Rising Young Stars — Emerging CEO Development

This is a remote position.

Rising Young Stars — Your Potential. Your Future Leadership.

Exceptional potential deserves exceptional career support

Could you one day lead an enterprise?

Rutherford International’s Rising Young Stars Programme identifies and develops a select group of emerging professionals with the potential to become high-performing CEOs.

Rutherford estimates that this distinctive talent group represents approximately 1.38% of the working population. Our purpose is to recognise that potential early and help qualified members build careers that give it room to develop.

RutherfordINTEL reports 85% predictive accuracy in identifying performance potential. For Rising Young Stars, a curator interprets your results against the relevant CEO benchmark, alongside your experience, achievements and development needs. This identifies potential—not a guarantee of a future appointment or an individual probability of success.

More than a development programme—a relationship built around your career

Rutherford International is a talent management company, with an approach similar to the representation professional athletes receive from a talent agency.

Recognising ability is the beginning. Qualified Rising Young Stars members can expect active career advice, development resources and support in pursuing opportunities throughout their careers.

Our aim is to help you make informed career choices, gain relevant experience, develop your leadership capabilities and become visible to organisations where you could make a meaningful contribution.

Support includes consideration for hidden job market opportunities: introductions and placement opportunities arising through employer relationships, referrals and searches that may never appear on a public job board.

Who should register

Rising Young Stars is for individuals aged 18–28 who have the ambition to lead and the willingness to develop the capabilities that leadership demands.

You may be a student, apprentice, employee, founder or someone establishing a new career direction. We look beyond your current title to consider your assessed potential and what you have done with the opportunities available to you.

We welcome people who bring:

• Curiosity, initiative and a desire to take on meaningful responsibility.
  
• Openness to feedback and the confidence to reconsider an assumption.
  
• Commitment to preparation, practice and follow-through.
  
• Respect for others and a willingness to contribute to their success.
  
• Ambition supported by a readiness to do the work.
  

Discover the leadership environment that suits you

There is more than one kind of successful CEO.

Leading a high-risk start-up demands a substantially different performance profile from leading an established enterprise with annual revenue exceeding USD $2 billion.

Rutherford assesses these contexts separately. Your development and career direction should reflect the environment in which your capabilities can contribute most effectively.

The RutherfordINTEL Assessment and curator review help us explore that fit, identify development priorities and distinguish future potential from present readiness.

Build your capabilities—and your circle

Rising Young Stars brings you together with other assessed emerging leaders who share the ambition to make a significant contribution.

Through facilitated peer discussions, practical challenges and access to experienced mentors and subject-matter specialists, you can:

• Test your judgement against different perspectives.
  
• Learn from experienced leaders and ambitious peers.
  
• Strengthen your ability to communicate, challenge and collaborate.
  
• Apply new approaches to work, study, entrepreneurial or community responsibilities.
  
• Build professional relationships as your career develops.
  

Every member contributes. You bring your questions, experience and effort—and help others grow alongside you.

Explore entrepreneurship through acquisition

For some members, the route to enterprise leadership may involve acquiring an existing business.

Rising Young Stars can provide a prospective talent pool for Rutherford’s Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition programme, with separate consideration for:

• Searcher: identifying, evaluating and pursuing a suitable acquisition.
  
• Operator: leading an acquired enterprise.
  
• Searcher–Operator: combining both responsibilities where suitability is demonstrated.
  

These pathways require further review of capability, experience and fit with the business and investment mandate. Membership does not guarantee financing, an acquisition or an operating appointment.

A professional commitment on both sides

Rutherford provides career guidance, resources and consideration for relevant opportunities. Members are expected to take an active role in their development, honour commitments, respond constructively to feedback and respect confidentiality.

Where an employer or another sponsor supports participation, development objectives and information-sharing arrangements are agreed explicitly.

Programme arrangements

Membership services, participation expectations, fees and payment arrangements will be explained before you commit.

Registering your interest is free and creates no payment obligation.

Take the first step

Select “I’m interested” to complete Rutherford International’s Talent Registration form.

Following initial review, a curator may invite you to undertake the RutherfordINTEL Assessment and discuss your ambitions, development priorities and potential programme fit.

Your current position is a starting point. Let’s explore what you could become.

Registration is subject to assessment and curator review. Membership does not guarantee employment, placement or a future CEO appointment.