Careers at Cowen Partners

Ranked among America’s best executive search firms by Forbes, Business Insider and Hunt Scanlon.

Why Senior Executive Recruiters Choose Cowen Partners

Close more, juggle less

A search closes faster when the person running it has time to work it properly.

That is why we keep search loads manageable, and why we hold the line on it even when the pipeline is full. It is what lets us put a qualified slate in front of a board in 21 days, and why 99% of the executives we place are still in the role a year later.

For you, that means more closes, not more juggling. You know your candidates, your slates are ones you are proud of, and your searches finish instead of stalling.

No junior associates

When an organization retains us, they are buying judgment. Judgment about which executive will survive their board, their investors, and their first hard quarter.

Nobody learns that on the engagement, so we do not ask anyone to. The person who scopes a search runs it and closes it.

For you, that means every search on your desk is yours. No correcting someone else’s sourcing, no putting your name on work you did not do.

Remote, without the busywork

No activity quotas. No call minimums. No logging numbers so someone else feels comfortable.

We can work this way because we only hire people who have already proven they do not need managing. What we ask for instead is judgment, straight talk with clients, and ownership when something goes sideways.

The pipeline is already there

Clients come to us. More than 500 executive placements nationwide, and work that shows up in Fortune, Forbes and The Wall Street Journal often enough that clients arrive already knowing who we are.

You will not spend your first year selling. Your job is the search.

Life at Cowen Partners

We are fully remote, but we are not strangers. Our people show up for industry forums, conferences and client events across the country.

What our team says

Who we’re looking for

Someone who has run retained searches at a senior level. Who has placed executives into C-suite or board roles and can point to how those people are doing now. Who can hold a client relationship without anyone checking in.

Two kinds of people tend to find us. The first is at a larger firm, carrying more searches than anyone could do well, and tired of it. The second has been independent for a while, is good at the work, and wants real pipeline behind them instead of spending half the month selling.

If either one sounds like your situation, the conversation is worth having whether or not there is a posted seat. We would rather meet the right person early than go looking when we need them.

Frequently asked questions

Let’s talk

If you have run retained executive searches and you want fewer, more senior mandates, tell us a little about yourself. A real person reads these, and you will hear back either way.