Retained executive search for roles you can’t afford to get wrong.

A focused, senior-led, exclusive search — no junior handover, no contingent racing, no incentive to push the wrong candidate. Just the right person, sourced and qualified, typically in 3 to 5 weeks.

01 The proposition

Most senior hires don’t come from job boards. They come from relationships, deep market knowledge, and a process designed to surface fit — not just availability.

We work retained, and we work exclusively. That structure exists for a reason: it’s the only way to guarantee the time, focus and methodology a senior search actually needs. Contingent recruitment optimises for speed-to-CV. We optimise for the right hire, the first time.

For midstream and subsea inspection roles — where the talent pool is small, deeply networked, and rarely active on the market — that distinction is the entire game. 97% of our retained campaigns over the last three years have closed successfully. 77% of placed candidates are still in role four years on.

02 Why retained

A different commercial structure, a different result.

The fee model isn’t a detail — it shapes every incentive in the search. Here’s how the two approaches compare.

Contingent recruitment

Pay on placement

The same role goes to multiple agencies, all racing each other
Recruiters incentivised to send CVs fast, not assess them properly
No exclusivity means no real headhunting — only candidates already “on the market”
If it doesn’t fill, the recruiter walks away. So do their candidates.

Retained search

Pay in stages, exclusive partnership

One firm, one focus. Genuine commitment of time and methodology to your role
Properly headhunted candidates — including people not actively looking
Behavioural assessment via HireInsight built into every shortlist
97% success rate. If we don’t fill it within first 8 weeks, we replace within Fee value.

03 The method

A five-step process, built around fit.

Understand

A proper briefing call — not a job spec read-back. We dig into culture, success criteria, the politics of the role, and what “great” actually looks like in your business. We’ll often push back on the brief if it doesn’t match the market.

Week 1

ii.

Source

We headhunt. Our network of 6,000+ midstream and subsea contacts is the starting point, supplemented by mapped research into the right competitors, regions and adjacent industries. Every approach is direct, named, and pitched on the role’s merits.

Weeks 1–3

iii.

Assess via HireInsight

Every shortlisted candidate is presented through HireInsight, our candidate delivery platform. You see a video introduction, psychometric profile, competency results, salary expectations, references and CV — all in one secure place, available to your team 24/7. See HireInsight →

Weeks 3–5

iv.

Select

A shortlist of typically 3–5 candidates. We support a two-stage interview process — managing logistics, gathering structured feedback at each stage, and being honest with you about which candidates are genuinely worth a second look.

Weeks 5–8

Deliver

Offer management is where most placements break — counter-offers, notice periods, the awkward conversations with the current employer. We manage all of it, plus onboarding support and post-placement check-ins for the first six months.

Week 8 onwards

04 The deliverable

Every candidate, the full picture.

The shortlist arrives via HireInsight — a secure web platform that gives you and your hiring team everything you need on each candidate, available 24/7.

That includes an executive summary, a recorded video introduction from the candidate, psychometric profile (DISC + behavioural), competency questionnaire results, salary expectations, references and CV.

It’s the kind of dossier most search firms only assemble for board-level roles. We deliver it as standard.

Explore HireInsight →

HireInsight Candidate 03 / 04

Senior Operations Director

Pipeline Inspection · 18 yrs experience · Available Q3

Leadership 88

Technical 94

Cultural fit 81

Commercial 76

05 Fee structure

Three stages. Skin in the game on both sides.

Our retained fee is calculated as a percentage of the candidate’s Total Annual Remuneration and paid in three stages, in line with industry standard for retained executive search.

⅓

On engagement

Paid when you instruct us to act. Triggers the start of the search and our exclusivity.

ii.

⅓

On shortlist

Paid when we deliver your shortlist of qualified, assessed candidates via HireInsight.