bonus, equity, sign-on, and relocation.
Experience conducting confidential searches, including replacement and succession hires.
Working knowledge of Workday or a comparable ATS, and LinkedIn Recruiter.

Nice To Haves

Background at a retained search firm such as Korn Ferry, Spencer Stuart, Heidrick & Struggles, Russell Reynolds, or Egon Zehnder, followed by an in-house role.
Executive hiring experience in automotive retail, dealer groups, or multi-site retail operations, including Market Presidents, regional VPs, and General Managers.
Experience building or scaling an in-house executive search function with measurable reductions in retained search fees.
Experience at a Fortune 500 or publicly traded company, including officer-level and board-facing searches.
Track record against metrics such as time to slate, offer acceptance rate, and 12-month executive retention.
Experience using structured assessments for leadership hiring, such as Hogan, behavioral interview design, and executive references.
Ownership of executive onboarding from offer acceptance through the first 90 days.
Experience building diverse slates without sacrificing speed or quality.
Graduate degree, or equal relevant years of experience.

Responsibilities

Design and scale an efficient in-house executive search model that improves senior leadership hiring quality and reduces enterprise spend.
Lead full-lifecycle recruitment for critical executive vacancies, from profile calibration and target-company mapping through compensation negotiation and onboarding.
Partner with the CEO, CHRO, Brand Presidents, and business-unit leaders to define talent profiles, align expectations, and provide data-driven talent-market insights.
Build and maintain proactive, diverse external talent pipelines for succession-planning roles, and translate industry trends and competitor talent maps into hiring strategies.
Design and continuously refine a high-touch, confidential executive candidate experience that reflects the AutoNation brand.
Manage and evaluate retained search firm relationships, setting standards, negotiated terms, and performance benchmarks for cases where external search is necessary.
Align executive sourcing with long-term corporate strategy and maintain robust, diverse leadership succession pipelines.
Advise senior leaders on search strategy, slate decisions, and final selection.
Structure and negotiate executive offers, including base pay, bonus, equity, sign-on, and relocation.
Run confidential executive searches, including replacement and succession hires.
Own executive onboarding from offer acceptance through the first 90 days, as applicable.

Benefits

Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
Wellness incentives.
Retirement benefits, including 401(k) matching.
Paid vacation, up to 15 days per year.
Paid sick days.
Paid personal leave, up to 5 days per year.
Paid holidays, up to 13 days per year.
Short-term and long-term disability insurance.
Life insurance and accidental death and dismemberment coverage.
Health Savings Account, Health Care Spending Account, and Dependent Care Spending Account.
Maternity benefits.
Associate purchase and discount programs for vehicles, services, parts, collision, accessories, and AutoGear.
Deals and discounts through YouDecide.