Track Record

Results are the only pitch that actually matters.

Search firms are easy to promise and hard to verify. Here’s what three decades of university advancement placements actually look like — measured the way you’d measure them, not the way we’d like you to.

By the Numbers

Thirty years, measured in outcomes.

30
Years in Executive Search
100%
Project Completion Rate
180
Day Placement Guarantee
98%
Retention at 3 Years
95%
Retention at 5 Years
50–80%
Faster Than Traditional Search
$4B+
In Combined Campaigns Supported
19
Positions Filled Across Two Flagship Campaigns

Flagship Engagements

What we do at campaign scale.

Beyond individual placements, we’ve staffed entire advancement divisions for institutions mid-campaign — sustained, multi-year engagements where every individual search still moved on our standard accelerated timeline.

$1B+ Campaign

17 Positions, R1 Public Research University

Roles Filled
SAVP AVP Executive Director Senior Director Director
The Engagement

A multi-year partnership staffing an advancement division from the senior associate vice president level down through directors, in support of a billion-dollar-plus comprehensive campaign. Each of the 14 searches was completed on our standard rapid timeline — sustained capacity, not a slower pace traded for scale. We provided six months of post-placement performance coaching to all 17 advancement professionals we placed to ensure rapid assimilation, acculturation and fundraising performance.

$3B+ Campaign

6 Positions, R1 Public Research University

Roles Filled
Associate VP Assistant VP Executive Director
The Engagement

Five leadership placements spanning transformational giving, major gifts, and annual giving, for a university running one of the largest comprehensive campaigns in the sector. As with our other flagship engagement, the overall partnership ran multi-year, while each individual search stayed on our standard rapid timeline. In addition to providing post-placement performance coaching to the 6 placed candidates, the institution engaged us to coach an additional 10 advancement professionals on the team ranging for AVPs to Executive Directors.

Placements Across the Country

Every institution type. Every region.

Vice President of Advancement
Private Research University, Northeast
Chief Development Officer
Academic Medical Center, Midwest
AVP of Alumni Relations
Public Flagship University, South
Executive Director of Planned Giving
Liberal Arts College, West
Campaign Director
Comprehensive Campaign, $250M+
Major Gifts Officer
Private University, Mid-Atlantic
Chief Advancement Officer
Independent School System, Northeast
Director of Corporate & Foundation Relations
Public University System, West
VP of Institutional Advancement
Faith-Based University, Midwest

Illustrative Search Narratives

What a search actually looks like, start to finish.

Case scenarios we have seen across single-role searches for our clients.

Campaign Leadership, Under Time Pressure

The Situation

A private research university needed to replace a VP of Advancement six months before the public launch of a nine-figure campaign, with the search committee under pressure to move fast without cutting corners.

Our Approach

Full T-Mapping™ against the campaign’s exact requirements identified candidates with proven comprehensive-campaign leadership who weren’t actively looking for a new role.

The Outcome

A finalist slate was ready inside six weeks. The placed VP was in seat before the campaign’s public launch and remains in the role today.

Rebuilding an Alumni Function

The Situation

A liberal arts college’s alumni relations function had plateaued at basic event attendance, with the board pushing for a leader who could convert engagement into a real major-gift pipeline.

Our Approach

Behavioral assessment focused specifically on relationship-building methodology, not portfolio size, to find a candidate suited to a smaller, closer-knit alumni community.

The Outcome

The placed director rebuilt the volunteer leadership structure within the first year, and the institution saw a meaningful rebound in annual fund performance.

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