HAPEKO
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2003
- HeadquartersHamburg, Germany
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
HAPEKO firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- HAPEKO
- Legal name
- HAPEKO Hanseatisches Personalkontor Deutschland GmbH
- Website
- https://hapeko.de
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2003
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where HAPEKO is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Hamburg
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices29 records
Markets served
HAPEKO business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Executive Search: Structured selection process for C-level positions with direct involvement of management board member. Includes diagnostics, assessment, and selection day. Placement fee of 30% of gross annual target salary with replacement guarantee.
- Professional Search: Identification and placement of specialized professionals and executives for management positions in medium-sized enterprises. Includes individual consulting and full recruitment process management. Placement fee of 25% plus service advance payment.
- Ad Hoc Search: Quick and straightforward placement service with access to specialists and executives from the network. Direct placement with short time-to-hire. Placement fee of 25% without replacement guarantee.
- Interim Management: Short-term and flexible expertise provision. Individual consulting and requirement profiling, research and identification of experienced interim managers, short-term candidate presentation with assessment, contract negotiation support.
- Company Succession: Support with strategic personnel succession planning, discreet search and approach of potential succession candidates, background checks, candidate presentation, negotiation support, and onboarding of new leadership.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Ad Hoc Search: 25% placement fee, no replacement guarantee |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Professional Search: 25% + service advance payment, optional replacement guarantee |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Executive Search: 30% placement fee, includes replacement guarantee |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Minimum Fee: EUR 10,000 per placement |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
HAPEKO product offering
Product offeringCore offering
HAPEKO is a personnel consultancy that provides direct permanent placement of specialists, skilled professionals, and executives for German SMEs (Mittelstand) and select larger corporations. Core offerings are Executive Search, Professional Search, AD HOC Search, Interim Management, and Unternehmensnachfolge (Company Succession), all delivered through a nationwide consultant network backed by an internal Talent Pool database. The firm does not engage in temporary worker leasing (Zeitarbeit) and focuses on advisory-led, individually managed recruitment mandates.
Product overview
HAPEKO operates as a unified personnel consultancy platform offering a comprehensive suite of recruitment services. The core offerings include Executive Search (for C-level positions with management board involvement), Professional Search (for specialist and middle-management roles), AD HOC Search (for quick direct placement), Interim Management (for temporary expertise needs), and Unternehmensnachfolge (for succession planning). These services are supported by a Talent Pool database containing hundreds of thousands of candidate profiles. The company specializes exclusively in direct permanent placement (no temporary employment/worker leasing) and focuses on the SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) sector across Germany and Austria.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Executive Search Structured selection process for filling C-level positions with direct involvement of a HAPEKO management board member, including diagnostics, assessment, and a selection day. Includes a replacement guarantee. Placement fee is 30% of gross annual target salary.
- Professional Search Identification and placement of specialized professionals and executives for management positions in medium-sized enterprises, including individual consulting and full recruitment process management. Placement fee is 25% of gross annual target salary plus a service advance payment, with optional replacement service.
- AD HOC Search Quick and straightforward direct placement service providing access to specialists and executives from HAPEKO's network with short time-to-hire. Placement fee is 25% of gross annual target salary without a replacement guarantee.
- Interim Management Provision of short-term and flexible management expertise through experienced interim managers. Includes individual consulting, requirement profiling, research, identification, short-term candidate presentation with assessment, and contract negotiation support.
- Unternehmensnachfolge (Company Succession) Support for strategic personnel succession planning including discreet search and approach of potential succession candidates, background checks, candidate presentation, negotiation support, and onboarding of new leadership.
Quantifiable outcome
- 2,000 positions filled per year
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use HAPEKO
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
HAPEKO technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
HAPEKO partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- TOP ConsultantcoreTOP Consultant is an annual consultant competition that awards seals of quality to consulting firms. HAPEKO has received the TOP Consultant seal every year since 2016 (10 consecutive years) for quality in Executive Search and Professional Search categories, regularly achieving top marks in customer satisfaction.
- WirtschaftsWocheminorGerman business magazine that publishes annual rankings of best personnel consultancies. HAPEKO was listed as one of the best personnel consultancies 2025 in the category Maschinen- und Anlagenbau.
- HAPEKO Österreich GmbHcoreAustrian sister company operating under the same brand. HAPEKO Germany operates under the verified domain hapeko.de while HAPEKO Austria operates independently at hapeko.at. The entities are legally and operationally separate.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves1 record
Expansion highlights5 records
HAPEKO competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Spencer Stuart: Global executive search and leadership consulting firm; directly comparable on C-level and succession engagements in the German market.
- Hays (already listed): Alternative regional peer — see Hays Deutschland. Direct placement and professional search in DACH; primarily competing with HAPEKO's Professional Search and Ad Hoc Search services.
- Hays: Global professional recruiting firm with deep operations in Germany across professional and executive search; competes head-to-head with HAPEKO for SME and mid-market mandates in DACH.
- Michael Page: International recruitment group placing specialists and managers in permanent roles across Germany; directly comparable professional search offering and fee model to HAPEKO.
- Robert Half: Global staffing and direct-hire firm operating in Germany; overlaps with HAPEKO's professional search and ad hoc placement services for white-collar roles.
- DIS AG: German-headquartered personnel services provider offering permanent placement and contract staffing; a close domestic peer competing in the same Mittelstand customer segment.
- Heidrick & Struggles: Global executive search firm with established German practice; competes for C-level and senior management mandates that HAPEKO addresses via its Executive Search product.
- Egon Zehnder: Premium global executive search and leadership advisory firm with a strong DACH presence; competes for the same C-level and succession mandates as HAPEKO's Executive Search and Unternehmensnachfolge lines.
- Odgers Berndtson: International executive search firm with significant German operations; competes for the same senior leadership and board-level mandates as HAPEKO's Executive Search practice.
Broad incumbents
- Korn Ferry: Large global organizational consulting firm with a major executive search practice; overlaps with HAPEKO on senior-level searches while also offering broader talent advisory services.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
HAPEKO social profiles
Digital presenceHAPEKO compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
HAPEKO financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
HAPEKO leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
HAPEKO subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
HAPEKO funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
HAPEKO M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about HAPEKO
What does HAPEKO do?
HAPEKO is a personnel consultancy that provides direct permanent placement of specialists, skilled professionals, and executives for German SMEs (Mittelstand) and select larger corporations. Core offerings are Executive Search, Professional Search, AD HOC Search, Interim Management, and Unternehmensnachfolge (Company Succession), all delivered through a nationwide consultant network backed by an internal Talent Pool database. The firm does not engage in temporary worker leasing (Zeitarbeit) and focuses on advisory-led, individually managed recruitment mandates.
Is HAPEKO a public or private company?
HAPEKO is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was HAPEKO founded?
HAPEKO was founded in 2003. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is HAPEKO based?
HAPEKO is headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does HAPEKO make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Executive Search is the primary driver. The others are professional Search, ad Hoc Search, interim Management and company Succession.
Who are HAPEKO's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Spencer Stuart, Hays (already listed), Hays, Michael Page, Robert Half, DIS AG, Heidrick & Struggles, Egon Zehnder and Odgers Berndtson. Korn Ferry is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does HAPEKO have an API?
No public API is recorded for HAPEKO.