Retained executive search for pivotal fenestration appointments

Build the board your next stage of growth demands.

A growing business rarely needs a like-for-like replacement.

When the market is demanding more from the business, the leadership brief has to move with it. The right appointment may need to bring stronger operational discipline, commercial range, product focus or a more deliberate succession path.

That is why we start with the business problem, not the job title. The resulting search is built around the capability the board needs next—then tested against the reality of the talent market.

The brief is a starting point. The market tells us what is possible.

The leadership team behind the next chapter.

We work with boards and managing directors where the next senior appointment genuinely changes the quality of decision-making around the table.

FOCUS	WHAT IT ENABLES	RELEVANT ROLES
01 Lead the operation	Manufacturing leaders who can set the rhythm for investment, productivity, quality and people development.	Managing Director · Operations Director · Plant Leadership
02 Win profitable growth	Commercial leaders who turn market insight, proposition and account focus into disciplined revenue growth.	Commercial Director · Sales Director · Regional Leadership
03 Build the proposition	Technical and product leaders who protect product credibility while opening new routes to market.	Technical Director · Product · Marketing Leadership
04 Plan for succession	Board-level talent decisions that make the next leadership transition more deliberate, not more disruptive.	Board Succession · Future Managing Directors

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A search process that improves the decision, not just the shortlist.

Live intelligence around remuneration, competitor landscape, geographical clusters and available capability helps the board make the right trade-offs early.

01 Discover. The business, the mandate, the culture and the decision ahead.

02 Challenge. The initial brief against live market and remuneration evidence.

03 Map. A research-led view of relevant, often passive, leadership talent.

04 Assess. Evidence, fit and leadership impact—on paper and in practice.

05 Appoint. A well-managed decision, offer and transition into the role.

06 Support. A partnership that stays close beyond the signed contract.

Learn more about our retained search process

Complex briefs. Clear market intelligence. Better leadership choices.

These selected, anonymised examples from fenestration and adjacent Building Products businesses show the size of the decision, not simply the title on the offer letter.

Managing Director search: 61 potential candidates researched before five were presented to the client.
Sales Director search: 82 potential candidates researched for a growth-focused fenestration leadership brief.
Board evolution partnership: 4 years from a technical hire to an ongoing building products leadership partnership.

Read our case studies

Three pivotal appointments. Three very different leadership problems.

The following summaries are designed to link to the full published case studies. Client examples remain anonymised to respect confidentiality.

“All my discussions with Collingwood Executive Search have been very supportive and honest.”

- Placed Managing Director

Your Collingwood Search Specialist

Meet Doug Mackay

Managing Director

I’m Doug Mackay, Managing Director of Collingwood Executive Search, a specialist executive recruitment firm based in the North-West of England. Since 1998, I’ve been helping organisations from start-ups to global corporates, across the UK, Europe and North America, to attract and retain outstanding leadership talent. In 2005, I co-founded Collingwood with my wife, Claire Mackay, to deliver a values-driven approach

Connect with Doug

SPEAK WITH Doug

Frequently Asked Questions

We are not a ‘typical recruitment agency’. We are specialists in Executive Search and Advertising-Led Selection. Our Executive Search consultants meet with you to understand your company culture and vision, business strategy and, of course, the role you need to recruit. Our highly skilled and experienced researchers and Executive Search consultants will work together to identify, entice and engage with the sought group of target candidates in order to successfully recruit the role.

To find out more simply book a free consultation call with our Managing Director, Doug Mackay.

If you don’t want to waste time and money on substandard hires and want to recruit the right person first time for your senior appointments, executive search is a robust and highly successful method of recruitment. But finding the right Executive Search company is critical!

We have helped our clients find highly skilled, culturally aligned, and high performing employees since 2005. They have enabled our clients to improve, strengthen and ultimately add value to their company. Our specialist Executive Search team is dedicated to aiding our clients not just in hiring the best they can by providing data centred market insights but creating and defining those senior leaders / teams.

You will not only make the best appointment you can, but you will also invaluable market intelligence and general support throughout and once the recruitment process has successfully ended.

A partnership with Collingwood Executive Search will ensure you are well informed through regular update meetings and communication which helps to develop a collaborative and effective relationship with you.

Find out more about partnering with Collingwood Executive Search here.

Although we do consider senior level roles within all sectors, we have developed Collingwood around a core number of industries and sectors. Our expertise here enables us to add more value to our clients as we live and breathe their industries and are able to provide bespoke talent advice based on factual data.

For over 21 years we have been building our networks and partnerships in the following industries and sectors:

All senior appointments can vary depending on the role that you are hiring for, and how niche the sought skill set, or experience might be. Other factors which also impact will be salary and location. All our recruitment assignments are project mile-stoned for a period of between 4 and 8 weeks through to our delivery of a candidate shortlist. However, we will listen to your needs and provide a suitable solution. For example, where a hire is very urgent, we could provide a more flexible approach focused on introducing candidates as we find them. Key to timescales is the initial groundwork completed by our consultants whilst collaborating with our clients – understanding their business, the role and candidate requirements fully. Collaboration with our clients has proved to be the most important factor when ensuring the successful delivery of an executive search project.

In the rare case that a suitable candidate cannot be found that aligns to your initial brief, we will use the live market data to help guide the project to a successful outcome. It maybe that you need to compromise on an element of your requirements, but we will inform our discussion with facts that we have found from the project and also from our own experience in your industry. No matter what the situation, Collingwood are here to help you find that perfect fit and will always do our upmost to ensure your hiring role is filled first time, with the best talent the market has to offer! 97% of our retained searches were delivered successfully last year.

We Know People.
We Know
Your Industry.

Talk to an expert

Retained executive search for pivotal fenestration appointments

A growing business rarely needs a like-for-like replacement.

The leadership team behind the next chapter.

A search process that improves the decision, not just the shortlist.

Complex briefs. Clear market intelligence. Better leadership choices.