We’re looking to bring on a driven, early-career professional ready to grow into a full-desk executive recruiter in the private equity space at Spire Search Partners.
Entry-Level Executive Recruiter
Full-Time | Remote | Private Equity Focus
About Spire Search Partners
Spire Search Partners is a 100% retained executive search firm built on a foundation of trusted C-suite relationships, data-driven research, and deep industry resources. With nearly 20 years of experience placing senior talent, we’ve evolved through areas of banking, capital markets, and asset management, but in recent years our focus has shifted heavily toward private markets – particularly private equity and portfolio companies.
We partner with elite mid-market PE firms and large institutions across the US, including several of the top funds in the world, as well as a deep book of lower middle market funds, to solve specific business issues by hiring critical strategic leadership. To stay deeply connected to our market, we actively engage our network by hosting executive roundtables throughout the year.
Our Core Coverage:
- PE Firms – Accounting & Finance: CFOs, Controllers, FP&A, Portfolio Analytics
- PE Firms – Portfolio Operations/Value Creation: Generalist, Value Creation, Digital, Human Capital, Finance Ops, GTM/Sales
- Portfolio Companies: CFOs, Heads of FP&A, Heads of Finance, Chief of Staff
About the Role
This is a full-desk path built for someone who wants to learn the business from the ground up and grow into a senior role at a well-respected firm in the private markets space. You’ll start on search execution – sourcing, outreach, and candidate screening – and build toward business development and client management as you demonstrate impact and earn responsibility.
We provide dedicated research support, automated outreach systems, and direct access to our Managing Partner from day one. You won’t be handed a playbook and left alone; you’ll be trained on retained search methodology, developed as a professional, and given increasing ownership as your skills grow.
- Total Compensation: $60,000–$100,000/year
Your Growth Path
Year 1 — Learn the Business
Candidate research, sourcing, and first-round screens with senior executives. You’ll learn how retained searches are structured and how to deliver written evaluations that move a process forward.
Year 2 — Own the Process
Build relationships, facilitate second-round interviews, and develop scorecards and assessment frameworks. You’re helping improve the process while also executing it.
Year 3 — Enter the Market
Business development begins. Client conversations, mandate definition, and building your own relationships with PE firms and portfolio company leadership.
Year 4+ — Build Your Book
Run searches, manage client relationships, and, for the right person, hire and develop the next generation of the team.
What You’ll Work Toward
- Running your own searches end-to-end, from mandate definition through offer
- Managing client relationships with PE firms and portfolio company leadership teams
- Contributing to how Spire sources, evaluates, and engages top-tier talent
- Building a book of business and establishing yourself in the private markets space
Who This Is For
This is a strong fit for a recent graduate or early-career professional with a background in finance, HR, sales, or client-facing work who is competitive, intellectually curious, and serious about a long-term career in executive search. A history of high performance – athletics, academics, leadership – matters here. We’re seeking someone eager to earn responsibility quickly, not expecting it handed to them.
This is a fast-paced environment with a steep learning curve. If you thrive in that kind of setting, you’ll fit right in.
Core Responsibilities
- Candidate Research & Sourcing: Identify and map target candidates across the PE and portfolio company landscape using LinkedIn, RecruiterFlow, and proprietary research tools.
- Outreach & Pipeline Management: Execute multi-channel outreach campaigns and keep the talent pipeline moving with urgency and precision.
- First-Round Screens: Conduct structured phone interviews with senior finance and operations executives. Pitch the opportunity clearly, evaluate fit, and deliver written assessments to the Managing Partner.
- Client & Search Support: Support active mandates by preparing candidate materials, coordinating interview logistics, and maintaining accurate records in RecruiterFlow.
- Business Development (as role evolves): Participate in client conversations, roundtable events, and relationship-building activities as you grow into a full-desk role.
What You Bring
- Educational Foundation: Bachelor’s degree from a competitive four-year university. Finance, economics, business, or HR preferred – but we care more about how you think than what you studied.
- Competitive Drive: A history of high performance in athletics, academics, student leadership, or early-career roles.
- Interpersonal Instincts: You’re comfortable on the phone, confident with senior professionals, and able to build credibility quickly.
- Operational Discipline: Organized, detail-oriented, and fast; you follow up without being told and don’t let things fall through the cracks.
- Ambition: You’re looking for a career and want to build something at a firm with a strong market reputation and a clear path to senior responsibility.
How to Apply
Email: [email protected]