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LINDSEY LESLIE-MILLER, MANAGING DIRECTOR HUNTER-MILLER

We identify the brightest stars of marketing, the marketers who will be future chief executives of first-division companies.

If you consider the type of person who has made it into the main Power 100 and the people who will be in those jobs in the future, they tend to share the same core competencies. These won't necessarily be the same as those who are going to succeed in more entrepreneurial roles.

First, they are likely to have top-class academic results, including the highest grade A-levels and a good degree. On graduating, they will have joined a top-10 company in its sector - Procter & Gamble, Unilever or Mars, for example. Not only are these companies the best training grounds, they also take a higher percentage of the top graduates.

By the age of 27, these people will be pulling ahead of their peer group and are likely to move from the company where they were trained. They will move to another top-10 firm with a major jump up in salary and responsibility.

There are exceptions, but generally if you have experience in more than one company, you will be broader in your thinking.

In terms of their qualities, all are focused and driven. Being at the top means more to them, and they have high energy levels. They'll be in the office early, they're sharp and they'll always take on something extra.

These people 'tick every box'. They are good man-managers, they're politically active in their firms, and while they can be ruthless, they are generally admired. These people are confident, but not arrogant: most of their focus is on business.

JAN HALL, PARTNER SPENCER STUART

We recruit into senior marketing roles as well as board directors and chief executives of major companies. Clients look for a strong academic record. An MBA from a prestigious business school is also helpful, as is a spell at a young age in a top management consultancy.

Clients appreciate someone who has trained at a strong, international blue-chip marketing company or at a dynamic organisation. A top candidate will be strong on the consumer branding side, but customer relationship management (CRM) skills are important.

They'll be good at managing people. What really makes them stand out, however, is having made something their own and delivered it; having taken a project, run with it and made it happen. Moving between jobs is helpful, as it shows adaptability, but if a candidate has moved around a lot, the client may think they're a job-hopper.

There is a sense of dynamism, energy and drive about most successful marketers. They'll be the kind of person that lights up a room. But this needs to be balanced with having their feet on the ground and a strong commercial approach. If people are aiming for a general management role, they must show that they have the breadth of experience - exposure to working with the top retailers, to CRM, and to managing profit and loss, for example.

Some clients are nervous about candidates who have worked at firms that have been struggling and prefer those who have a strong track record in successful firms. It is the headhunter's job to persuade them that some of the best people do take risks.

JANE DESSAR, SENIOR CLIENT PARTNER KORN/FERRY INTERNATIONAL

For the headhunter, it's about finding the right cultural fit for the business you're recruiting for. When we're recruiting into high-level marketing roles, we look at marketing and business skills, and personal competencies. Candidates must have good leadership skills, particularly in coaching and mentoring; they must have the ability to create and shape a vision around a team of people.

They must be great influencers. As marketers climb the ladder, they work closely with other functions and need the gravitas to persuade. A strong core business sense is also vital: the best candidates will have spent a couple of years working in sales and know how to get their product out there.

We are increasingly looking at people with international experience.

You probably need to be looking to get that in year five or six of your career. Cultural empathy is very important.

A lot of top-level marketers will have trained in a classic consumer environment. But some of the interesting ones have moved on from those com-panies and spent time at smaller business or a 'seedling' brand, such as in the dotcom years.

However, if you want to get to the top, don't become a serial job-mover.

When someone has moved every two to three years, they can never show that they have really grown a brand or business.

At a very senior level, we are looking for people who have turned around a brand, or worked somewhere that was challenging. The real star marketers are those who have truly driven innovation through business.