Executive search
The people worth hiring for a leadership role are not reading job adverts. Senior appointments are won by approaching them directly, discreetly, and with something worth listening to.
Why a senior hire is a different job
A mid-level vacancy can be filled from people who are looking. A leadership role usually cannot. The candidate you want is employed, is doing well, and has no reason to be reading job boards — which means the search is a mapping and approach exercise, not a screening one.
That changes what "fast" means. For most roles we come back with a shortlist typically within two weeks. A confidential leadership search takes longer, because the pool is small and every conversation has to be had properly. We'll tell you that before you engage us rather than after.
It also changes what a shortlist is. Four people you can genuinely see in the job, each with written context on what they've run and what would move them, is worth more than a dozen CVs that match on keywords.
How the search runs
Five stages, and one consultant across all of them
The brief, properly
01A longer conversation than a normal vacancy needs: what the role has to deliver in its first year, who it reports to, what the board expects, and what would make a strong candidate say no. Getting this wrong is the usual reason senior searches drag.
Mapping the market
02We build a picture of who is doing the equivalent job well, and where. That list is the search — everything after it is conversations, and a list built badly cannot be recovered by working harder later.
Confidential approach
03Candidates are approached directly and discreetly. Your company is not named until the conversation warrants it, which protects both the incumbent if you're replacing someone and the candidate, who usually cannot be seen to be looking.
Assessment, then a short list
04A small number of people assessed properly, with written context on each: what they've actually run, why they'd move, what they'd want. Not twelve CVs for you to sift.
Offer and landing
05Referencing, negotiation and resignation support. Senior candidates get counter-offered; the work between offer and start date is part of the search, not an afterthought.
Roles we're briefed on most
Common questions
How is executive search different from filling a normal vacancy?
The people worth hiring for a leadership role are not applying to adverts — they are employed, doing well, and not looking. So the work is approach-led rather than advert-led: we build a map of who is doing the job well at comparable companies, approach them directly and confidentially, and assess a small number properly rather than screening a large number quickly.
Can you run a search confidentially?
Yes, and most senior searches need it. Candidates are approached without your company being named until they have signed an NDA or the conversation is serious enough to warrant it. That protects the incumbent if you are replacing someone, and protects the candidate, who usually cannot be seen to be looking.
How long does an executive search take?
Longer than the two weeks a mid-level shortlist takes, and we say so before you engage us rather than afterwards. A confidential leadership search is measured in weeks of mapping and approaching, because the pool is small and each conversation has to be had properly.
Hiring at volume rather than at the top? A dedicated recruiter is usually the cheaper model. Building an engineering team? IT recruitment. And if the role sits in Pakistan, our Islamabad office covers the local side.
Talk to us before you commit to anything
A first conversation costs nothing and is not a pitch. If we don't think we're the right firm for the search, we'll say so — and you pay 18% of first-year salary only once your hire starts.
Or call +92 346 1213 444 directly.