A third option.
The rigor
Retained search
- Method
- Mapped market, written assessments
- Fee
Two thirds before your hire signs
The terms
Contingent recruiting
- Method
Résumé volume- Fee
- When your hire signs
Both
24 Hour Search
- Method
- Mapped market, written assessments
- Fee
- When your hire signs
Inside a search.
Search brief
Chief Financial Officer · Hybrid, Dallas
- First-year outcome
- Close the next fund raise
- Reports to
- President
- Base
- $250,000 to $300,000
- Must have
- Fund accounting depth
What it costs, and when.
Retained search
30% of first-year cash compensation, in three installments
24 Hour Search
25% of first-year base salary, once
How this is calculated
Industry sources put retained fees at 25 to 35 percent of first-year cash compensation (base plus target bonus), billed in three installments at engagement, slate, and placement; we show 30 percent. The first two installments are owed whether or not the candidate signs. Our fee is 25 percent of first-year base salary, invoiced at the signed offer, with no fee on bonus, equity, or sign-on cash. Exact terms are confirmed at engagement.
What we ask of you.
60–90minutes
A real intake.
At the start, so the brief is right before the search begins.
5business days
Written feedback on each slate.
Senior candidates move quickly, and we move with them.
What we believe.
Democratizeaccess.
Senior-level search strategy should not be a luxury, but it should feel like one.
Empathy isthe strategy.
Understanding the person, the culture, and the market is what separates a placed candidate from the right one.
Precisionover volume.
Targeted, data-driven sourcing at the start so every move in a search is intentional.
Speedwith integrity.
The 24-hour promise creates urgency and discipline without the corner-cutting.
Competeby being better.
Let the work speak.
Buildto scale.
Everything is designed to be repeatable, teachable, and ownable.
Questions from hiring leaders.
What does “retained methodology on contingent terms” mean?
We run a search the way a retained firm does: a written brief, a mapped market, written assessments, and reference work in depth. We're paid the way a contingent recruiter is, when your hire signs. There is no retainer.
How are fees structured?
25 percent of first-year base salary, invoiced when your hire signs the offer. There is no retainer and no fee on bonus, equity, or sign-on cash. Exact terms are confirmed before any work begins.
Do you ask for exclusivity?
We ask for it, because it lets us run the search properly and speak for your firm with one voice in the market. It isn't required.
How long does a search take?
We work on your timeline. As a rough guide, Director and VP searches often close in 60 to 90 days from engagement to accepted offer, and C-suite searches in 90 to 120. The real pace depends on availability and urgency, yours and the candidates’.
Who do you work with?
Owners, operators, investors, and service providers in commercial real estate; professional services firms; insurers; beauty and consumer goods brands; and growth-stage and private-equity-backed companies. We search from Director through C-suite.
Where are you based?
New York. We search across the United States.
Why is it called 24 Hour Search?
It's a standard of responsiveness, not a turnaround time. Senior searches move outside business hours, and we stay reachable while a decision is in motion.