A regional project for a long-standing client
We ran a confidential search for a long-standing client operating in field-based technical services, in both B2B and B2C models.
The new hire was expected to take responsibility for business development across the CEE region, work closely with the management board and strengthen motivation and cooperation within a dispersed sales team.
Commercial capability mattered. It was not enough on its own. Leadership style, resilience under pressure and the ability to rebuild cooperation between key functions were just as important.
Key facts
- Role: Business Development Manager CEE reporting to the management board
- Sector: technical services
- Location: selected Eastern European countries
- Working model: hybrid
- Working language: English
- Team: a dispersed team of over ten people
- Project duration: 6 months
- Search scale: around 100 profiles reviewed and 5 candidates shortlisted
- Result: successful hire after a complex decision-making and negotiation process
- Key quality factors: confidentiality, fast market mapping, precise selection, negotiation support and process closure
A role close to the client, the team and the management board
The position combined sales, business development and the operational delivery of services. In practice, this meant working close to clients and the team while also partnering directly with the management board.
The expectations went beyond sales performance. The management board also wanted to improve cooperation and stabilise how the whole unit worked.
Confidentiality added another layer. The change could not be communicated broadly, so from the outset we limited the information shared with the market and handled candidate conversations with particular care.
Confidentiality and a profile that could not be assessed from a CV alone
Confidentiality was one of the biggest challenges in this search. We needed to approach strong candidates without creating unnecessary market noise.
In a search like this, even the first conversation works differently. You cannot disclose everything straight away. You still need to share enough for the candidate to want to continue the discussion.
The second challenge was the profile itself. The client wanted someone who could deliver commercially and genuinely lead people. The new manager would be joining a dispersed team after a change of leader, at a time of tension between functions and with high expectations from the management board.
Strong sales experience was only the starting point for the assessment.
Another challenge emerged at the final decision stage. From early in the process, we saw one candidate as a particularly strong fit for the client’s needs. During the process, however, counter-offers, clarifications around scope and terms, and hesitation on both sides all came into play.
The shortlist was ready quickly. Closing the recruitment took much longer.
How we worked from briefing to negotiations
Briefing and role definition
We started with short, focused conversations with the client. We wanted to understand what needed to change after the new person joined, which business priorities mattered most and what kind of leadership style the team needed at that point.
We separated must-have criteria from additional ones. With a confidential search, we did not want to involve people who matched only part of the core requirements.
Market mapping
We carried out broad but selective market mapping. We looked for people who genuinely combined sales experience with work in technical services.
We did not stop at job titles. We looked at what candidates had actually done, the environments they had worked in and how well their experience matched the client’s situation and the management board’s expectations.
Candidate assessment
We ran in-depth competency-based interviews. We assessed business effectiveness, management under pressure, readiness to step into change and the ability to build authority in a dispersed team.
We also paid close attention to motivation for change. In this project, it mattered as much as the experience listed on a CV.
Recommendation and decision support
We presented a shortlist of 5 candidates. We then supported the client through the next interview stages, clarified decisions after meetings and helped both sides refine their expectations.
The most intensive work came at the end.
In the final stage, we supported both the client and the candidate through negotiations, a counter-offer and subsequent changes to the terms. We kept communication consistent and made sure both sides knew where the process stood.
Business Development Manager CEE hired after complex negotiations
Within 2 weeks of starting the project, we presented 5 candidates selected from around 100 reviewed profiles. The client met every person on the shortlist.
One candidate stood out from the beginning as a particularly strong fit with the management board’s expectations.
The Business Development Manager CEE search ended with the hire of a person who combined a mature leadership style, credible business development experience and readiness to join the team at a difficult moment.
The full process took 6 months. Not because the search itself was slow. The longest part was the decision-making and negotiation stage, including a counter-offer and changing expectations on both sides.
Throughout that period, we kept the process and communication under control. The project ended with a successful hire without compromising confidentiality.
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Early signals after the new hire started
This project was about more than filling a sales role. The client also wanted stronger leadership, a more consistent way of working and renewed trust in a team that had previously been operating under tension.
The candidate has already started in the role.
The first signals from the organisation point to a calmer team environment and better cooperation between functions.
These are still early indications. At this stage, we are not drawing conclusions about longer-term business impact or the durability of the change.
