How CAA’s Executive Search Team Recruits Top Talent for UMG, Pophouse & More: ‘We Know Where to Look’
Categoria: Musica
Joe Becher and Andrew Mackereth discuss positive hiring trends in music, executive vetting processes and pet peeves to avoid.
Por Billboard | 15/07/2026
For the past decade, the headhunters at Creative Artist’s Agency (CAA) Executive Search division have been the networkers behind the scenes helping connect top power players in sports, entertainment, finance and music companies with the people who will become their most relied-upon deputies, board directors and executives. Founded by CAA global managing partner Joe Becher in October 2016, the group has helped staff the C-suites and board rooms of Universal Music Group, Recognition and Pophouse, as well as leading live music and streaming companies, distributors and music technology start-ups. Related First Look: A Peek Inside CAA’s New Office at Nashville Yards DJ Quik Says His Son 'Made a Mistake' Following Murder Conviction, Pleads With Fans to Stop Asking About It Naoshi Fujikura of Universal Music Japan on Japan's Unique Superfan Culture & Global Ambitions: Billboard Global Power Players Interview “It really came together because of the connectivity of CAA’s platform, the knowledge we have about entertainment in general, and the access that CAA has to clients and talent,” Becher tells Billboard in late April in CAA’s New York offices in the Chrysler Building. “We’ll probably do 100 searches [out of a total of 550] for music companies this year. It’s a big business for us.” Andrew Mackereth , managing partner for music and entertainment, leads the music industry search team, and he says the job allows them to observe how music industry leaders think about capitalizing on the influx of institutional investor capital and how global investors choose companies and leaders to work with. “We see more companies every year partnering with very, very smart capital. It has created great opportunities for growth and for leaders to find new opportunities,” says Mackereth, who is based in London. “We’ve definitely been a window for private equity firms to look into the music industry and identify the right people to help them run their companies, whether it’s the right CFO, chief people officer, the right marketing officers. We know where to look for those exact individuals … within the music industry … [and] in tangential industries.” As the industry changes — with a more tech-first focus, and more private equity and investment money than ever before — Becher and Mackereth’s services are in demand more than ever. And in this current ultra-competitive and tight labor market, Becher and Mackereth have a perspective on the skills that music industry leaders are looking for, the quixotic ways in which major companies have vetted top candidates and the missteps that can mean game over for even the most experienced professionals. Related Lucy Dickins Joins CAA as Managing Director “I think at board level and C-suites, including the CEO, [it is] a jigsaw puzzle, and you have to make sure that you have the right piece so that the company can operate effectively,” Becher says. “We do a lot of the hiring for organizati