Terra Search Partners
Terra Search Partners is a San Francisco-headquartered, national executive search firm founded in 2006 that exclusively places senior leadership for U.S. real estate organizations, operating as an 11-50 employee boutique practice led by founder Matt Slepin.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Terra Search Partners does
Terra Search Partners is a national executive search firm founded in 2006 and headquartered in San Francisco, California, that operates exclusively within the real estate industry. The firm is positioned as a boutique retained-search practice (11-50 employees), differentiated from larger diversified search firms by its single-vertical focus on placing senior leadership for real estate organizations. Founder and managing partner Matt Slepin leads the firm alongside managing directors Rebecca Regan and Ellen Klasson, indicating a concentrated senior consultant bench typical of high-touch, relationship-driven search mandates.
The firm's business model follows the traditional executive search economics: client organizations engage Terra Search on a retained basis to identify, vet, and place C-suite, president, and other senior executive talent — typically within capital-intensive real estate sub-segments such as private equity real estate, REITs, development, asset management, brokerage, and ownership/operating platforms. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is consistent with the industry standard of a retainer plus a success fee equal to roughly one-third of the placed executive's first-year total cash compensation. Geographic distribution of clients is described as "national," though no specific branch offices beyond the San Francisco headquarters are disclosed; delivery is likely consultant-led and travel-supported rather than office-network driven.
Data limitations should be noted explicitly: the available input does not disclose revenue, client logos, segment revenue mix, technology platforms (if any), competitive win-rates, placement volume, or recent strategic events. As such, several analytical dimensions normally populated by primary sources (e.g., M&A history, funding events, partnerships) cannot be substantiated from this dataset. The firm should be characterized as a stable, durable niche player whose competitive position rests primarily on domain expertise, long-tenured industry relationships, and the founder's reputation rather than on scale, technology, or capital structure advantages.
Terra Search Partners firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Terra Search Partners
- Legal name
- ZRG Partners LLC
- Website
- https://terrasearchpartners.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Terra Search Partners is a San Francisco-headquartered, national executive search firm founded in 2006 that exclusively places senior leadership for U.S. real estate organizations, operating as an 11-50 employee boutique practice led by founder Matt Slepin.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Terra Search Partners industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Executive Search
- NAICS
- Executive Search Services (561312)
- SIC
- Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Functional Leadership Search (HR/Finance/Legal/Marketing/Sales/Ops) (BPACAAAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Confidential/Replacement & Succession Search (BPACAAAK)
Keywords
Where Terra Search Partners is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices32 records
Markets served
Terra Search Partners business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Executive Search: Retained search engagements for placing senior executives and board-level leaders
- Interim Solutions & Project Consulting: Temporary leadership placement and project-based consulting engagements
- Consulting Solutions: Assessment, succession planning, business acceleration, culture transformation, leadership development, and executive coaching services
- Embedded Recruiting: On-demand embedded recruiting services where operators are embedded inside client businesses to rebuild talent capability
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
Terra Search Partners product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Terra Search Partners is a national executive search firm focused exclusively on the real estate industry, recruiting senior executives and C-suite leaders for real estate operating companies, REITs, developers, and related property businesses in the United States. The firm delivers retained executive search engagements using a real-estate-specialized candidate network and sector-specific assessment methodology.
Product overview
ZRG is a global talent advisory firm offering a unified portfolio of talent solutions. The core offerings include Executive Search for permanent senior leadership placement, Interim Solutions & Project Consulting for rapid executive deployment, Consulting Solutions spanning assessment, coaching, and transformation services, and Embedded Recruiting with multiple engagement models. The company also offers Zi for Sales, a specialized product for building sales teams. The ecosystem is supported by proprietary tools and a data-driven platform approach, with operations spanning 35+ countries through a network of global offices.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Zi for Sales: Sales team building platform that combines data and human insight to make talent decisions measurable, comparable, and outcome-driven.
- Zi
Products and services
- Executive Search for Real Estate Retained executive search engagements that identify, assess, and place C-suite and senior-level leaders in U.S. real estate organizations (e.g., REITs, developers, operators, investors). Leverages a real-estate-specialized candidate network and structured executive assessment methodology.
Quantifiable outcome
- 60 - Client return rate indicating high satisfaction and repeat business
Companies that use Terra Search Partners
Customer profileSegments21 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Terra Search Partners technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Terra Search Partners partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves2 records
Expansion highlights2 records
Terra Search Partners competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Heidrick & Struggles: Global executive search and leadership advisory firm with an established Real Estate practice. Larger, publicly-traded competitor serving many of the same institutional real estate clients Terra Search targets, but with broader industry coverage.
- Robert Half: Global staffing and talent solutions firm with executive search capabilities (Robert Half Executive Search). While primarily known for accounting/finance staffing, it competes for mid-market real estate executive placements at scale broader than Terra Search.
- Egon Zehnder: Global executive search and leadership advisory firm with industry specialization across real estate and infrastructure. Comparable boutique-style approach but operating globally with broader sector coverage.
- Spencer Stuart: Global executive search firm with a dedicated Real Estate practice serving REITs, developers, and institutional investors. Comparable service offering in real estate leadership placement but operating at much larger scale and serving a broader set of industries.
- Russell Reynolds Associates: Global executive search firm with a dedicated Real Estate practice serving public and private real estate companies. Comparable in core service (C-suite real estate search) but much larger in scale and global footprint.
- Korn Ferry: Largest global organizational consulting firm with significant executive search and real estate talent advisory capabilities. Competes for senior real estate executive placements and offers broader integrated talent and consulting solutions.
Direct peers
- ZRG Partners: Global talent advisory firm offering executive search, interim solutions, and consulting with a dedicated Real Estate industry practice. Direct competitor for real estate executive mandates, though operating at significantly larger scale and with broader verticals than Terra Search.
- DHR International: Global executive search firm with a dedicated Real Estate practice placing senior leaders across property sectors. Most directly comparable to Terra Search in real estate vertical specialization, though with broader industry coverage.
- Crist Kolder Associates: Boutique executive search firm specializing in financial officers and senior finance leadership. Comparable boutique scale and executive search focus, though with a function-specific (CFO) rather than industry-specific angle.
- Diversified Search Group: Executive search firm serving multiple industries including real estate, with a comparable boutique-to-mid-market positioning. Direct competitor for senior real estate placements with similar service model and engagement approach.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Terra Search Partners social profiles
Digital presenceTerra Search Partners financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Terra Search Partners leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Terra Search Partners funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Terra Search Partners 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 Terra Search Partners
What does Terra Search Partners do?
Terra Search Partners is a national executive search firm focused exclusively on the real estate industry, recruiting senior executives and C-suite leaders for real estate operating companies, REITs, developers, and related property businesses in the United States. The firm delivers retained executive search engagements using a real-estate-specialized candidate network and sector-specific assessment methodology.
Is Terra Search Partners a public or private company?
Terra Search Partners is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Terra Search Partners founded?
Terra Search Partners was founded in 2006. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Terra Search Partners based?
Terra Search Partners is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Terra Search Partners make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Executive Search is the primary driver. The others are interim Solutions & Project Consulting, consulting Solutions and embedded Recruiting.
Who are Terra Search Partners's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Heidrick & Struggles, Robert Half, Egon Zehnder, Spencer Stuart, Russell Reynolds Associates and Korn Ferry. Direct peers are ZRG Partners, DHR International, Crist Kolder Associates and Diversified Search Group.
Does Terra Search Partners have an API?
No public API is recorded for Terra Search Partners.
What industry is Terra Search Partners in?
Terra Search Partners's product category is Executive Search. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPACAAAB, Functional Leadership Search (HR/Finance/Legal/Marketing/Sales/Ops), with a secondary code of BPACAAAK, Confidential/Replacement & Succession Search. Its NAICS code is 561312 and its SIC code is 8742.