What does an executive search firm do?

It fills senior and leadership roles by finding people who usually aren't applying. The firm maps the market for who holds comparable roles, approaches the strongest candidates directly and confidentially, assesses them against the brief, and manages negotiation and the notice period through to a start date.

How much do executive search firms charge in India?

Retained executive search typically runs 20–25% of first-year compensation, sometimes more for hard-to-fill C-suite roles, commonly paid about a third upfront and the rest at shortlist and placement. Contingency search for senior and management roles typically runs 10–15% of first-year CTC, paid only on a successful hire. AxureOne hasn't published a separate leadership fee, so ask us about your mandate.

What is the difference between retained and contingency executive search?

With contingency, you pay only if the firm's candidate is hired. With retained search, you pay in stages whether or not the search lands your first-choice candidate, which buys dedicated time on a confidential or very niche search. Choose by how hard the search really is, not by how senior the title sounds.

How long does it take to hire a senior leader in India?

Industry-reported benchmarks put senior and leadership time-to-hire at roughly 42–55 days, and genuinely hard-to-fill executive searches at 80–120 days. The notice period comes on top — commonly 60–90 days in Indian tech and services roles — and counter-offers tend to surface inside it.

Are headhunters and executive search firms the same thing?

Mostly. Headhunting means approaching a specific person directly, usually someone not looking for a move; an executive search firm does that as one part of a wider process that includes market mapping, assessment and managing the offer. Our recruiters use targeted headhunting alongside our database and AI-assisted sourcing.

Can you run a confidential leadership search?

Yes. Confidential CXO and senior leadership mandates are one of the four segments we cover, and every hire carries our 90-day replacement guarantee. Tell us at the start what can be disclosed to candidates, and when.

For Companies · Leadership hiring

Executive search and leadership hiring, for the people who aren't looking.

The person you want for a leadership seat is rarely on a job board. They're running a function somewhere else, they aren't applying to anything, and the first approach has to be made discreetly. That is what executive search is: mapping who could do the job, approaching them directly, and running a confidential process through to an accepted offer and a start date.

AxureOne takes confidential CXO and senior leadership mandates as one of the four segments we cover, alongside IT, non-IT and contract hiring. Our recruiters specialise across sales, tech, finance and leadership, working from our database, AI-assisted sourcing and targeted headhunting. We're headquartered in Ahmedabad and search pan-India.

Post a role →Talk to us

What executive search involves

Four things that separate a leadership search from ordinary hiring.

Market mapping

Before anyone is approached, the search maps the market: which companies run a comparable function, who holds those seats now, and who is doing the job one level down. The shortlist comes from that map, not from inbound applications.

Headhunting passive candidates

Most strong leaders are employed and not looking, so they have to be approached directly and personally. Direct headhunting of passive talent is step two of our process, alongside our database and AI-assisted sourcing.

Confidentiality

Leadership searches are often confidential: an incumbent still in the seat, a function not yet announced, or a candidate who can't be seen to be looking. Agree up front what candidates can be told, and when.

Assessment beyond the CV

At this level the risk is less about skills than fit — the remit, the team they inherit, how they lead. We screen hard and soft skills and cultural fit for the long term, with background verification at the offer stage.

Talent depth also thins out at senior level. Senior and niche-leadership roles are much harder to fill locally outside the metros, a skill-readiness gap industry practitioners including SHRM India consistently flag — so many leadership searches have to run nationally, or plan for relocation. In non-IT functions, regulatory, senior sales and plant-leadership talent is just as thin and tends to hold multiple offers.

Go deeperHiring in Tier-2 and Tier-3 India →Non-IT hiring by sector →

How executive search is paid for

Contingency vs retained search, explained.

Executive search in India is sold on two models, and the real difference between them is who carries the risk if the search doesn't land.

Contingency vs retained executive search in India (industry-reported ranges)

Model: Contingency (senior / leadership)
Typical fee: 10–15% of first-year CTC
When you pay: Only on a successful hire
Best for: Senior individual contributors and management roles
Risk to you: Low

Model: Retained / executive search
Typical fee: 20–25%+ of first-year compensation
When you pay: About a third upfront, then at shortlist and at placement — regardless of outcome
Best for: C-suite and confidential executive searches
Risk to you: Medium to high — paid whether or not the search lands

Model	Typical fee	When you pay	Best for	Risk to you
Contingency (senior / leadership)	10–15% of first-year CTC	Only on a successful hire	Senior individual contributors and management roles	Low
Retained / executive search	20–25%+ of first-year compensation	About a third upfront, then at shortlist and at placement — regardless of outcome	C-suite and confidential executive searches	Medium to high — paid whether or not the search lands

Industry-reported ranges from public sources, not a specific firm's quote and not AxureOne's pricing.

The useful rule of thumb from the fees guide: choose by how replaceable the search is, not by how senior the title sounds. Retained earns its upfront fee on a genuinely confidential or very niche search, where a firm has to invest real, dedicated time before a single candidate surfaces. If an agency pushes retained for a role a good network could realistically fill, question it.

We haven't published a separate fee for leadership search. Our published contingency fee, from 6.5% of annual CTC, is our standard for junior to senior roles; for a CXO or senior leadership mandate, ask us.

Every AxureOne hire carries our 90-day replacement guarantee: if they resign or don't join within 90 days, we find a replacement at no additional cost.*

Go deeperRecruitment agency fees in India →Guarantee terms →Ask us about a mandate →

How we run a leadership search

How AxureOne approaches a leadership mandate.

The same five steps we run for every role, weighted toward the parts that decide a senior hire.

Define the mandate

We draft and sharpen the brief and map exactly what "right" looks like for the role and your team. If there isn't yet a real function to lead, pause: a senior hire with no team and no defined mandate is an expensive mismatch.

Map and approach

Market mapping, our private database, AI-assisted sourcing and direct headhunting of passive candidates others miss — approached discreetly when the search is confidential.

Screen for the long term

Résumé and qualifications, a telephonic screen, hard and soft skills, and cultural fit, because a mis-hire at this level costs more for longer.

Keep stakeholders moving

Leadership hires involve more interview rounds and more decision-makers. We coordinate interviews, feedback and candidate engagement across them so nothing stalls.

Close and land

Salary negotiation, background verification and compliance, then the notice period, where counter-offers surface. We stay involved right up to day one.

Go deeperThe first-10-hires playbook →Why new hires ghost you →

Before you brief anyone

Three decisions to make before a leadership search starts.

Pre-approve the compensation band

Waiting for budget sign-off once an offer is ready is a commonly cited delay of 5–8 days, and the strongest candidates are usually the first to accept elsewhere.

Agree the confidentiality line

Who knows about the search internally, what candidates are told about the company, and at which stage the name is shared.

Plan for the notice period

Long notice periods and counter-offers are where accepted senior offers come apart. Keep in regular contact from acceptance to joining, ideally from the hiring manager and not just HR.

Go deeperReduce time-to-hire →Should you accept the counter offer? →

Before you decide