Haybury

What Haybury does

Haybury is a privately held executive search consultancy, founded in 2006 and headquartered in Brighton, United Kingdom, that operates exclusively within the Life Sciences sector. The firm serves enterprise pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology firms (from VC-backed startups to established organisations), contract research organisations (CROs), and medical device companies, with named engagements spanning Top 5 and Top 20 global pharmaceutical accounts. The company employs 51-100 people across three European offices — Brighton (UK headquarters), Basel (Switzerland), and Barcelona (Spain) — and a global partnership network reaching the US, EMEA, and Asia.

The company delivers a portfolio of six services: Executive Search, Board & CEO placement, Contingency Search, Interim Staffing, Mapping and Bespoke market intelligence, and Perception Audits. Service delivery is consultant-led rather than technology-led, with each consultant assigned to a specific therapeutic or functional vertical within the pharmaceutical lifecycle (including Clinical Development, Regulatory Affairs, Medical Affairs, HEOR, CMC/Technical R&D, Marketing, and Sales). Haybury monetises through transaction-based fees on permanent placements and professional-services fees on interim, mapping, and perception engagements, with bespoke, quote-based pricing and no publicly disclosed rate cards. Distribution is exclusively direct and consultative, targeting enterprise buyers through industry presence, case studies, testimonials, and a growing global candidate database, supplemented by the GreenSearch sister brand extending methodology into the renewable energy vertical.

Haybury has been independently owned since founding with no disclosed institutional investment or private equity backing. Leadership is anchored by Managing Director Steve Kerassitis, with functional heads for Executive Search, Operations, and Business Units. The firm has accumulated multiple industry recognitions, including the Queen's Award for Enterprise: International Trade (2016), Sussex Business Awards 2024 Highly Commended, and recurring Brighton & Hove Business Awards wins. There is no evidence of proprietary AI/ML, platform technology, or API products; the firm's competitive position is built on specialist consultant networks, proprietary candidate data, and Life Sciences domain depth rather than technology differentiation.

Name

Haybury

Legal name

Haybury Ltd.

Website

https://hayburysearch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Haybury is a privately held Brighton-headquartered executive search consultancy, founded in 2006, that operates exclusively within the Life Sciences sector. It serves enterprise pharma, biotech, CROs, and medical device companies across the UK, Switzerland, Spain, and globally via retained search, interim staffing, and market intelligence services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Executive Search Services

NAICS

Executive Search Services (561312)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Healthcare & Life Sciences Leadership Search (BPACAAAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

C-Suite & Board Search (BPACAAAA)

Keywords

• Executive search
• Life sciences recruitment
• Pharmaceutical talent
• Biotech headhunting
• Board placement

Headquarters

HQ city

Brighton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Executive Search: Retained executive search services for senior-level and board placements. Consultants develop bespoke recruitment plans, conduct confidential networking, research, and access to global database to identify and secure top talent for permanent positions.
2. Contingency Search: Contingency-based recruitment where fees are contingent upon successful placement. Consultants use traditional search methods combined with innovative approaches and an internal database to deliver quality candidates with speed and efficiency.
3. Interim Staffing: Interim staffing solutions for ongoing requirements, short or long-term projects, maternity cover, and workforce augmentation. Dedicated team of interim-focused consultants with vast network of experienced senior-level contract employees.
4. Mapping and Bespoke Services: Confidential market intelligence and analysis services providing real-time competitor information including team structure, geographical focus, industry trends, and key individual identification. Also includes First-Level Team Build solutions.
5. Perception Audits: Insights into how divisions, companies and leaders are perceived internally and in the wider market, providing feedback on corporate and employer brand. Can be tailored to focus on specific teams or direct competitors.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Haybury is an executive search consultancy that recruits mid-to-senior level and C-suite talent exclusively for the Life Sciences sector, covering pharmaceutical, biotechnology, CRO, and medical device organisations. It delivers a portfolio of six services — Executive Search, Board & CEO placement, Contingency Search, Interim Staffing, Mapping & Bespoke market intelligence, and Perception Audits — to enterprise clients through specialist consultants aligned to verticals of the pharmaceutical lifecycle.

Product overview

Haybury is an Executive Search Consultancy offering a portfolio of six specialized recruitment services focused solely on Life Sciences. The core offering comprises Executive Search as the primary service, supplemented by Board & CEO placement for senior leadership roles, Contingency Search for flexible hiring, Interim Staffing for contract needs, Mapping and Bespoke for market intelligence, and Perception Audits for employer brand assessment. These services are delivered by specialist consultants with expertise across different areas of the pharmaceutical lifecycle, covering disciplines including clinical development, regulatory affairs, medical affairs, HEOR, marketing, sales, and quality assurance. The company operates globally with offices in the UK, Switzerland, and Spain.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Executive Search Dedicated executive search service tailored to client needs, using specialist teams, confidential networking, research, and access to a global database to identify and approach passive and active senior candidates in Life Sciences organisations.
• Board & CEO A discreet, bespoke service for CEO and Board of Directors placements, utilising extensive access to industry leaders, in-depth industry knowledge, and multilingual research capabilities, supporting succession planning, talent mapping, perception audits, and psychometric testing.
• Contingency Search Contingency-based recruitment service in which fees are contingent on successful placement, combining traditional search methods with innovative approaches and a growing internal database to deliver quality candidates with speed and efficiency across multiple Life Sciences disciplines.
• Interim Staffing Dedicated interim staffing solution provided by a specialist team of interim-focused consultants with a vast network of experienced senior-level contract employees across the Life Sciences sector, supporting ongoing requirements, short- or long-term projects, maternity cover, and workforce augmentation.
• Mapping and Bespoke Confidential market-sector intelligence and analysis services providing real-time competitor information including team structure, geographical focus, industry trends, key individual identification, and reporting lines, complemented by a First-Level Team Build solution.
• Perception Audits Insight services analysing how divisions, companies, and leaders are perceived internally and in the wider market, providing feedback on corporate and employer brand to improve attraction, recruitment, and retention potential, with the ability to tailor focus to specific teams or direct competitors.

Quantifiable outcome

• Multiple testimonials cite successful senior placements with lasting positive impact - candidates placed 'are still doing great things within the company'
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Coulter Partners: Coulter Partners is a specialist executive search firm focused exclusively on the Life Sciences sector, placing senior leaders across pharma, biotech, medtech, and diagnostics. It is the most directly comparable peer to Haybury given similar sole-vertical focus, retained search model, and pan-European/international footprint.

Broad incumbents

• Spencer Stuart: Spencer Stuart is one of the world's largest executive search firms with a dedicated Life Sciences practice serving pharma and biotech boards and C-suites. It competes with Haybury for enterprise pharma mandates but operates as part of a much broader industry portfolio (financial services, technology, consumer).
• Egon Zehnder: Egon Zehnder is a global executive search and leadership advisory firm with a strong Health practice serving pharmaceutical and biotech clients. It competes for senior pharma leadership placements while operating across multiple industries beyond Life Sciences.
• Korn Ferry: Korn Ferry is a global organisational consulting firm combining executive search with talent advisory, RPO, and assessment. Its Life Sciences practice competes with Haybury for senior pharma and biotech placements while offering a much wider portfolio of services.
• Heidrick & Struggles: Heidrick & Struggles is a global executive search firm with a Life Sciences practice covering pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and medical devices. It is a comparable peer in pharma executive placement but offers a much broader industry footprint and additional leadership consulting services.
• Russell Reynolds Associates: Russell Reynolds Associates is a global executive search firm with a dedicated Life Sciences practice serving pharma, biotech, and medical device companies. It overlaps with Haybury on enterprise pharma CEO and board mandates but is significantly larger and broader in scope.
• SThree (Real Staffing, SThree Life Sciences): SThree operates specialist Life Sciences staffing brands (Real Staffing, Computacenter Life Sciences, SThree Life Sciences) placing contract and permanent professionals across pharma, biotech, and CROs. It is comparable to Haybury in serving the same buyer base but operates a broader contract staffing model rather than retained executive search.
• Odgers Berndtson: Odgers Berndtson is a major international executive search firm with a UK base and a Life Sciences practice spanning pharmaceuticals and biotech. It is a UK-headquartered broad incumbent comparable in geography, size, and sector focus overlap to Haybury.

Emerging players

• Skills Alliance (MRL Consulting Group): Skills Alliance is a specialist Life Sciences recruitment firm placing mid-to-senior technical and commercial professionals across pharma and biotech. It overlaps with Haybury on the Life Sciences vertical but focuses on technical rather than C-suite/board-level roles.

Others

• GreenSearch: GreenSearch is referenced in Haybury's own team data as a sister/partner brand under the same group, recruiting in the renewable energy sector. It is included for ecosystem context as an adjacent executive search brand sharing infrastructure with Haybury.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Hayburysearch
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/haybury
• Facebookfacebook.com/hayburysearch

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 Haybury