Case study 4:
Case study 4:
Our client is an innovative VC/PC-backed financial technology firm headquartered in New York City. The firm’s founders developed a disruptive technology platform that makes a range of institutional investment vehicles accessible to independent wealth management firms. Following a successful capital raise, the management team needed to enhance and expand the firm’s capabilities across all lines of business (including sales, marketing, creative/product, finance/accounting, legal/compliance, technology, and administration). This expansion required a large investment in new talent in each of these areas. In late 2012, the firm retained our team to recruit for each of its seven business lines simultaneously. We have been working with our client since 2012 helping them build and grow their team including recruiting their: Head of Capital Markets, COO, GC and most recently Managing Director, Head of Client Services. In addition, we have helped recruit multiple candidates at all levels that support all lines of IR, Finance, and operations.
After an in-depth assessment and categorization of the attributes and skillsets needed to be successful at our client, we found that the firm required candidates who possessed a unique mix of entrepreneurism and institutionalism. They needed employees who came from established firms (and who could therefore bring best practices), but who also could thrive in a start-up environment where they would have limited infrastructural support and little company brand recognition to rely upon when selling or developing its products. We also worked with our client to classify and prioritize the attributes that candidates needed to be successful at the firm. Based on our categorization of necessary attributes, we identified and engaged strong candidates at relevant companies who understood the long-term opportunity at our client. Since 2013, we have placed 31 candidates throughout their seven lines of business. The largest single area of placements being in sales, capital raising, and marketing (9 hires), followed by finance & accounting (4 hires) and creative/product (4 hires). We also helped the firm expand geographically, recruiting the first sales employees at two regional offices (Los Angeles and Boston). In the first two of our partnership, we helped our client grow over 50%, recruited key sales leaders to lead three new product lines at the company, and built out the firm’s Executive Committee.
For every search, our team conducted an extensive outreach campaign to candidate pools and, on average, connected with 180 candidates per search. Although our client had minimal brand recognition among target candidates, we were able to recruit professionals from a range of top-tier firms. The candidates we placed have launched new sales offices, established new product lines, transformed the company’s financial and legal infrastructure, and have set new standards for success. This firm remains a Norgay Partners client in 2022 and we look forward to an ongoing partnership with them as they continue to grow.
The key challenge for the management team and for most startups of growing business is hiring people who can bring institutional best practices to the firm and who can also thrive in a fast-paced and entrepreneurial tech start-up environment. Before engaging us, the firm had primarily relied on the management team’s preexisting network for both new hires and new client relationships. Given that this pipeline was almost fully tapped, the firm’s founders needed us to recruit professionals who could develop new sales strategies and product offering that would grow the client base beyond current relationships. Our client wanted candidates that had the right skills and that came from well-regarded institutions but for some reason looking to make a change because they were blocked from making meaningful moves internally. They asked us to find high-performing professionals that were more “under the radar” and recognized the opportunity. We were able to tell the story to candidates who recognized this as a long-term career move.
When we started working with our client, they had minimal brand recognition among its target candidates. Our team needed to be able to communicate the opportunity clearly and efficiently to candidates who may otherwise be deterred by the prospect of joining an “unknown” company. Since 2012 the firm has grown both in size, name recognition and AUM. We have worked with them every step of the way and have also been able to expand our recruiting into Europe through our partnership wit Carpenter Farraday. As the firm has grown, we have grown with them continuing to build their team and support them throughout their evolution.