Retained Executive Search and Recruiting for Mission-Driven Organizations
Blair Search Partners provides executive search and recruiting for nonprofits and mission-driven organizations. We recruit the highest caliber talent from across the nation for our client organizations and connect talented individuals with the right career opportunities at the right time.
Our Commitment to DIVERSITY in Our Executive Searches
of our placements
have been filled by women, people of color, or candidates from other diverse communities and backgrounds.
BSP Placements:
President & CEO
Vice President of Operations
Photo Credit: Boys & Girls Club of San Marcos
Why Use an Executive Search Firm?
Focus
Running a comprehensive search process can take up valuable time and energy – resources that could otherwise be invested in your organization. A search firm partner can manage the entire process end-to-end, enabling you to stay focused on mission and impact.
Cost
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, a bad hire can cost your organization 30% of the employee’s annual salary and negatively impact productivity, reputation, culture, and morale. A professional search firm can provide you with the right candidates and help you make the right selection.
Options
It’s important that you feel good about your hire - working with a professional search firm can provide you with a pool of qualified candidates from which to choose, not just a single candidate.
Guarantee
Each placement comes with a guarantee period, giving you additional peace of mind and support.
Who We Are
We help build organizations that serve and support local communities. Blair Search Partners (BSP) is a highly entrepreneurial, retained executive search and recruiting firm, serving nonprofit and public-sector organizations. Our mission is to recruit the highest caliber talent from across the nation for our client organizations and to connect talented individuals with the right career opportunities at the right time.
We are passionate about the nonprofit sector and helping our clients better reflect the communities they serve, through intensive cultivation of diverse leadership. Human-Centered Design principles form the foundation of our recruiting processes, paired with a demonstrated commitment to equity, inclusivity, and transparency in everything we do.
What We Do
Our team manages search engagements for clients across the country, representing almost every area of the sector, including civic and philanthropic institutions, health and human services, education, and the arts.
Our executive search clients range from start-up 501(c)3 organizations to multibillion-dollar government agencies, which retain us to manage search engagements at all levels, including CEOs, directors, managers, program officers, and support staff.
BSP Placements: Chief Executive Officer
Photo Credit: @melaniesaucierphotography
PSIA-AASI Western Division
Full specialization within the nonprofit sector. Blair Search Partners employees have served in nonprofit roles of all levels, from executive assistant to program manager, fundraiser, director, executive director, volunteer, and board chair.
Unhindered national candidate access – absolutely no conflict between Blair Search Partners’ prior placements and target candidates/organizations.
Dedication to the candidate experience – our executive search process is focused on preserving and enhancing our clients’ relationships with internal and external candidates at all levels.
Creation of a highly participatory and transparent process, customized to the needs of our clients, which engages staff and key stakeholders.
The San Diego Foundation has entrusted Blair Search Partners (BSP) to fill numerous roles at our organization over the years, including Program Specialist, Fund Manager, Chief Development & Stewardship Officer, Chief Impact and Partnerships Officer, and my own recruitment as The Foundation’s CEO. Having worked with BSP as both a candidate and as their client organization, I continue to be impressed. Their alignment with our mission and values, dedication to both the candidate and client experience, and focus on inclusivity and diversity all make a significant difference.
Most recently we turned to BSP for a critical new position created on our senior leadership team, the Chief Impact & Partnerships Officer. This role was pivotal to the launch of our updated strategic plan, focused on deepening connections with our nonprofit partners and the communities we serve. BSP built a search process around diversity and inclusivity that delivered an exceptional pool of talented candidates. With this new addition to our executive leadership team, we have significantly increased our capacity for thought leadership and serving as agents for social change across our communities. In working with Blair Search Partners, I have experienced their authentic connection to our work, their appreciation for the potential impact of each new hire, and their dedication to finding us the best possible talent.
Mark Stuart
President and Chief Executive Officer
San Diego Foundation
Blair Search Partners really delivered on their promise to find a ‘WOW’ President & CEO for the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara! BSP was wonderfully collaborative and insightful throughout the search process and worked tirelessly to keep us on track. The result was a very disciplined and thoughtful process that led to a very exciting outcome. I would not hesitate to bring BSP in on future searches.
Matt Rowe
Board Chair
Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara
Working with Blair Search Partners was the difference in me attaining a career-advancing opportunity. I had failed in three previous attempts to secure an executive-level position and lacked confidence and skill in the interview process. In just 20 minutes of working with Trevor and his team, they changed my whole perspective on the process, how to present myself, how to answer questions, and to show up in the most genuine way that conveyed my abilities and personality to the employer. Needless to say, I have now advanced my career.
Jason Milosh
Vice President of Operation
Boys & Girls Club of San Marcos
With an abbreviated time frame of four months, Blair Search Partners did an outstanding job of guiding us through the process of hiring an Executive Director. Even during COVID, they kept us apprised of every step, from assessing our organization’s unique needs to the final selection of our new executive director. Our search team was engaged throughout this period, and we are thrilled with our selection.
Blair Aldworth
Board President
Crossroads, Inc.
I have worked with Blair Search Partners both as a candidate and as a client, and I have been very impressed with the outstanding work they do, their attention to detail, and most importantly, how they succeed at reaching the desired outcome. At the end of the day, you want to match the right candidate with the right job, and that requires a lot of listening, and understanding the goals and expectations of the organization, as well as the individual. Blair Search Partners has been a true partner to me and our organization in this critical process.
Angelica Ocampo
CEO
International Relief Teams
Contacting Blair Search Partners was the very best decision for Boys & Girls Club of San Marcos. All of the candidates we interviewed were extremely qualified to fill our role of Vice President of Operations. I’ve never had a pool of candidates of such high caliber. The process was quick, easy and enjoyable. The team really listened to what we needed and delivered! Thank you, Blair Search Partners, for helping take our organizations to the next level.”
