BidSkim
Free report
Service market

Executive search contracts

UK public sector · 243 contracts awarded in the 12 months to 6 October 2026

Covering 600+ buyer portals · 5 years of records · Updated 6 October 2026 · How we count

Contracts awarded
243
Last 12 months
Median contract
£43k
Recorded value
Recorded value
£22.8m
235 of 241 main-service contracts have a published value
Buyers
138
Suppliers
63

BidSkim assigns contracts to services from the notice text. How services are assigned

What stands out

  • The five suppliers that won the most executive search contracts took 52% of them (126 of 243).
  • Contracts awarded per quarter held steady across the period.
  • The median contract, £43k, is 39% below the median across recruitment & hr contracts (£70k).

Who buys executive search

By contracts awarded, the 12 months to 6 October 2026.

  1. 1Cabinet Office15 contracts
  2. 2Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs8 contracts
  3. 3Sheffield City Council8 contracts
  4. 4Financial Conduct Authority6 contracts
  5. 5Ministry of Justice5 contracts
  6. 6HM Land Registry5 contracts
  7. 7UK Shared Business Services (UK SBS)5 contracts
  8. 8H M REVENUE & CUSTOMS5 contracts
  9. 9Health Data Research UK4 contracts
  10. 10Department for Business and Trade4 contracts

Top executive search contractors by contracts won

The 12 months to 6 October 2026.

  1. 1GatenbySanderson47 contracts
  2. 2Odgers Berndtson29 contracts
  3. 3Saxton Bampfylde28 contracts
  4. 4Russell Reynolds Associates13 contracts
  5. 5Global Resourcing Ltd11 contracts
  6. 6Tile Hill11 contracts
  7. 7Korn Ferry9 contracts
  8. 8Green Park7 contracts
  9. 9Faerfield Limited7 contracts
  10. 10Hays5 contracts

Latest and largest awards

Each links to the official notice.

Latest

Largest

Contracts awarded by quarter

43Q4 2025*71Q1 202659Q2 202669Q3 20261Q4 2026*
* part quarter

Where the contracts were awarded

England 225 · Wales 9 · Scotland 7 · Northern Ireland 2

London62Yorkshire and The Humber20South East13South West11North East10North West10Wales8East of England7Scotland7East Midlands3West Midlands3Northern Ireland2UK-wide or not stated87

What is included

Retained search and selection for chief executives, permanent secretaries, directors and other senior posts, and for chairs, non-executive directors and independent board members of public bodies, including longlisting, assessment, public appointments campaigns and support to appointment panels.

  • Chief executive, COO and permanent secretary search
  • Director and senior civil service search
  • Vice chancellor and pro vice chancellor search
  • Executive lots in recruitment frameworks
  • Retained search for heads of department
  • Public body chair search
  • Non-executive director campaigns
  • NHS trust chair recruitment
  • Independent members of university governing bodies
  • Public appointments for arm's-length bodies

What is not included

  • Interim directors on day rates -> rec.search.interim-management
  • Contingency placements below senior level -> rec.search.permanent-recruitment
  • Volunteer school governors and academy trustees -> rec.search.school-governor-trustee-recruitment
  • Leadership assessment and psychometrics -> rec.check.leadership-and-promotion-assessment, rec.check.psychometric-testing
  • Board effectiveness and governance reviews -> csl.strat.governance-reviews
  • Independent chairs appointed to run improvement boards -> another industry: consulting-accountancy

Often bought by the same buyers