The company
The business had a Chief Corporate Development Officer in place, plus three strong deal leads based in the UK, responsible for covering international markets.
The Situation
With an increasing focus on US markets as a key growth area, and a potential change of sponsor on the horizon, Phipps Cameron were retained to headhunt for a Head of US to drive the business forward pre- and post-sale.
The role was heavily top-of-funnel focused, with very detailed criteria on candidate network and origination skills. The successful candidate would be senior, and very well-established in the US software space. They would have the skills to build a US-based team, plus the EQ to retain exceptional relationships with their M&A counterparts globally.
To help the client establish budget, a calibration exercise was designed by the search team and conducted as part of the retainer, and comparative analysis was collated to establish the total cost to the business of hiring the skill set needed. This was to give the Board confidence to make the critical hire.
The Solution
The search required the utmost detail to be delivered at pace. The search team mapped out the candidate pool in mid-West/NYC locations, conducted interviews and funnelled down to a mid-list of 25 profiles in under three weeks.
Following drill-down interviewing against a skills scorecard designed by Phipps Cameron bespoke to the client, 15 candidates were presented to the business from which eight were prioritised. Four complex stages of interviewing followed. The role had moved to pre-offer stage with two exceptional candidates - first choice and a strong back-up. The successful candidate was hired and has made a strong transition into their new role.
