Chief Executive Officer Search
KNiON was tasked with finding a CEO for a disruptive, early-stage Edtech startup. We had previously worked with the founder to build their leadership team, and the organisation remains one of our close partners, having gone from a concept to a team of 40 during that period. The founder, who we had previously partnered with on key hires for his primary venture, came to us with a vision – a platform which offered free-at-use healthcare training to anyone, anywhere. What they needed to achieve this vision was a dynamic, keenly commercial and high-calibre CEO, who could take an existing infrastructure to the next level, building out a team and taking a fully-fledged product to market.
Having advised the founder throughout the process of bringing his vision to life, KNiON had a comprehensive understanding of the qualities the ideal individual would bring to the table. We targeted high-performing industry leaders within EdTech and the broader L&D space, prioritising those who had worked in innovative, high-touch startups and scale-ups. As the search progressed, we broadened our scope to B2C/B2B tech companies in both the UK and US, eventually building and presenting a shortlist of talented individuals who had personal and/or professional ties to the UK. Throughout the process, we updated the client regularly regarding progress, while taking feedback during their interview process to inform our continued search.
I've been fortunate to work with Ben as a candidate and during multiple searches when I was doing the hiring. I've run dozens of executive searches as a hiring manager and Ben has been hands down the best partner for me… He's willing to sit down and be a true talent partner for you and goes well above and beyond a regular check in during the search… From the candidate perspective, he was always available, communicated transparently and was reliable!
After a multiple-stage process of interviews and assessments, KNiON placed an individual whose previous operational experience in enterprise SaaS and tech, partnered with his creative direction and aptitude for blue-sky thinking, made him the perfect fit for a rapidly scaling, ambitious organisation like our client. The client remains one of our close partners; further, due to KNiON’s consultative approach and demonstrated market understanding, the new CEO requested that KNiON partner with him to build out the rest of the organisation’s senior leadership team, leading to several key hires such as their CTO and VP Product.
