Executive Search Manager

Agency Recruitment | 360 Desk | Mid to Senior Level Executive Search

About the Role

We’re seeking an experienced Executive Search Manager with a strong agency recruitment background and demonstrated success managing a true 360 desk.

This is a consultative sales and recruiting role focused on direct hire placements across manufacturing, engineering, operations, finance, human resources, supply chain, sales, marketing, and other professional disciplines. You'll be responsible for generating and filling your own search assignments spanning experienced individual contributors and managers up through senior leadership and executive-level roles — the range and complexity of your desk is a direct reflection of the business you build.

The ideal person understands that executive search is built on relationships, credibility, persistence, thoughtful communication, and genuine curiosity, not simply filling jobs.

What You’ll Do

• Own and grow a full 360 recruitment desk, including business development, client management, sourcing, recruiting, and closing placements.
• Proactively hunt for new business through targeted outreach, networking, referrals, market intelligence, and relationship building.
• Identify organizations with current or emerging hiring challenges and create opportunities through thoughtful, consultative conversations.
• Develop new client partnerships while nurturing existing relationships and generating repeat business.
• Build relationships with executives, business owners, HR leaders, hiring managers, and other key decision makers.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to hiring leaders by understanding their business, culture, challenges, and long-term talent needs.
• Lead full desk direct hire searches from intake through offer acceptance and onboarding.
• Recruit and engage experienced professionals, managers, directors, and executive leaders for searches ranging from approximately $80,000 through executive compensation levels.
• Build relationships with passive talent rather than relying primarily on active applicants or job postings.
• Conduct in-depth interviews that evaluate technical expertise, leadership capability, motivation, career goals, and organizational fit.
• Present thoughtfully assessed candidates with meaningful insight beyond the resume.
• Guide clients and candidates through interviews, feedback, negotiations, counteroffers, and offer acceptance.
• Provide market intelligence, compensation guidance, and hiring recommendations.
• Build and maintain a strong network of leadership talent through proactive sourcing and relationship management.
• Leverage LinkedIn Recruiter, Indeed, ATS/CRM platforms, referrals, networking, research, and other creative sourcing strategies to identify exceptional talent.
• Consistently build and manage a healthy pipeline of prospective clients, active searches, candidates, and future opportunities.
• Manage multiple searches simultaneously while delivering an outstanding client and candidate experience.

The Right Person

You are equal parts recruiter, relationship builder, and business developer.

You enjoy the hunt, whether that means uncovering a company with a difficult hiring challenge, earning the attention of a leader who was not expecting your call, or finding the passive candidate others have been unable to reach.

You know how to turn an initial conversation into a relationship, a relationship into an opportunity, and a successful search into a long-term client partnership.

You ask thoughtful questions, listen carefully, follow through, and genuinely enjoy helping businesses solve important hiring challenges. You understand that great recruiting is not transactional. It is about understanding people, earning trust, solving 

problems, and staying connected long after an individual placement is made.

Most importantly, you take ownership of your desk. You do not wait for business to come to you. You build it, nurture it, and close it.

IND123

 Qualifications

• 5+ years of successful agency executive search, or direct hire staffing experience.
• Proven success managing a full 360 recruitment desk.
• A track record of $200k+ in annual direct hire production, demonstrating your ability to consistently generate and close business.
• Proven ability to hunt for, develop, and win new business rather than relying solely on inherited accounts or incoming requisitions.
• Strong track record of building lasting client relationships and generating repeat business.
• Demonstrated experience recruiting mid to senior leadership and executive-level talent.
• Experience successfully engaging and recruiting passive candidates.
• Strong consultative sales, relationship-building, business development, and negotiation skills.
• Ability to communicate comfortably and credibly with executives, business owners, HR leaders, hiring managers, and senior-level candidates.
• Excellent interviewing and talent assessment abilities.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.
• Highly organized with the ability to manage multiple clients, searches, candidates, and priorities simultaneously.
• Self-motivated, resilient, resourceful, competitive, and driven to build long-term relationships and revenue.