We find leaders with the right drive for your organization – through a precise, discreet and determined search process.
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“A personal and professional approach.”
Stardust Search is an executive search firm in Stockholm that recruits leaders and key people.
We recruit CEOs, CFOs, COOs, heads of marketing, sales, communications and HR and more – for growth companies, listed, private equity-owned, private and state-owned companies, and for public and non-profit organizations. We go deep, get to know both you and the candidates, and look at drive, values and potential, not just credentials.
“We were extremely pleased with Stardust Search in our CEO recruitment.”
Hanna Brandström
Head of People & Culture, Castellum
A mis-hire at executive level costs millions, so we put our effort into getting it right from the start. The best candidates rarely look for a new job – which is why we identify them, engage them and convince them why your organization is the right next step.
Experience. Our consultants have been leaders themselves and know what it takes. We have more than 20 years of experience in executive recruitment.
Network. Through the Lense & Lumen alliance we reach candidates globally. Several hundred HR professionals in our Friends network help us quality-assure it.
A new search every time. No ready-made candidate database. Every assignment is mapped from scratch, based on your context.
Discretion. Strict confidentiality when needed, and validated tests for quality in the selection.
Your employer brand. We carry your brand into every candidate meeting and give every candidate a good experience, including those who do not go further.
Executive Search is also called headhunting and executive recruitment.
How it works
Structured, competency-based and with regular feedback to you.
We analyze your business and goals and write a tailored role profile, based on a culture survey.
A discreet search using AI-based search tools and our established network. Tests ensure both cultural and competency fit.
The best-suited candidates are presented and meet you for further evaluation. We coordinate every meeting.
From negotiation and onboarding to following up the hire, with background checks and structured reference checks.
Stardust is a competent and highly professional partner that we have engaged several times. Their team shows great interest in and commitment to the specifics of each assignment, and we have great confidence in them in our recruitment work.
Anna Bellander
Head of Communications, Fastighetsägarna
The entire recruitment process is well planned and carried out with a high level of professionalism, both toward us as a company and toward the candidates. I warmly recommend Stardust Search to anyone looking for a skilled and reliable recruitment partner.
Peter Ekholm
Country Manager, Superwood
We have used Stardust Search several times and are very satisfied. The collaboration is reassuring and easy, with solid support throughout the recruitment process. Despite an often tight schedule, we have had really good help finding the right candidate.
Rickard Bracken
Secretary General, Suicide Zero
We have engaged Stardust Search for three recruitments and are very satisfied. Their holistic view of both the client and the candidate experience, and the personal and professional way they handle the whole process, is something I truly appreciate.
Christina Lingdén
Head of Communications, Sobona
I used to be skeptical of personality tests, but today I would not hire a new doctor at Funmed without first having Stardust Search run tests and give feedback on them.
Nils Edelstam
Chief Medical Officer, Funmed AB
We were extremely pleased with Stardust Search in our CEO recruitment. We had a good dialogue during the process and were also very happy with the end result. With Stardust Search you can count on being listened to and getting quality all the way.
Hanna Brandström
Head of People & Culture, Castellum
Stardust Search took the time to get to know us as a company before they started, so that the match would be as accurate as possible – a more thorough process than any I had been part of before.
Farhad Jabbari
CEO, Qicraft
Stardust Search understands our needs and is always professional – toward candidates and toward us as we look for new talent. We are very happy with our collaboration with Stardust and warmly recommend them as a recruitment partner.
Mikael Brunnhagen
CEO, Motor Trend
Free discovery call
An informal video call where you can ask questions and hear how we can help you move forward.
The questions we hear most often.
Executive search is a high-quality recruitment process focused on finding and hiring senior executives and other key people for an organization. Finding the best-suited candidates takes a thorough and extensive process.
The goal is a candidate who not only has the skills and experience required, but also fits the organization's culture and values.
Headhunting, where a recruiter actively searches for and approaches candidates, is common in roles that require specialist skills and in industries with a shortage of talent. When the recruitment concerns an executive role we call it executive search or executive recruitment.
As a general rule, a high-quality search process costs roughly two to three months' salary for the role in question. You rarely get genuine executive search help for less than SEK 200,000 if the process is to be carried out thoroughly and with high precision.
When Stardust Search makes a price proposal, it covers a far more comprehensive package than most other firms offer: analysis and evaluation, a culture survey, a kick-off workshop, search and outreach, assessment, reference checks and onboarding support. We take full responsibility all the way to the finish line.
You are welcome to contact us for a concrete price proposal tailored to your needs. Book a time directly.
Expect around eight weeks from kick-off to decision. The timeline depends on how available both the candidates and you as a client are during the process.
After that, the person hired usually has a notice period of around three months before they can start in the new role. From kick-off to the person being in place, it typically takes about five months.
The executive search process is usually thorough and extensive, to identify and evaluate candidates with the right skills, experience and personal qualities to lead and drive the company forward.
Based on experience, insights into future challenges and analysis, we at Stardust Search have developed a process that we follow in every recruitment and keep refining. It also defines what we require of our tools and lets us give our clients the best match for a successful, long-term solution.
Our method covers everything from workshops and culture surveys with the client to define the role, to highly valid tests and assessments for the candidates.
We of course use competency-based interview techniques, thorough reference checks and background checks of the candidates.
We also offer onboarding conversations for a smooth start, and follow up with both the candidate and the hiring manager after the hire.
Based in Stockholm and as members of the global network Lense & Lumen, we have access to an outstanding pool of talent, both locally and internationally.
This combination of local presence and global reach lets us take on assignments anywhere in Sweden and around the world, and tailor recruitment solutions to your specific needs, wherever you are.
An executive search consultant is a specialized recruiter who actively seeks out and attracts the best candidates for a senior role.
If you need to recruit a key person but lack the time or network to find the top candidates yourselves, an executive search consultant can make all the difference.
The consultant acts as your strategic partner – getting to know your company's needs and culture in depth, mapping the market and discreetly approaching suitable candidates who often are not actively looking.
By hiring an experienced executive search consultant you get a precise and confidential process that saves you time and improves the accuracy of the recruitment.
We understand that every organization is unique. With local expertise and access to a global network, we help companies find the best candidates – from central Stockholm to the rest of Sweden.