Four ways to engage. One standard of work.
We don't sell CVs. Every engagement runs the same method — taxonomy-scoped roles, principal-led dual-run interviews, evidence-packed shortlists, a contractual clock and a six-month guarantee. What varies is the commercial shape.
Engaged Search
A modest commitment fee to open the search, credited in full against the success fee. You get priority, exclusivity and the full method; we get a client who is serious. We don't work contingent — a fee structure that rewards speed over rigour is how the industry earned its reputation.
Retained Search
Staged fees across engagement, shortlist and placement. For Head-of-AI, governance and leadership searches — where the first deliverable is a market map showing you the true shape of the talent pool before we agree the profile.
Team Builds
Founding a team or scaling one — multiple roles, one blended structure, sequenced so early hires help close later ones. The standard motion for post-raise AI companies.
Embedded Talent Partner
A Gradient principal embedded with your team on a monthly subscription — for sustained hiring programs where a per-placement model stops making sense. Limited seats.
Advisory: making a first AI hire and unsure what to hire? We run a short, fixed-fee scoping engagement — role definition against our taxonomy, comp benchmarking from Australian data, and an interview loop your team can actually run.
The clock and the guarantee
| Commitment | Gradient Search | Market standard |
|---|---|---|
| First shortlist | 5 business days | 2–4 weeks |
| Interview process | 4 stages, < 3 weeks | uncontracted |
| Replacement guarantee | 6 months | 13 weeks |
| Assessment evidence | Transcript-cited technical evidence pack with every shortlist | A formatted CV |
| Comp basis | Priced from individually-interviewed Australian AI comp data | “Market feedback” |
Fees are quoted per engagement — structure and scope vary, and we'd rather have that conversation against your actual role than publish a number that misleads in both directions. What is fixed: the clock, the guarantee, and the method.
Straight answers
- Why won't you take our data engineering role?
- Because specialisation is the entire product. The moment we run generalist searches, our network, our data and our assessment stop being better than everyone else's. We'll happily refer you to firms we rate for adjacent roles.
- What is the "dual-run interview"?
- A principal leads every interview; our interview system sits second chair — tracking rubric coverage in real time and producing the evidence pack that ships with the shortlist. It's disclosed to every candidate, consented, and a human makes every decision. Our full AI transparency statement is published here.
- How can you offer six months when the market offers thirteen weeks?
- Because the guarantee prices our assessment. Rubric-scored technical interviews, evidence packs and comp data mean fewer surprises on both sides — so we can carry a promise the market can't.
- Do you do contract?
- Permanent search first. A licensed contract desk is on our roadmap; we'd rather enter that market properly — licensed in every state, correctly insured — than quickly.