Aerospace & Defence

Uncovering Top Talent for the Aerospace & Defence Sector

Why work with us?

Collingwood Executive Search is a leading expert in the recruitment and development of leaders and specialist skilled talent in the Aerospace & Defence sector. 

With over 21 years' experience recruiting for companies ranging from innovative SMEs to global aerospace corporations, our clients keep returning due to our 96% success rate and our proven ability to deliver the talent they need to succeed and thrive. 

We recruit candidates from within the aerospace and defence industry but also attract high-calibre talent from adjacent sectors, bringing fresh perspectives and transferable leadership capability to your team.

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  • 1
    We listen and understand your situation, needs and vision
  • 2
    We will be honest in our feedback and will develop a bespoke recruitment strategy for you
  • 3
    We work relentlessly to find the right talent for you

Strengthening the Foundations of Your Business

At Collingwood, we live our success through you. What we care about most is helping our clients meet their goals. We understand how critical getting recruitment right first time around is and we won't stop until we find a solution for you. Common feedback from our clients is how relentless and resilient we are. 

The aerospace and defence sector is facing a well-documented talent challenge. Global aerospace and defence revenues reached a record $922 billion in 2024, yet 67% of aerospace leaders cite talent attraction as their most urgent issue. With an estimated shortage of over one million engineers forecast by 2030, the competition for visionary senior leaders has never been more intense. 

This is exactly why having the right executive search partner matters. We understand how frustrating it can be when you invest in a partnership to execute your recruitment strategy and it doesn't consistently deliver the best people. With over 70% of our annual revenue coming from repeat business, we are clearly doing something right. 

We recruit Board, Senior and Specialist roles across all business disciplines.

We are a values-driven team of very experienced recruitment specialists and consult with our clients to add the maximum value we can. 

If you are looking for a true value-adding recruitment partnership and not just a transaction to gather CVs, then please contact us today. 

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Why 99% of our clients return

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97% of our assignments were successfully filled last year by building collaborative partnerships
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Your online assignment portal
You will have total transparency of your assignment at all times

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Integrity
Always acting in your best interests

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Right first time
Our proven and robust process ensures success

Your Collingwood Search Specialist

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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
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Recruitment Success

We know that recruiting high-performing professionals to take your aerospace business forward can leave you feeling highly frustrated and underwhelmed, many recruiters simply don't deliver what you need. Or you think they have found the right candidate, but after a short period you realise they are not quite what you need, or they have decided to move on. We can take this stress away for you and ensure you invest in talent that helps deliver your strategic objectives. 

Having successfully recruited 96% of the roles we were retained on last year, and with over 70% of our annual revenue coming from repeat business, we know we will delight you. 

The key to our success is the way we collaborate with our clients and the relentlessness with which we deliver all our assignments. Aerospace and defence recruitment is tough, and so this collaborative, tenacious approach is absolutely key. 

Our team of executive search consultants are experts in their sectors, understanding their markets and the talent landscape thoroughly. We are here to help you create and build high-performing teams with the very best talent the market has to offer.

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Frequently Asked Questions

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We Know People.
We Know
Your Industry.

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