CSI Recruiting

What CSI Recruiting does

CSI Recruiting is a privately-held, founder-owned professional personnel search and recruiting firm founded in 2001 by Jeffrey Bush and headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, with branch offices in Denver and Houston. The firm operates exclusively in the energy sector, placing degreed professionals across Oil & Gas Upstream (E&P), Midstream, Power Generation, Sustainable Energy, and Investment & Finance, with a primary focus on technical and specialized roles such as Reservoir Engineers, Production Engineers, Drilling Engineers, Geologists, Geophysicists, Petrophysicists, Landmen, and Accountants.

The firm's core asset is a proprietary candidate database of 7,100+ profiled candidates accumulated over 12 years, 18,000 petroleum industry resumes, and 120+ active candidates, supplemented by 12-year relationships with major industry organizations (AAPG, SPE, AAPL, SEG, COPAS) and an exclusive recruiting partnership with the Colorado Oil and Gas Association (COGA). The technology layer is operational rather than software-driven: an internal candidate-sourcing process supported by LinkedIn, the company website, email/newsletter marketing, and a $1,000-per-placement referral program.

CSI makes money primarily through contingency and retained search engagements, charging a pre-agreed percentage of the placed candidate's first-year cash compensation, with 30- or 90-day replacement guarantees. Revenue is supplemented by the annual E&P Salary Report (in its 23rd consecutive year of publication) and Custom Salary Analysis engagements. The firm targets hiring managers and HR personnel at oil & gas and energy companies across the Continental U.S., reporting a 91% offer acceptance rate (vs 77% industry average), 87% long-term retention, and 48-hour turnaround on qualified candidate presentation. The team is lean at 4 documented members with 67 combined years of energy recruiting experience.

Name

CSI Recruiting

Legal name

CSI Recruiting

Website

https://csirecruiting.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CSI Recruiting is a privately-held, founder-owned professional search firm founded in 2001, placing degreed technical and corporate professionals in U.S. oil & gas, power, and sustainable energy companies on contingency and retained bases from offices in Fort Worth, Denver, and Houston.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Denver

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, Others

Revenue model

1. Contingency Search: CSI presents top-caliber candidates who meet or exceed specified credentials. Fees are charged as a pre-agreed percentage of the candidate's first year's cash compensation. Full replacement guarantee if candidate leaves within 30 days.
2. Retained Search: Exclusive search with full exclusivity of candidates. Invoiced as percentage of estimated first year's compensation with payment terms: one-third upon agreement approval, one-third at 30 days or completion, final third at completion. 90-day replacement guarantee.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

CSI Recruiting is a professional personnel search and recruiting firm dedicated exclusively to the energy industry, founded in 2001. The company places degreed professionals into full-time, contract, and contract-to-hire roles for oil & gas (upstream and midstream), power generation, sustainable energy, and energy-focused investment firms across the Continental United States, operating on contingency and retained search models.

Product overview

CSI Recruiting is a full-service energy recruiting and search firm (not a software platform) focused exclusively on the oil & gas industry. Their primary offering is recruitment and executive search services for full-time, contract, and contract-to-hire roles. The core service is complemented by supplementary offerings including the E&P Salary Report (an annual industry benchmark report now in its 23rd year) and the associated E&P Salary Survey. Additional offerings include Custom Salary Analysis Reports for individual companies and a Referral Rewards Program ($1,000 per successful referral). The company operates as a service business rather than a software-as-a-service platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CSI Recruiting E&P Salary Report: Annual comprehensive salary report for the domestic E&P community covering Petroleum Engineering, Land, Geosciences, and Accounting & Finance disciplines. Published for over 23 years.

Products and services

• Recruitment & Executive Search Services Full-service energy recruiting and executive search firm providing placement services for full-time, contract, and contract-to-hire roles across the oil & gas, power, and sustainable energy industries, targeting U.S. employers needing degreed professional hires.
• Contingency Search Non-exclusive search where CSI presents top-caliber candidates who meet or exceed specified credentials. Fees are a pre-agreed percentage of the candidate's first year's cash compensation with a 30-day full replacement guarantee.
• Retained Search Exclusive search with full candidate exclusivity, invoiced as a percentage of estimated first year's compensation. Payment terms: one-third upon agreement approval, one-third at 30 days or completion, final third at completion; 90-day replacement guarantee.
• E&P Salary Report Annual comprehensive salary benchmark report covering Petroleum Engineering, Geosciences, Land, and Accounting & Finance disciplines in the U.S. upstream oil & gas sector; widely recognized as the domestic E&P community's premium salary report.
• E&P Salary Survey Annual confidential survey collecting compensation data from U.S.-based E&P professionals for inclusion in the salary report; reflects input from more than 1,500 upstream professionals annually.
• Custom Salary Analysis Reports Tailored salary analysis reports for individual energy companies, specific to their location, size, and unique workforce needs, with location-specific insights and economic factors considered.
• Referral Rewards Program Referral program offering $1,000 for every candidate referred who results in a successful placement at an energy client.

Quantifiable outcome

• 91% offer acceptance rate vs 77% industry average
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Colorado Oil and Gas Association (COGA)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerCSI Recruiting was chosen as the exclusive recruiting partner for the Colorado Oil and Gas Association. This partnership provides CSI with direct access to COGA member companies for recruitment services.
• Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry organization for petroleum engineers. CSI maintains relationships with SPE National and Regional Chapters for candidate sourcing and networking.
• American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry organization for petroleum geologists. CSI maintains relationships with AAPG National and Regional Chapters for candidate sourcing.
• Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry organization including DGS and HGS chapters. CSI maintains relationships for geoscience candidate sourcing.
• American Association of Professional Landmen (AAPL)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLand professional organization including NADOA and NALTA chapters. CSI maintains relationships for land management candidate sourcing.
• COPASminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOil accounting professional organization. CSI maintains relationships for accounting and finance candidate sourcing in the oil & gas industry.
• IPAMSminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry partner organization supporting CSI's recruiting activities and candidate network.
• DAPL, DADOA, DALTA, RMAG, DIPS, DGSminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdditional regional and professional energy industry organizations that CSI maintains relationships with for candidate sourcing and networking.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Airswift: Energy, process, and infrastructure workforce solutions provider combining staffing, recruiting, and project services across oil & gas and renewables. Overlaps with CSI in upstream and midstream talent placement.
• Spencer Ogden: Specialist energy, engineering, and infrastructure recruiter with dedicated oil & gas, power, and renewable practices. Comparable to CSI in its energy-only positioning and contingency/retained search delivery.
• NES Fircroft: Global engineering and technical staffing firm focused on the energy sector, placing contractors and permanent hires across upstream, midstream, and downstream. Directly comparable to CSI in its energy-exclusive placement model.
• Swift Worldwide Resources: Global energy recruitment and workforce solutions company placing technical professionals across upstream, midstream, and downstream. Closely matches CSI's recruiter-led, domain-specialized search model.
• Petroplan: Specialist oil & gas talent acquisition firm focused on upstream, midstream, LNG, and energy transition hires. Highly comparable to CSI in its niche energy recruiting delivery and contingency/retained pricing.
• Brunel International: International staffing and project services company with a dedicated energy division placing engineers, geoscientists, and technical specialists in oil & gas and renewables. Comparable in energy-only focus and search-based delivery.

Broad incumbents

• PageGroup (Michael Page): International recruitment group with dedicated oil & gas, mining, and energy desks placing mid-to-senior professionals. Comparable to CSI in the technical energy candidate market while operating a much broader portfolio.
• Spencer Stuart: Global executive search firm with a longstanding energy practice placing C-suite and senior leadership in oil & gas, utilities, and renewables. Comparable on high-end retained energy search, not on CSI's mid-level technical placements.
• Korn Ferry: Global organizational consulting firm with a dedicated energy practice for executive search and professional recruitment. Overlaps with CSI on retained senior energy searches but operates as a broad incumbent across industries.
• Hays: Global recruitment and workforce solutions firm with a North American energy and natural resources practice covering O&G, power, and renewables. Overlaps with CSI in technical energy placements but is a broad incumbent across industries.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/csi-recruiting

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

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 CSI Recruiting