The 2 Skills Every Employer Is Crying Out For:
But Can't Actually Test For
Insights from Parity Consulting Founder & CEO, Victoria Butt
As a long-time executive headhunter (and employer) who’s been in this industry longer than she cares to admit, Parity’s CEO, Victoria Butt, has seen the employment landscape shift countless times. But lately, there are two skills that keep her up at night — and not just because of her nine-year-old’s ear infection.
“These two capabilities are at the very top of every employer’s wish list,” says Victoria. “But they’re bloody hard to test for in interviews. And worse — people can fake their way through answering questions about them.”
So, what are they?
1. Commercial Acumen — Rare as Hen’s Teeth
Commercial acumen is the ability to truly understand the impact of decision-making on the bottom line. “This isn’t about being a spreadsheet wizard of knowing your EDITDA,” says Victoria. “It’s about something far more nuanced — the ability to make smart, balanced decisions that deliver the biggest impact without blowing the budget.”
At Parity, we recruit senior talent across Product, Digital, Marketing, Transformation and Data, and Victoria estimates that only 12–15% of our candidate community demonstrate true commercial acumen.
“These people weren’t born with it,” she explains. “They’ve often learned it the hard way — working in smaller businesses where every dollar counts. They’ve had to think deeply about investment, innovation, and change, because there’s simply no safety net.”
Victoria knows this first-hand.
“Since founding Parity in 2012, I’ve bootstrapped the business without taking external funding. And let me tell you, I can quickly tell who can drive change on the smell of an oily rag versus those who always want more tech, more events, more investment. There’s a huge difference in mindset, and it shows up in every decision they make.”
2. Adaptability — The Superpower We All Need (But Can’t Prove We Have)
The second skill Victoria believes is crucial — and almost impossible to measure — is adaptability.
“The rise of AI has completely changed the game, and for 99% of us who aren't tech wizards, we're already way behind the eight ball". she says. “I’m now hiring for highly adaptable change agents — people who can pivot, learn quickly, and bring others along for the ride. They’re absolute gold.”
But here’s the challenge: adaptability doesn’t show up well in a 45-minute interview. “You can ask all the behavioural questions you want,” Victoria says, “but until someone’s job description becomes obsolete overnight, you don’t really know how they’ll react.”
The Testing Conundrum
At Parity, we’re actively exploring ways to assess these two critical skills more reliably. The traditional interview process is failing us when it comes to identifying these crucial capabilities.
“I’m even updating our longlist presentations for executive searches to include adaptability scores,” says Victoria. “It’s early days, but we need better ways to identify people who can walk the walk when things get tough.”
The Bottom Line
Commercial acumen and adaptability aren’t nice-to-haves anymore — they’re the difference between thriving and merely surviving.
The organisations that can spot and nurture these skills will lead the pack.
The rest? They’ll be left wondering where their budget went and why their teams couldn’t keep up with change.
To help you start assessing for these capabilities, we’ve included a few practical interview questions below.
Interview Questions to Assess
Commercial Acumen
Resource Allocation Challenge:
“Walk me through a time when you had to deliver a significant project with a limited budget. How did you prioritise spending, and what was the outcome?”ROI Thinking:
“Describe a situation where you had to make a case for investment. How did you demonstrate value and handle pushback on costs?”Trade-Off Decision Making:
“Tell me about a time you had competing priorities requiring financial investment. How did you decide what to fund or delay?”Cost-Conscious Innovation:
“Give me an example of driving innovation within tight budget constraints. What creative solutions did you implement?”Financial Impact Awareness:
“Describe a decision that had a bigger financial impact than you anticipated. What did you learn from it?”
Interview Questions to Assess
Adaptability
Rapid Change Response:
“Tell me about a time your role changed significantly. How did you adapt?”Learning Agility:
“Describe a situation where you had to learn a new skill or industry quickly. How did you approach it?”Change Leadership:
“Give me an example of helping your team adapt to a major change. What strategies worked?”Failure Recovery:
“Tell me about a time your approach stopped working. How did you pivot?”Future-Proofing Mindset:
“How do you stay ahead of change in your industry? Can you share an example of proactively adapting before you had to?”
Why partner with us?
Business leaders need top-tier talent to exceed expectations and drive growth.
At Parity, we swiftly attract and mobilise the best candidates across Financial Services and Tech, ensuring they align with your culture, performance, and reputation.
With years of earned trust, Parity specialises in unearthing those perfect truffles—candidates in Product, Digital, Marketing, Transformation and Data, who will elevate your organisation while ensuring quality always trumps quantity.
Our equitable and transparent placement process is trusted by clients and candidates alike.
By interviewing for commercial acumen and for adaptability over an exact skills match, and partnering with Parity's expertise in identifying top-tier talent, you can ensure you're making informed, impactful hires that drive sustainable growth, minimising your risk of lost time, talent, and momentum.
Reach out to one of our consultants today.