Industries

Industries and leadership roles we recruit

We recruit managers, directors, vice presidents and C-suite leaders across industries. Across our careers, we've recruited for roles like these, and we're running leadership searches right now in several of these industries.

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Across our careers, we've recruited for roles like these.

A data center corridor lined with server racksA refinery's stacks lit at duskAn automated production line on a factory floorA jet climbing through a dark blue sky
MANAGERS · DIRECTORS · VPS · C-SUITE

Our placements include organizations like

The White House · NASA · Google · Boeing · Lockheed Martin · Big 4 firms · Fortune 100 companies · DoD programs · Oil and gas · Startups

Industries

Choose an industry.

A data center corridor lined with server racks

Technology and AI

CTOs, AI leaders, product, security and revenue executives.

A refinery's stacks lit at dusk

Energy, Oil and Gas

Operations, engineering, HSE, projects, commercial and power leaders.

An automated production line on a factory floor

Manufacturing and Industrial

Plant managers, operations, quality, supply chain and EHS leaders.

A jet climbing through a dark blue sky

Aerospace, Defense and Government

Program, engineering, contracts, capture and cleared leaders.

A scientist working with a sample in a laboratory

Healthcare and Life Sciences

CEOs, CMOs, CNOs, revenue cycle, regulatory and IT leaders.

A resort pool and open-air lobby lit at dusk

Hospitality, Travel and Luxury

General managers, guest experience, revenue, brand and luxury retail leaders.

A high-rise under construction beside a city promenade at dusk

Construction, Infrastructure and Real Estate

Construction directors, superintendents, heavy civil and highway operators, development and estimating leaders.

Don't see yours?

We recruit leaders across industries.

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The market right now

The best candidates are usually employed and not looking.

3.3%

Hiring and quitting are both slow. The US hires rate was 3.3% and the quits rate was 1.9% in August 2026, so the best candidates are usually employed and not looking.

BLS, September 2026

64%

60% of CFO departures in the first half of 2026 were retirements, and 64% of new CFOs were first-timers.

CFO Dive, August 2026

80%

80% of CEOs expect AI to force high or medium change in how operations work.

Gartner, April 2026

10% to 12%

Private equity buyouts now need roughly 10% to 12% annual EBITDA growth to hit their returns.

Bain & Company, February 2026

HIRING A LEADER?

Get a second opinion on your search before you start.

Tell us the role. We'll share what we'd look out for, whether or not you start a search with us.

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Leadership roles we recruit

Leadership roles every company needs.

Every role links to our guide: why it's hard to hire right now, what to look for and what to watch out for.

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In demand now

  • VP of FP&A
  • Head of Corporate Development and M&A
  • Chief Transformation Officer
  • Chief Compliance Officer
  • Head of Total Rewards
  • Head of AI Transformation

How every search starts

We define what great looks like before we contact anyone.

Every search starts with an intake that goes deeper than the job description. Here's how a search brief reads for a CFO in all industries and roles, built from our role guide below.

Start a Search See a candidate website
Search brief · private

Search brief

CFO

All Industries and Roles

Must-haves

  • FP&A, capital markets, M&A and lender or private equity reporting.
  • Finance automation they actually delivered.

Screen out

  • A controller-type profile placed in a strategic or PE value-creation CFO seat.
  • No forecasting track record.
  • AI talk without delivered results.

Where we'll look

Companies like yoursCompanies one stage aheadPrivate equity portfolio companiesPublic companiesAdjacent industriesLeaders who aren't looking
Pay dataThe BLS median for financial managers is $166,570 (May 2025). This is a broad category, so treat it as a floor for senior roles.

Sample search brief, for illustration

Role guides

What to look for in every leadership hire.

CFO, VP of Finance and Controller

Why it's hard right now

Retirements are thinning the experienced bench, and many new CFOs are first-timers. CFOs also rank acquiring and developing AI and digital talent as their top near-term challenge. (CFO Dive, August 2026; Gartner, March 2026)

What to look for

  • For a CFO, FP&A, capital markets, M&A and lender or private equity reporting.
  • A CPA is close to essential for Controller and Chief Accounting Officer roles.
  • Finance automation they actually delivered.

Watch out for

  • A controller-type profile placed in a strategic or PE value-creation CFO seat.
  • No forecasting track record.
  • AI talk without delivered results.

Pay dataThe BLS median for financial managers is $166,570 (May 2025). This is a broad category, so treat it as a floor for senior roles.

Start a search for this role Or talk it through first with TAP
COO and Director of Operations

Why it's hard right now

The role varies widely from company to company, and CEOs increasingly expect their COO to personally own AI transformation. (BCG, September 2026)

What to look for

  • P&L ownership, operations at scale, integration experience, and processes redesigned around AI rather than AI layered onto old workflows.

Watch out for

  • An unclear split of duties between the CEO and COO.
  • Tools deployed without building the team's capability.
Start a search for this role Or talk it through first with TAP
CHRO, VP of HR and Head of People

Why it's hard right now

Gartner's top CHRO priority for 2026 is using AI to transform HR, and only 47% of CHROs say their culture drives performance. (Gartner, October 2025)

What to look for

  • Workforce and organization redesign for AI, change leadership, executive pay and board compensation committee experience, and CEO succession work.
  • SHRM-SCP is a plus, not a requirement.

Watch out for

  • An HR operations profile hired for a transformation mandate.
  • No measurable business outcomes.

Pay dataThe BLS median for human resources managers is $149,280 (May 2025).

Start a search for this role Or talk it through first with TAP
Head of Recruiting and Talent Acquisition

Why it's hard right now

Only 25% of talent acquisition professionals are highly confident in how their company measures quality of hire, and Gartner predicts 1 in 4 candidate profiles will be fake by 2028. (LinkedIn Future of Recruiting; Gartner, July 2025)

What to look for

  • Experience running both volume and executive hiring, workforce planning with the business, governance of AI tools, candidate identity verification, and quality-of-hire measurement.

Watch out for

  • Reports only time-to-fill and cost-per-hire.
  • Has scaled hiring in growth periods but never rebuilt a team after a freeze.
Start a search for this role Or talk it through first with TAP
CIO and VP of IT

Why it's hard right now

Only 19% of IT leaders say their AI initiatives met or beat business goals. (CIO.com State of the CIO, June 2026)

What to look for

  • A record of business outcomes, AI governance, oversight of cybersecurity, and cost discipline.

Watch out for

  • An operator who has only run infrastructure.
  • AI pilots that never showed a return.

Pay dataThe BLS median for computer and information systems managers is $175,140 (May 2025).

Start a search for this role Or talk it through first with TAP
Chief of Staff

Why it's hard right now

The title means different things at different companies. Harvard Business Review describes the role as an integrator, communicator, honest broker and confidant. (Harvard Business Review, 2020)

What to look for

  • A clear mandate set before the search starts, discretion, cross-functional credibility, and the ability to run the leadership team's operating rhythm.

Watch out for

  • A job that's really an executive assistant role, or a hidden COO role without the authority to match.
Start a search for this role Or talk it through first with TAP
CEO and President

Why it's hard right now

US CEO exits totaled 1,226 from January through August 2026, and many external CEO searches follow an unplanned transition. (Challenger, Gray & Christmas, September 2026)

What to look for

  • Fit with your company's stage and scale, strength with boards and investors, and a structured transition plan with the mandate set up front.

Watch out for

  • A first-time CEO with no support plan.
  • Repeated stints under three years without clear reasons.

Pay dataThe BLS median for chief executives is $213,990 (May 2025).

Start a search for this role Or talk it through first with TAP

How TAP runs this search

Where we find leaders.

We start with an intake that goes deeper than the job description, then map who is doing this job today at companies like yours, including leaders who aren't looking. Every candidate is interviewed in depth before you meet them, and you get a private website on each finalist: interview video, a rating on each of your requirements, compensation, timing and why we recommend them. Our goal is your hire from the first two candidates we present.

See how every search runs What's on a candidate website
Your roleCFOAdjacent sectorsCompanies like yours
  • Private equity portfolio companies
  • Public companies
  • Companies one stage ahead
  • Founder-led companies
  • Big 4 and advisory firms
  • Adjacent industries

Leaders who aren't looking

  1. 01

    Intake

    Deeper than the job description.

  2. 02

    Map

    Who is doing this job today at companies like yours.

  3. 03

    Interview

    Every candidate, in depth, before you meet them.

  4. 04

    Candidate website

    Video, ratings on your requirements, pay and timing.

  5. 05

    Hire

    Our goal: your hire from the first two candidates we present.

Leadership recruiting across industries

Talk with TAP

Hiring for one of these roles, or want a second opinion on how to recruit for it?

Across our careers, we've recruited for roles like these. Tell us what you're hiring for and we'll share what we'd look out for, whether or not you start a search with us.

Start a Search Talk With TAP
Jonathan Tureau

Jonathan Tureau

Founder & Principal Recruiter

Founder-led, on every search. 17 years in recruiting, and a third-generation recruiter.

FAQ

Questions about leadership searches.

Still have a question? Talk With TAP

Which industries does TAP recruit for?

We recruit leaders across industries, including technology and AI, energy, manufacturing, aerospace and defense, healthcare, hospitality and luxury, and construction, infrastructure and real estate. The leadership roles above apply in every industry.

What levels does TAP recruit?

Managers, directors, vice presidents and C-suite executives.

What does TAP charge for a leadership search?

25% of the new leader's first-year compensation. On most packages, an engagement fee paid at the start is credited toward it, and the placement fee is invoiced on your new leader's start date. See the full fee guide.

Sources 14 citedLast reviewed September 2026
  1. BLS, Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, September 2026
  2. CFO Dive, "CFO retirements hit 8-year H1 high," August 2026
  3. Gartner, CEO survey on AI and operations, April 2026
  4. Bain & Company, Global Private Equity Report 2026, February 2026
  5. Gartner, CFO near-term challenges survey, March 2026
  6. BCG, "What CEOs Should Look for in an AI-First COO," September 2026
  7. Gartner, CHRO priorities for 2026, October 2025
  8. Association of Corporate Counsel, Chief Legal Officers Survey, January 2026
  9. LinkedIn, Future of Recruiting
  10. Gartner, candidate trust and fraud survey, July 2025
  11. CIO.com, State of the CIO 2026, June 2026
  12. Harvard Business Review, "The Case for a Chief of Staff," 2020
  13. Challenger, Gray & Christmas, CEO turnover report, September 2026
  14. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: financial managers https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/financial-managers.htm; human resources managers https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/human-resources-managers.htm; computer and information systems managers https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/computer-and-information-systems-managers.htm; top executives https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/top-executives.htm