What SG Partners does

SG Partners is a US-based, women-owned executive search firm founded in 1991 by Sheri Gellman, specializing exclusively in talent acquisition for the financial services industry. The firm recruits investment professionals, operating leaders, and corporate development talent across nine practice areas: private equity, public markets/hedge funds, investment banking, insurance, real estate, private debt, corporate development, family offices, investor relations, and AI/data science. It serves enterprise clients including buyout and growth funds, hedge funds, bulge bracket and boutique investment banks, insurance and reinsurance firms, real estate sponsors, corporations, and family offices.

The firm's core technology is a proprietary candidate database of 180,000+ profiles enriched with 60+ data points per candidate, tracked longitudinally across careers. This data asset, combined with a multi-pronged sourcing methodology and senior recruiters who are former finance professionals (with alumni pedigree from Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, and SoFi), forms the operational backbone of the business. The firm delivers full-service search engagements covering go-to-market strategy, candidate sourcing, screening, process management, and offer closing, supplemented by advisory services on compensation, DEI, organizational transformation, and market mapping.

Commercially, SG Partners operates as a direct, relationship-driven professional services firm with three US offices (New York, San Francisco, Delray Beach) and global candidate coverage across five continents. Revenue is generated through per-search fees, either retained or contingency-based, negotiated individually with each client. Pricing is not publicly disclosed. The firm claims 100% client retention, with clients engaging SG Partners for multiple searches across strategies, functions, and levels — indicating high revenue predictability per existing account. The firm is privately held with no external institutional investors, founder-controlled, and has been steadily adding adjacent practice areas since 1998, most recently expanding into AI and data science recruiting.

Name

SG Partners

Legal name

SG Partners

Website

https://sgpartners.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SG Partners is a US-based, women-owned executive search firm founded in 1991 that recruits investment, operating, and corporate development professionals for financial services clients including private equity, hedge funds, investment banks, and insurance firms, leveraging a proprietary database of 180,000+ candidates.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Executive Search/Recruitment Services: Contingency-based or retained executive search services for financial services firms, covering private equity, hedge funds, investment banking, real estate, credit, and other sectors. Full-service recruitment from strategy through closing.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

SG Partners is an executive search and full-service recruitment firm founded in 1991 that specializes exclusively in placing senior talent within the financial services industry. The firm provides retained search, contingent search, and market intelligence/advisory services to clients across private equity, hedge funds, investment banking, insurance, real estate, family offices, corporations, and investor relations functions. Its offering is powered by a proprietary database of 180,000+ candidates with 60+ data points per profile, enabling data-driven market mapping and candidate identification across 5 continents and 17 countries.

Product overview

SG Partners operates as a single, unified executive search firm offering full-service talent solutions rather than a platform with modular products. The core offering consists of Full-Service Talent Solutions, which encompasses the entire recruitment lifecycle from strategy development through candidate placement and closing. Complementing this is a Data-Driven Market Intelligence & Advisory practice that provides ongoing strategic guidance on compensation, diversity, market trends, and organizational planning. The firm also maintains specialized practice areas including AI & Data Science, Private Equity, Investment Banking, Real Estate, Insurance, and more. Services are delivered across three U.S. office locations in New York, San Francisco, and South Florida, with global candidate coverage spanning five continents.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Full-Service Executive Search (Retained & Contingent) End-to-end executive search serving financial services employers seeking senior leadership and investment professionals. The firm sources, qualifies, and presents candidates from a proprietary 180,000+ candidate database. Service is delivered across private equity, hedge funds, investment banking, insurance, real estate, corporations, family offices, investor relations, and data science & AI functions.
• Data-Driven Market Intelligence & Advisory Advisory engagements delivering market mapping, talent landscape analysis, and compensation benchmarking for financial services clients, powered by the firm's proprietary database of 180,000+ candidates with 60+ data points per profile.
• Data Science & AI Practice (Specialized Recruiting) Specialized executive search focused on placing data science and AI professionals within financial services organizations, leveraging the firm's domain expertise and proprietary candidate database.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% client retention rate with clients hiring for multiple searches
• +3 more outcomes

Segments9 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Spencer Stuart: Privately held global executive search firm with deep Financial Services practice across asset management, PE, and investment banking. Comparable to SG Partners on senior-level FS mandates but operates at significantly larger scale globally.
• Egon Zehnder: Global executive search firm with a Financial Services practice spanning PE, asset management, and investment banking. Comparable to SG Partners on senior FS mandate quality, with broader geographic and cross-industry reach.
• Korn Ferry: Public, global organizational consulting firm with a large Executive Search segment covering financial services. Competes with SG Partners on senior FS mandates while also offering adjacent consulting and RPO services.
• Heidrick & Struggles: Global executive search firm with a substantial Financial Services practice covering PE, hedge funds, and investment banking. Directly competes with SG Partners for senior financial services mandates but offers broader cross-industry coverage and global scale.
• Russell Reynolds Associates: Global executive search firm with strong Financial Services practice across PE, hedge funds, asset management, and investment banking. Directly competes with SG Partners on financial services C-suite and senior investing roles.

Direct peers

• Options Group: Niche executive search and talent management firm focused on financial services, including capital markets, asset management, and alternative investments. Closely comparable to SG Partners in target customer and niche focus.
• Glocap Search: Specialized executive search firm concentrating on investment management, hedge funds, and private equity. Directly overlaps SG Partners' customer base and placement focus across the alternative investments space.
• Smith Hanley Associates: Niche executive search firm with strong financial services practice; notably the firm where SG Partners' founder Sheri Gellman began her career. Comparable in customer focus and recruiter pedigree.
• Odyssey Search Partners: Boutique executive search firm focused on alternative investments, including PE, hedge funds, and private credit. Competes with SG Partners for similar mandates in the alternatives talent market.

Emerging players

• Polachi (formerly Polachi & Company): Boutique executive search firm with a financial services and technology practice, including PE and venture-backed mandates. Comparable to SG Partners on senior-level financial services and digital/innovation searches.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sg-partners

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SG Partners