Who do you hire at leadership level?
Retained search for the roles that set direction: chief revenue officers and VPs of sales, managing directors and general managers, VPs of operations, and the country and regional leadership that language businesses hire to enter new markets.
Scope
What does this practice cover?
Search is run retained and mapped against the whole market, not against a database query. For most leadership briefs in this industry the qualified population is small enough to name in full, so the work is assessment and persuasion rather than sourcing.
Roles covered
- Chief revenue officer and VP of sales
- Managing director and general manager
- VP of operations and delivery leadership
- Board and non-executive appointments
Process
How does the process run?
5 stages. Each one has something that has to be true before the next begins, which is why they are numbered rather than listed.
Brief and market read
Agree what the role actually is, what it will pay, and whether the brief is winnable as written. If it is not, that is said before the search starts rather than three months in.
Market map
The full qualified population, named. In most leadership briefs in this industry that is a list you can read in one sitting, which is what makes retained search viable here.
Approach and assessment
Direct approach, structured assessment against the brief, and honest reporting on who is genuinely movable rather than who is merely available.
Shortlist and selection
A shortlist with written assessment on each candidate, including the risks. Interview support and structured feedback throughout.
Offer and onboarding
Offer management, counter-offer handling, and contact through the notice period and first months, which is where placements are actually lost.
Terms
What does it cost and how long does it take?
- Basis
- Retained
- Fee
- 20% to 25% of first-year total compensation
Coverage
Which verticals does this apply to?
All four practices run across the same nine verticals. Each has its own hiring market, salary shape and supply constraint.
Questions
Executive search: common questions
- Why retained rather than contingent for leadership roles?
- Because the work is market mapping and persuasion, not CV matching. The people worth hiring into a chief revenue officer or VP of sales role are not applying for jobs, and reaching them properly takes committed time that contingent economics cannot fund.
- How many candidates will I see?
- A shortlist, not a longlist. Every name comes with written assessment against the brief, including where they are weak. A search that produces twelve maybes has not done the assessment work.
- What if the search does not work?
- The brief is stress-tested before the search starts, because most failed searches were unwinnable as written and everyone knew it by week three.
Ready to start a search?
A consultation is a call with Melanie about the role, the market and whether the brief is winnable as written. It is not a pitch meeting.