The People Business: A Tale of Two Bosses

In the early aughts, Bill was the boss. Some called him “Trophy Boss.” In my mind, and as I look back, he was Brilliant Boss.

Bill loved to laugh and had a great sense of humor. He could also be tough. He was very business minded. But he served that up with lots of humanity.

His office was inviting. There was a lot of upholstery! The family photos, tchotchkes, framed personal letters all told the story of who he was and what was important to him.

He once had to address a junior partner’s consistently low numbers. He acknowledged that business was tough, recognized the partner’s contributions, and offered him a choice: six months’ severance as a bridge to another opportunity, or six months to improve his performance, with no severance if he failed.

The partner chose to bet on himself.

With support from colleagues, he developed a major client relationship. Five years later, he was a practice head and one of the most prolific billing partners in the New York office.

Talent management, courtesy of Brilliant Boss.

Fast forward to a major recession and a different boss. Beige Boss.

It was a brutal time for the economy. Major banks were folding or merging. Business was very soft.

I had survived several rounds of layoffs until one afternoon when Beige Boss appeared in my doorway, wagging his finger to summon me to his office.

He had been the boss for about a year, but I had never been in his office. Everything in it was beige. A painting of a multi-masted sailboat offered the only hint of color.

It was an office that told you nothing about the person occupying it. Or perhaps, maybe it said it all.

He motioned for me to sit, shook his head from side to side, and said:

“Someone like you cannot be successful at a place like this.”

Someone like me?

What did that mean? Someone blond? Petite? Someone who spoke French? Went to Georgetown? Lived downtown?

I didn’t ask.

Instead, I said, “I have $250,000 in the pipeline. Can that turn this around?”

He shook his head again.

I stood, looked him directly in the eye, and said:

“Well then, I am no longer the least bit interested in anything you have to say.”

I was gone by 4 p.m.

The fact is that I had been successful. I had been promoted, developed strong working relationships, and mentored junior colleagues.

What stayed with me was the response afterward.

One partner, a former senior HR executive, described my departure as “a drive-by shooting.”

A colleague wrote privately: “The entire office has been in a funk since you left.”

In the end, I moved on and moved on well.

Over the years, I have thought about those two bosses. Both faced difficult decisions about people and performance. Neither could ignore the realities of the business. But one approached the conversation with respect, recognizing the value of the person sitting across from him. The other delivered a judgment that was as personal as it was dismissive.

And the irony has never escaped me. Executive search is, after all, a people business. One would think knowing how to treat people would be a prerequisite for its leaders.

Brilliant Boss gave someone a chance and a choice. Beige Boss offered neither.

— Monica Burton

This essay is adapted from The Heart of Leadership, a memoir in progress. Some names and identifying details have been changed to protect privacy.

© 2026 Monica Burton. All rights reserved.