Carlson Beck

What Carlson Beck does

Carlson Beck is a retained executive search firm specializing exclusively in the nonprofit and philanthropy sectors. Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Mill Valley, California, the firm places transformational leaders in CEO, President, and other C-level positions at community foundations, private foundations, operating foundations, and mission-driven nonprofit organizations across the United States. The firm is led by Managing Partner Sally Carlson and operates with a small team of approximately six professionals — including a second Partner (Heidi Holzhauer), a Principal (Courtney Ammons), a Chief Administrative Officer, and two associates — who together bring more than 70 years of combined nonprofit and philanthropy expertise, with prior tenures at Heidrick & Struggles, Spencer Stuart, Korn Ferry, Wells Fargo, Deloitte, and Jones Lang LaSalle.

Name

Carlson Beck

Legal name

Carlson Beck LLC

Website

https://carlsonbeck.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Carlson Beck is a boutique retained executive search firm that places C-level leaders at US nonprofit organizations and community foundations. The partner-led practice operates nationally from Mill Valley, California, with a six-person team and a five-phase search and transition methodology.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Executive Search Services

NAICS

Executive Search Services (561312), Management Consulting Services (54161)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Sector, Education & Nonprofit Leadership Search (BPACAAAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

C-Suite & Board Search (BPACAAAA), Operations & Process Improvement Consulting (BPAHACAB)

Keywords

• Executive search services
• Nonprofit sector consulting
• Board recruitment services
• Philanthropy advisory services
• Leadership placement consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Retained Executive Search Services: Retained executive search services for nonprofit and philanthropy organizations. The firm places transformative leaders in executive positions. Revenue is generated through retainer-based fees for search engagements, typically with fixed fees or structured payment schedules associated with executive placements.
2. Professional Consulting and Advisory Services: Beyond executive search, the firm provides professional consulting and advisory services to optimize client organizations. This includes transition planning support, reference checking, and ongoing advisory services for placed executives.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Carlson Beck is a boutique retained executive search firm that places transformational leaders in CEO, President, and other executive positions for nonprofit and philanthropy organizations. Engagements are delivered through a partner-led, five-phase methodology spanning organizational consulting, candidate identification, interviewing, selection, and transition planning with extended follow-up support. The firm supplements search with consulting and advisory services to optimize client organizations.

Product overview

Carlson Beck is a retained executive search firm operating as a single unified service offering focused exclusively on the nonprofit and philanthropy sectors. The core product is Executive Search Services, delivered through their proprietary Five Phases of Search Methodology. Additional offerings include Consulting and Advisory Services for organizational optimization and Candidate Resources for resume guidance. All services are partner-led and emphasize mission-driven placements with EDIC (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Community) commitments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Executive Search Services
• Consulting and Advisory Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Multiple successful CEO placements across organizations including Arizona Community Foundation (4 searches over 13 years), Hamilton Families (2 CEO searches), and others
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Bridge Partners Executive Search: Retained executive search firm with a strong nonprofit and association practice. Comparable to Carlson Beck in serving mission-driven organizations seeking executive leadership across philanthropy and social impact sectors.
• WittKieffer: Executive search firm with deep specialization in healthcare, education, and nonprofit leadership. Highly comparable to Carlson Beck in serving mission-driven organizations with retained C-suite search engagements.
• Lindauer: Executive search and consulting firm focused on the nonprofit sector, including foundations, associations, and social-impact organizations. Directly comparable to Carlson Beck in vertical focus and retained C-suite search services.
• Isaacson, Miller: A leading retained executive search firm focused exclusively on the nonprofit sector. Directly comparable to Carlson Beck in serving nonprofit boards with C-suite search, making it the closest direct peer in the same niche.

Broad incumbents

• Korn Ferry: One of the largest global organizational consulting and executive search firms, with a nonprofit practice. Carlson Beck's principal Courtney Ammons trained at Korn Ferry International, and the firm competes for high-end nonprofit leadership searches.
• Egon Zehnder: Global retained executive search firm with a dedicated global nonprofit practice. Competes with Carlson Beck for executive placements at large foundations, NGOs, and mission-driven organizations.
• Spencer Stuart: Global executive search firm with practices serving nonprofit and philanthropy clients. Carlson Beck's research associate previously worked at Spencer Stuart, and the firm is a meaningful competitor for senior nonprofit and foundation leadership searches.
• Heidrick & Struggles: Global retained executive search firm with a dedicated nonprofit and social enterprise practice. Carlson Beck's managing partner and partner both worked at Heidrick & Struggles, and the firm competes for the same nonprofit executive mandates at larger scale.
• Russell Reynolds Associates: Global executive search firm with practices covering nonprofit, social sector, and foundation clients. A broad incumbent competing with Carlson Beck for senior nonprofit leadership engagements.
• DHR International: Global executive search firm with practices in nonprofit and social sector recruiting. A broad incumbent that competes with Carlson Beck for senior nonprofit and philanthropic organization leadership searches.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/carlson-beck
• Facebookfacebook.com/CarlsonBeckSearch

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Carlson Beck