Executive Search
Retained search for senior leadership, conducted with the discipline of a mission plan and the discretion your board expects.
- Prospects identified
- 150–250Prospects identified
- Qualified conversations
- 25–40Qualified conversations
- Qualified finalists per slate
- 4–6Qualified finalists per slate
A senior hire is the most consequential decision an organization makes. It is also the one most often made on incomplete information, under time pressure, from a shallow pool. We run search as a structured operation: defined objectives, mapped terrain, evidence-based assessment, and a placement that is still performing three years out.
What you get
- A calibrated slate of four to six genuinely qualified finalists, not a stack of résumés
- Confidential approach to leaders who are not looking and will not respond to a job post
- Assessment against the role you actually need filled, not the title on the org chart
- Structured onboarding so the hire produces in quarter one, not quarter three
How executive search is delivered.
Each of these can be scoped on its own or combined.
Executive Leadership Search
C-suite, functional VP, and general management mandates. We map the full universe of qualified operators in your market, not the fraction that happens to be active.
Confidential Search
Succession, replacement of a sitting executive, or a role tied to an unannounced transaction. Run entirely off-market, with named-party disclosure controlled by you.
Specialized Talent Acquisition
Hard-to-fill technical and cleared roles where the qualified population is small, known, and already employed: program management, engineering leadership, cleared operations.
Written phases. Reported progress. No mystery.
You always know which phase the engagement is in, what is due next, and who owns it.
- 01
Mission Brief
Weeks 1–2
We meet the hiring executive, the board sponsor, and the people the role will lead. We leave with a written scorecard: the outcomes this leader must produce in 18 months, the competencies that predict them, and the deal-breakers. You approve it before we approach anyone.
- 02
Terrain Map
Weeks 2–5
We build the complete list of organizations where this capability lives and the individuals inside them who hold it. You see the map. You tell us which doors stay closed and which competitors are fair game.
- 03
Approach
Weeks 4–11
Direct, confidential outreach by the people running your search, not a research team you never meet. Passive candidates get a real conversation about the mandate, not a template.
- 04
Assessment
Weeks 8–15
Structured competency interviews against the approved scorecard, work-history verification, and a written dossier on every finalist: evidence, risks, and where they will need support.
- 05
Slate & Selection
Weeks 15–17
The first slate lands between day 100 and day 120. Four to six finalists, each of whom we would defend in front of your board. We manage the interview loop, run reference calls with people who actually worked for the candidate, and pressure-test the decision.
- 06
Offer & Integration
Weeks 17–22+
We advise on the offer, manage the counteroffer, and stay engaged through the first 90 days, the window where placements are actually won or lost. The replacement guarantee runs 180 days.
Asked before we begin.
A contingency recruiter is paid only if you hire their candidate, so their incentive is speed and volume: send many, hope one sticks. A retained search is a funded engagement. We are paid to run a complete process, which means we can map the entire market, approach people who are not looking, and tell you when a candidate is wrong. You get exclusivity and a written process. We carry the accountability.
Yes. Confidential search is a core capability: succession where the incumbent is unaware, roles tied to an unannounced transaction, or replacement of a sitting executive. We approach the market under our own name and disclose yours only at a stage you control.
Every retained placement carries a 180-day replacement guarantee. If the placement fails within that window for reasons within our control, we re-run the search at no additional professional fee. In practice we would rather prevent it: the 90-day integration work exists precisely because that is when most executive hires quietly fail.
Yes. A single leadership hire moves a mid-market organization far more than it moves an enterprise, which is where a search is felt most. It is also where the large global firms are least interested in giving you their senior people.
Bring us a search problem.
A 45-minute conversation with a principal to establish whether the problem you have described is the problem you actually have, and whether we are the right firm for it.
Or reach us directly at info@2148industries.com