NSW Premier Mike Baird will be in hot demand in the jobs market and has three potential roles post politics, say executive search veterans.
"He's got the qualifications, the right experience at the right level, he's got domestic and international experience," said Korn Ferry executive chair Katie Lahey.
The 48-year-old Premier has succeeded in the competitive arenas of the banking world and the bear pit of NSW politics.
"We'd talk to him in terms of three potential avenues for him to explore."
"He could be looking for another big executive role. A CEO role, and he's obviously got a proven track record as the CEO of NSW.
"There are not-for-profits. They like people who have good networks and who have a good brand.
"You can think about [former Queensland Premier] Anna Bligh, we placed her at the YWCA [as CEO]. So that's an ex-politician going into a big not-for-profit.
"The third avenue would be boards. Does he want to be a non-executive director? The examples there are people like [former Federal Treasurer] Peter Costello who have taken that route."
Mr Costello became director on the Board of Guardians of the federal government's Future Fund, where he is now chairman, after resigning from federal Parliament in 2009.
Guy Farrow, the Sydney managing partner of executive search and leadership advisory firm Heidrick & Struggles said Mr Baird would be "a very attractive candidate for the right role in the right industry".
"He's highly intelligent, attractive, youthful. He has a very strong record in transformation, if you look at what he's done to the state," Mr Farrow said. "He's also got a broader background beyond public service, which is valuable."
Mr Baird said he had been approached about private sector roles in the past but had no immediate plans during a press conference about his retirement from politics on Thursday morning.
"[O]n a number of occasions over the past few years, you know, people have said, 'If you ever leave politics, come and talk to us.' Obviously, that's what I'll do," he said.
Mr Baird spent 10 years in banking, finishing as head of corporate and institutional banking for Australia and New Zealand at HSBC, before his decade as a politician, including three years as NSW Treasurer and three years as NSW Premier.
