Investing in your career success
Strategic career advisory for senior technology executives navigating complex transitions and high-stakes decisions.
The Context
Strategic trajectory, not just progression
By C-suite, that's established. The question is whether your next move positions you for the move after that. Will this CTO role lead to PE portfolio work? Will this transformation mandate make you credible for NED positions? Does this appear to be progression but actually narrow your options?
Most technology executives optimise for the role in front of them. The ones building genuine optionality
"At this level, one piece of intelligence about what's really being assessed, or one structural condition you wouldn't have known to negotiate, can be worth multiples of the advisory fee."
How We Work
Agency Three works on retained advisory structured around our framework: Clarity, Visibility, Due Diligence, Influence, Navigation and Negotiation.
Some executives need strategic counsel across the entire search process. Others want focused support on specific elements, repositioning how they're perceived in the market, navigating a complex process they're already in, or architecting negotiation strategy for an offer on the table.
We tailor the engagement to what you're navigating and where the strategic value sits.
Investment
Strategic Consultation
Process Advisory
Sustained Transition
Why invest in career advisory?
Strategic Career Intelligence
Understanding the dynamics that separate careers that compound from those that plateau
Strategic trajectory, not just progression
By C-suite, that's established. The question is whether your next move positions you for the move after that.
Will this CTO role lead to PE portfolio work? Will this transformation mandate make you credible for NED positions? Does this appear to be progression but actually narrow your options?
Most technology executives optimise for the role in front of them. The ones building genuine optionality optimise for the doors it opens three years out.
The Question
"Does this move position you for what comes next, or does it narrow your options?"
The asymmetry no one talks about
Your career is a multi-million pound asset. But unlike your investment portfolio, you're managing it with asymmetric information.
The organisation hiring you has full advisory infrastructure: search partners who've done this hundreds of times, compensation consultants stress-testing packages, boards pressure-testing cultural fit and organisational readiness.
You have instinct, pattern recognition, and guidance from people whose client is the company, not you.
That worked fine getting to SVP. At C-suite, where the difference between a role that elevates you and one that stalls you isn't obvious until you're 18 months in, the information gap becomes expensive.
"At C-suite, the information gap becomes expensive."
What you don't see costs you
Twenty-five years running executive searches revealed this pattern: candidates rarely have the real information.
What's actually being assessed beneath the surface questions. Who holds genuine influence over the decision (hint: often not who you think). What "strong culture fit, but..." means in partner meetings. Where you rank versus other candidates. What concerns are being raised that you're not hearing. Whether this role has the structural authority to succeed or is setup-to-fail.
The executives who win at this level aren't just qualified—they understand the process better than their competition. They've mapped who controls outcomes. They've anticipated objections before they become barriers. They know what each conversation is actually testing.
Why would you compete without that intelligence?
Static opportunities versus trajectories
Here's what most executives miss: not all C-suite roles are created equal.
A CTO role that doesn't report through the CEO might pay well but probably suggests the organisation doesn't truly understand technology's strategic role in their future. A transformation mandate without board access limits your ability to navigate the politics that determine success. A prestigious brand in organisational gridlock might look impressive on your CV but typecast you for future turnaround roles rather than growth opportunities.
The Right Role
The right role doesn't just match your CV, rather it positions you for what comes next. PE portfolio advisory. NED appointments. Board-level network effects.
Without someone who's seen hundreds of these trajectories play out, you're guessing which moves elevate and which ones trap.