Engagement models
Three ways to engage. One standard of rigour.
Long-term thinking, not transactional search. Full Search is our recommended model. Two further models bring our method where lighter touch is the right answer.
Choosing a model
Leadership-search rigour, scaled to how you want to work
Not every leadership hire requires a full retained search. Search-as-a-Service and Design & Discovery give your team the execution phase or the strategic foundations on their own, where that is the right answer. Every model is built on the same Mycelium-Based Search framework.
Engagement model 01
Full Search
Flagship · RecommendedEnd-to-end leadership search for hires that shape what comes next. Our most comprehensive retained partnership. We invest time upfront to understand the environment a leader is entering, before running a rigorous, data-led search that aligns both sides from the outset.
Engagement: Retained
What you get
- A written blueprint of your business: context, culture, goals and how decisions actually get made
- Outcome-based job description
- Search Strategy and Market Approach
- Brand Recognition Survey
- Executive-level market mapping and longlisting
- Decision-ready shortlisting deck and Candidate Summary Pack
- Bespoke interview guides and comparison scorecards
- Unconscious-bias refresher materials for the hiring panel
- Offer, negotiation, resignation and structured handover support
- Post-search reflection report and 90-day check-ins
- Standard six-month guarantee, extendable to a full 12 months
How it works
Best suited to
Business-critical and board-level appointments where fit, discretion and a guaranteed outcome matter most. Particularly within PE-backed and large enterprise environments.
Engagement model 02
Search-as-a-Service
For organisations clear on their mandate but without the internal capacity to execute it at senior level. We focus on the market execution phase: identifying, engaging and assessing senior talent through a disciplined outreach and screening process, producing a decision-ready shortlist.
Engagement: Retained
What you get
- Targeted market mapping and candidate outreach
- Longlist and prioritised shortlist
- Candidate Summary Pack
- Reputation and background checks
- Screening Call Insights
- Compensation Benchmarking, availability and notice
- A decision-ready shortlist, straight to your interview process
How it works
Best suited to
Scale-ups, high-growth teams, organisations navigating change, and leadership hires with tight timelines and controlled budgets.
Engagement model 03
Design & Discovery
For teams that need strategic clarity before going to market. We clarify role positioning, align decision-makers and build the structural foundation for an effective search. The result is faster activation, stronger senior engagement and greater decision confidence.
Engagement: Fixed fee
What you get
- A written blueprint of your business: context, culture, goals
- A job description written as outcomes, not tasks
- Search Strategy, market mapping, talent targeting and sourcing plan
- A structured screening interview guide, built for the role rather than borrowed from a template
- Stakeholder alignment session
- Practical documentation, ready to hand to your team
How it works
Best suited to
Start-ups hiring critical roles, lean People and Talent teams, organisations refining internal hiring.
Compare
At a glance
| Full Search | Search-as-a-Service | Design & Discovery | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Company blueprint & role design | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Outcome-based job description | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Search Strategy and Market Approach | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Structured screening interview guide | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Brand Recognition Survey | ✓ | — | — |
| Executive market mapping and longlisting | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Decision-ready shortlist | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Candidate Summary Pack | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Reputation and background checks, with structured screening notes | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Compensation Benchmarking | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Bespoke interview guides & scorecards | ✓ | — | — |
| Unconscious-bias materials for the panel | ✓ | — | — |
| Offer, negotiation & structured handover | Mycelium-led | Your team | Your team |
| 90-day check-in & aftercare | ✓ | — | — |
| Placement guarantee | 6 months, extendable to 12 | — | — |
The leadership guarantee
Every Full Search engagement is backed by a standard six-month guarantee. If a placed leader does not remain productively employed for six months, we conduct a replacement search at no additional professional fee. For appointments navigating transformation, scale or heightened complexity, the cover can be extended to a full 12 months, payable prior to shortlist delivery. Structured protection for high-impact hires where safeguarding your investment is critical.
Not sure which model fits?
Book a discovery call. We'll recommend the right way to engage for your search.
Book a discovery callhello@myceliumsearch.co.uk · www.myceliumsearch.co.uk