360 Search

What 360 Search does

360 Search is a specialist financial services recruitment consultancy headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, operating across Ireland and the United Kingdom through offices in London and Liverpool. Founded in 2014 and operating as part of James Caan CBE's Recruitment Entrepreneur portfolio (backed by Hamilton Bradshaw), the firm places permanent, contract, interim, and executive candidates across five primary verticals: general insurance, life & pensions & investments, compliance & risk, accountancy & finance, and insurtech/fintech. Its service suite covers permanent recruitment, retained executive search, advertised selection, contract and interim solutions, onsite resourcing, and confidential M&A introductory services, with revenue earned primarily through contingency placement fees and retained search mandates.

The company's commercial engine is relationship-driven rather than technology-led: it runs no proprietary platform, relying instead on third-party tools such as Jobadder and LinkedIn alongside conventional CRM systems. Its differentiator is sector depth — consultants hold qualifications such as QFA, CIP, APA, and CFA — and a content moat comprising the CEO Corner podcast (Season 3, 15+ episodes featuring senior financial services executives), nine editions of the quarterly Q In Review market publication, an annual Salary Survey, and the What Matters Most candidate survey. Leadership includes CEO Sarah McGrath, CCO Lynda Barnes, CFO Hamish Wright (formerly of Levin and Robert Walters), and Operations Manager Eoin Murray, with Chairman James Caan CBE providing portfolio-level backing.

Commercially, 360 Search targets enterprise and mid-market financial services employers — insurers, brokerages, wealth managers, pension providers, and fintech firms — across Ireland and the UK, with a transaction-based fee model and a relationship-led GTM motion supplemented by thought leadership content and direct specialist outreach. No revenue figures, funding rounds beyond the 2018 Recruitment Entrepreneur investment, or AI/ML capabilities are disclosed in the source material.

Name

360 Search

Legal name

LB 360 Search Ltd

Website

https://360search.ie

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

360 Search is a Dublin-headquartered specialist recruitment consultancy placing permanent, contract, interim, and executive candidates across insurance, life & pensions, compliance, accountancy, and insurtech in Ireland and the UK, backed by James Caan CBE's Recruitment Entrepreneur portfolio.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Services Recruitment

NAICS

Executive Search Services (561312), Employment Placement Agencies and Executive Search Services (56131)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Financial Services Leadership Search (Banking/Insurance/PE/Asset Mgmt) (BPACAAAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

C-Suite & Board Search (BPACAAAA), Confidential/Replacement & Succession Search (BPACAAAK)

Keywords

• Financial services recruitment
• Insurance recruitment agency
• Executive search services
• Life pensions recruitment
• Compliance risk hiring

Headquarters

HQ city

Dublin

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Permanent Recruitment Placement Fees: Contingency-based placement fees for filling permanent roles across insurance, finance, asset management, compliance, and life & pensions sectors. Fees are typically a percentage of the placed candidate's annual salary, structured as one-time transaction fees upon successful placement.
2. Executive Search (Retained Search): Retained search mandates for senior and executive-level positions, where clients engage the firm exclusively for mapping and identification of high-profile or specialized skill-set roles. Revenue is earned through retainer fees plus success fees.
3. Contract and Interim Solutions: Flexible contract and interim management recruitment services ranging from immediate hires to long-term temporary solutions. Billed on a per-placement or time-period basis for contract workers.
4. Advertised Selection: Job advertising services where 360 Search manages the placement and promotion of job listings. Revenue generated through advertising fees charged to employers.
5. M&A Introductory Services: Confidential, NDA-protected introductory services for firms considering mergers or potential sales, generating advisory/introductory fees.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

360 Search is a specialist financial services recruitment consultancy headquartered in Dublin, placing candidates across insurance, life & pensions, asset management, accountancy & finance, and compliance & risk sectors in Ireland and the UK. The firm delivers permanent recruitment, retained executive search, contract and interim solutions, advertised selection, on-site resourcing, and confidential M&A introductory services. Its sector-qualified consultants (CIP, QFA, APA, CFA holders) provide tailored candidate matching supported by proprietary market intelligence including an annual Salary Survey, quarterly Q In Review publication, and the CEO Corner podcast.

Product overview

360 Search is a specialist financial services recruitment consultancy offering a portfolio of recruitment service products organized by engagement model (Permanent Recruitment, Executive Search, Advertised Selection, Contract/Interim Solutions, Onsite Services, and M&A Introductory Services) and sector specialization (Insurance, Life & Pensions & Investments, Compliance & Risk, and Accountancy & Finance). The company also provides complementary content resources including the CEO Corner podcast, annual Salary Survey, annual What Matters Most Candidate Survey, and quarterly The Q In Review market publication. The offerings function as a unified service suite rather than a modular software platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Permanent Recruitment
• Executive Search (Retained)
• Contract and Interim Solutions
• Advertised Selection
• Onsite Services
• M&A Introductory Services

Quantifiable outcome

• 67% of financial services candidates likely to consider changing jobs in the next year
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Dublin Simon CommunityminorOthers360 Search is proudly partnered with Dublin Simon Community, a homelessness charity in Dublin. The partnership aims to support lasting social impact in the local community. Team members participate in fundraising activities including the Make A Wish Foundation 10K Fancy Dress Night Run.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Hays plc: Global FTSE-listed recruitment group with large UK/Ireland financial services and insurance practices; comparable as a dominant incumbent competing for FS hiring mandates at scale.
• Reed Specialist Recruitment: Large UK-headquartered recruitment group with dedicated financial services and insurance teams; comparable as an incumbent offering overlapping permanent, contract, and executive services to enterprise FS employers.
• Robert Walters: Global specialist recruiter with strong financial services and insurance practices across the UK and Ireland; comparable because 360 Search's CFO Hamish Wright previously led finance at Robert Walters and shares the same FS-vertical recruitment model at a much larger scale.
• Michael Page: Global PageGroup brand operating dedicated financial services and insurance recruitment in Ireland and the UK; comparable as a large incumbent recruiting across the same FS verticals.

Direct peers

• Brightwater (now Spark): Irish and UK specialist recruitment firm with strong financial services, insurance and accounting practices; comparable as a similarly positioned FS-focused competitor serving the Irish enterprise market.
• Sigmar Recruitment: Irish-owned specialist recruitment firm with dedicated financial services and insurance desks, operating across Dublin, Cork and Galway; comparable as a domestic specialist FS recruiter addressing the same client base.
• Morgan McKinley: Ireland and UK-headquartered specialist recruitment firm focused on financial services, professional services, and technology; directly comparable as a similarly sized FS specialist consultancy operating in the same Dublin/London markets.
• Cpl Resources: Ireland's largest listed recruitment group with dedicated financial services, insurance, life sciences and technology practices; comparable as a multi-vertical Irish recruitment firm competing for the same enterprise FS client mandates.
• Quanta Consultancy: Specialist Irish recruitment consultancy focused on insurance, financial services, IT and engineering; comparable as a niche Dublin competitor targeting the same underwriter, broker and claims professional talent pool.
• Lincoln Recruitment Specialists: Dublin-headquartered executive search and recruitment firm with strong financial services, insurance and accounting verticals; directly comparable as a similarly sized Irish specialist recruiter serving enterprise FS clients.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/360SearchDublin
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/360-search
• Instagraminstagram.com/360_search

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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 360 Search