Executive search for startups

Hire proven executive leaders.
Scale with certainty.

We connect you with C-Suite and senior leaders who've already scaled startups like yours. Since 2015, we've specialised in executive search for early-stage tech businesses across HealthTech, Fintech and SaaS.

Trusted by fast-growing tech businesses

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Executive talent that unlocks growth

Hiring the right leaders for your business is the difference between stalling and scaling. We run executive search for startups across FinTech, SaaS and HealthTech, headhunting proven, often off-market, leaders in the UK & US. Our experience means we deliver fast, while you focus on your business.

  • Team builders

    We place proven leaders with the experience to attract, hire and upskill GTM, engineering, operations, and product teams.
  • Scale experience

    Our candidates all share the same experience - they have scaled early-stage startups and high-growth companies. They know what it takes and get hands-on when it matters.
  • Fast impact

    We connect you with experienced leaders who deliver impact in weeks, not months - building, hiring, and clearing bottlenecks.
  • Stay business focused

    From kickoff to placement, we manage every step and deliver senior leaders who own delivery and teams, freeing you to focus on product, customers and investors.
  • Structured assessment

    We run evidence-led selection with scorecards, structured interviews and discreet references - clear rationale and comp data so decisions are fast and defensible.
  • Offer to onboarding

    We handle the offer, close and assist with onboarding. Compensation benchmarking, offer design, and 30/60/90 support to hit early KPIs and show week-one traction.

Build your leadership team

Executive hiring is sensitive. We run confidential, targeted searches that protect your brand while raising your profile with in-demand leaders. We map the market, approach off-market talent and typically deliver a vetted shortlist within five working days of agreeing the brief, with suitable profiles sometimes shared sooner. Our average time-to-fill is 30 days.

Not every leader thrives in a fast-paced startup. Our C-suite and senior network is comprised of individuals who have scaled from 10 to 100+ head teams, navigated fundraising, launched GTM playbooks, and built high-performing cultures. You can expect hands-on leaders who make a measurable business impact from day one.

Following our initial brief we'll build a tailored role scorecard and provide insights on each candidate's motivations, demonstrable relevant experience, and highlight any shortfalls to consider. We also help shape the offer to position you as the most competitive choice.

Key leadership positions we fill

We’ve been helping tech startups scale their executive teams since 2015. These are just some of the roles we've helped our clients hire.

Chief Executive Officer
Chief Commercial Officer
Chief Operating Officer
Chief Revenue Officer
Country Manager
VP of Sales
Chief Technology Officer
Enterprise Sales Director
VP of Engineering
Chief Marketing Officer
Chief Product Officer
VP of Marketing

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Executive search case studies

View all
Bottlepay logo

Bottlepay, a FinTech startup in the Bitcoin and micropayments space, partnered with Wilson Grey to hire its first Chief Product Officer, who joined nearly three years before it was acquired by NYDIG in a ~$300m all-share deal.

FINTECH

Business Stage & Size:

Seed | ~30 heads

Main Focus:

Chief Product Officer

Time to fill:

21 days

Livepeer logo

Livepeer, a New York-based Series B startup building a decentralised video streaming network on Ethereum, partnered with Wilson Grey to hire a Marketing Director to support global growth.

SAAS

Business Stage & Size:

Series B | ~40 heads

Main Focus:

Marketing Director

Time to fill:

39 days

1 / 2

FAQs

We recruit C-suite and senior leadership hires for tech startups and scale-ups, including:

  • Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
  • Chief Operating Officer (COO)
  • Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) / VP Sales
  • Country Manager (e.g. UK launch)
  • Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) / VP Marketing / Growth
  • Chief Technology Officer (CTO) / VP Engineering,
  • Chief Product Officer (CPO) / VP Product

If you’re unsure whether your role fits, use the contact form and we’ll advise quickly.

Our core sectors are FinTech, SaaS and HealthTech, and we’ve recruited in these areas since 2015. We also support adjacent sectors where the talent and hiring needs overlap.

Yes. Because our client base is made up of early-stage and growth tech businesses, we only represent leaders with recent, first-hand experience building and scaling in this environment.

Yes. Once we align on the candidate specification, we map the market and proactively approach the right people rather than relying on inbound applications.

Yes. We agree upfront which competitors to target or avoid, run outreach discreetly, and only disclose your company name when appropriate.

We aim to share an initial candidate profile within five working days of agreeing the brief, so we can calibrate the search early. A full executive shortlist takes longer and depends on the complexity of the role, market availability and candidate engagement. Total time-to-hire also depends on interview availability, decision-making and notice periods.

We start with a structured briefing and define a scorecard for success in the role, including compensation parameters (base, bonus and equity), so the search is aligned to the market. We then run market mapping and headhunting, present a curated shortlist, and support interviews through to offer and start date, including compensation benchmarking and offer design where needed. To begin, we need the outcomes you want in the first six to twelve months, the reporting line and team context, and your must-have experience. If you don’t have a finished job description, we can help you shape it.

Every candidate is screened against the agreed scorecard, with structured interviews focused on track record, leadership style and operating cadence. We also provide referee details so you can complete your own due diligence.

Yes. We help startups hire senior leaders internationally, including in the US - notably New York and the San Francisco Bay Area. If you’re hiring elsewhere, we’ll confirm whether we can support the search and recommend the best approach.

Our executive search is retained and split into three stages: an engagement fee on signing, a second instalment when we submit the shortlist, and a completion fee once the candidate accepts and starts. We confirm the exact fee structure upfront so you can budget with confidence.

See pricing & packages

We’re built for startups and scale-ups, and the leaders we represent have done this journey before. By only submitting prescreened candidates who clear a high bar, we’ve achieved an 89% fill rate and an average 30-day time-to-fill, often faster depending on a client’s diary.

Ready to hire?

Share the role, target start date and compensation range, or book a short call to talk through your hiring plans.

Discuss the role

Speak with a consultant about your timeline, market insights, and the best way to hire for the role.

Book a call
Bryn Robinson, Talent Manager logo

They took the time to really understand our needs and quickly sent strong candidates. There was clear communication throughout, and their advice was crucial to us securing our preferred candidate.

Bryn Robinson, Talent Manager
Bryn Robinson, Talent Manager
Unbiased

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Uncover exceptional talent

Preview some of the best candidates we represent. Click profiles to discover their potential for your team.

View all profiles

Chief Marketing Officer

I’m looking for a senior commercial leadership role, C-suite or near C-suite, within healthtech, medtech or life sciences where growth is the priority. I’m best suited to organisations at an inflection point: unclear positioning, inconsistent growth, team misalignment, or a need to scale beyond the current model. My focus is on solving the underlying growth challenges behind marketing: positioning, market opportunity, sales/product alignment, and scalable AI-enabled growth engines that drive ARR, ACV and market expansion. Open to permanent or high-impact interim roles with a clear mandate to deliver measurable growth.

£135k Permanent Immediately available
GTM StrategyAgentic AICategory creation
View all profiles

Chief Customer Officer

Seeking a VP or Chief Customer Officer opportunity in a high-growth B2B SaaS business that needs a strategic, hands-on leader who stays close to customers and the operational detail, and brings clarity to ambiguity. Throughout my career, I’ve built and led post-sales teams and operating models that drive predictable onboarding, adoption, renewals and expansion, while developing leaders and helping people build successful careers.

£165k Permanent 14 days
Scaling TeamsPost-sales systemsRevenue growth
View all profiles

Chief Revenue Officer

CRO or senior commercial leadership roles in B2B SaaS or tech-enabled services businesses where growth has stalled or needs to accelerate, and where resetting GTM execution, team capability and revenue discipline will materially change outcomes. I’m particularly interested in transformation mandates that require cross-functional alignment across Sales, Marketing, Customer Success and Product to reset execution, build confidence in the number and unlock the next phase of growth.

£190k Contract 1 week
Go-to-marketCategory creationTurnaround