Technology Executive Search

Technology executive search is the process of finding candidates for leadership positions, specifically in the field of IT, and usually involves hiring a firm that will help with hiring for roles such as:

• CTO
• CIO
• CISO
• VP Engineering
• Chief Product Officer

Usually, if you want to hire for a new position, you might just create a job ad, post it on a job board, and wait for the CVs to fly in. But executive job ads often get little traction because most leaders are already employed and busy building their companies. By partnering with a technology executive search firm, you gain access to hiring specialists who identify suitable leaders and proactively start the conversation to recruit them.

TalentHub is a technology executive search firm that helps startups, scale-ups, and VC-backed companies hire executives and specialists across Europe.

A technology executive can hold different roles, but regardless of the title, they usually lead the company’s technology stack, manage engineering teams and systems, and ensure that tech work always ties back to the overall business strategy.

The exact scope depends on the title:

• CTO (Chief Technology Officer) — Owns the tech strategy, the architecture, and the engineering culture
• VP of Engineering — Runs delivery, hiring, and day-to-day management of the engineering teams
• CPO (Chief Product Officer) — Decides what gets built and why
• CIO (Chief Information Officer) — Looks after internal IT systems and digital operations
• CISO (Chief Information Security Officer) — Protects company and customer data and manages security risk

Executive search firms and headhunters usually charge a percentage of the candidate's first-year base salary.

As a market range, contingency fees run from 15% to 25%, while retained search fees run from 25% to 35%, paid in stages. These are market ranges and not TalentHub's fees.

TalentHub's standard fee is a percentage of the candidate's annual gross salary, paid across three stages. Pricing flexes with the scope and type of service.

A typical technology executive search takes 8 to 16 weeks (roughly 2 to 4 months) from the initial briefing to an accepted offer.

With notice periods and onboarding, the full cycle from kickoff to the executive's first day usually spans 14 to 22 weeks.

A structured search generally moves through these stages:

• Strategic alignment and kickoff (weeks 1–2) — Defining role requirements, candidate scorecards, and stakeholder alignment.
• Market mapping and research (weeks 2–4) — Identifying target companies and mapping the engineering and tech talent pool.
• Outreach and sourcing (weeks 3–6) — Contacting passive leaders, running initial screens, and building a shortlist.
• Interviews and assessment (weeks 4–8) — Multiple stakeholder rounds, technical and leadership deep dives, and panel evaluations.
• Due diligence and references (weeks 8–10) — Back-channel and formal 360-degree reference checks.
• Offer and negotiation (weeks 10–12) — Structuring compensation, discussing equity, and closing the candidate.
• Notice period and transition (weeks 13+) — Most technology executives have a notice period of 4 to 8 weeks or longer, and in Europe it can run to three months or more.

Seniority, how niche the profile is, and how quickly your team gives feedback and makes decisions all affect these dates. Agreeing on the brief early and keeping interview rounds tight shortens the search.

Start with track record. Look for a firm that has placed tech leaders at companies like yours, and ask to see case studies or references from similar stages and sectors.

Then ask how it reaches candidates who are not applying, how it assesses technical depth, how its fees work, and what happens if the hire leaves early. TalentHub offers a 4-6 month replacement guarantee, longer than most agencies, which usually offer only 3 months.