As a Chicago-based growth leader, HR professional, or chief executive evaluating leadership for your team, you need more than a resume review. Growing companies benefit from a structured, intentional process that assesses leadership style, team dynamics, and cultural fit before a candidate enters discussions. Onboard Recruiting Partners, a retained executive search firm headquartered in Rochester Hills, Michigan, serves growth-stage companies nationwide, including the Chicago market, by focusing exclusively on leadership and key functional roles. Chicago Executive Leadership Recruiting done well is a dedicated engagement, not a transactional search.
A Retained Approach to Chicago Executive Leadership Recruiting
In our experience, many executive searches fail not for lack of candidates but because the process lacks alignment and clear commitment. Onboard Recruiting Partners operates on a retained model, meaning the firm is fully devoted to each search from day one. Unlike contingency recruiting, where speed can trump fit, the retained approach prioritizes finding the right long-term hire for your organization.
Founder Chris Masson brings more than 25 years of hands-on leadership experience from roles at Sherwin-Williams, AkzoNobel, and his own ventures. That operator background shapes how we approach each engagement: practical judgment about what leadership truly requires, not just what sounds good on paper. Clients work directly with Chris throughout the process, ensuring the expertise hired is the expertise doing the work.
Learn more about the firm’s background and philosophy to understand what drives each search engagement.
Markets We Serve
Chicago Executive Leadership Recruiting through Onboard Recruiting Partners is built for growth-stage companies that are past the startup phase but not yet at enterprise scale. The firm’s experience centers on organizations in these categories:
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Mid-Sized Companies: Established operations needing experienced leaders to manage complexity and drive results.
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Growth-Focused Organizations: Companies scaling quickly that require leadership capable of building teams, not just joining them.
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Private Companies: Founder-led and family-owned businesses navigating leadership transitions with limited internal HR resources.
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Corporate Teams: Functional divisions within larger organizations seeking specialized executive talent.
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Entrepreneurial Businesses: Operator-driven companies where leadership hires carry strategic weight.
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Leadership-Driven Environments: Cultures that treat alignment and team dynamics as business priorities.
Positions Onboard Recruiting Partners Helps Clients Hire with Confidence
Senior and director-level leadership hiring requires a firm that understands functional demands and how leadership fits within the broader organization. Onboard Recruiting Partners focuses on roles across human resources, marketing, engineering, operations, and merchant functions, the same disciplines at the center of our Chicago Executive Leadership Recruiting work. Explore the firm’s full areas of expertise to see where the team has deep experience.
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C-Suite
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Director of Human Resources
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Human Resources Manager
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Talent Acquisition Leader
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Marketing Director
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Brand Marketing Manager
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Engineering Manager
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Operations Manager
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Divisional Merchant Manager
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Category Manager / Buyer
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Regional Manager
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District Manager
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Store Manager
What Sets This Approach Apart
Effective executive hiring goes beyond sourcing candidates from a database. The Onboard Recruiting Partners process centers on honest conversation and strong internal alignment before a search begins. This means understanding the current team, identifying gaps, and defining the leadership profile that will thrive in the client’s environment, not just look strong on paper.
That level of evaluation requires time, structure, and a genuine commitment from both sides. We operate exclusively on a retained basis, and Chris Masson personally leads every search. Chicago Executive Leadership Recruiting at this level is not a high-volume process, it is a carefully managed engagement for organizations that understand the cost of a wrong hire. If you want a fast, volume-based process, this may not be the right fit. If you want a hire that lasts because the fit was evaluated carefully, this approach is built for you.
Follow Onboard Recruiting Partners on LinkedIn for perspective on leadership hiring, team building, and executive search.
Start a Conversation About Your Next Leadership Hire
If your organization is preparing for a leadership search and you want a process that reflects the weight of that decision, Chicago Executive Leadership Recruiting through Onboard Recruiting Partners offers a clear, structured path forward. Request a search consultation to share what your team needs and explore whether this approach is the right fit for your next hire.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Chicago Executive Leadership Recruiting mean in practice at Onboard Recruiting Partners?
Chicago Executive Leadership Recruiting at Onboard Recruiting Partners refers to a structured, retained search process focused exclusively on leadership and key functional roles. Rather than sourcing large volumes of candidates quickly, the firm evaluates leadership style, team dynamics, and long-term cultural fit before presenting anyone to a client. The goal is a hire that strengthens the organization over time, not one that fills a seat temporarily.
Why does Onboard Recruiting Partners use a retained model instead of contingency recruitment?
The retained model requires a mutual commitment from both the firm and the client, which changes how the search is conducted. Contingency firms are paid only when a placement is made, which can create pressure to move quickly. Retained search prioritizes finding the right person, not the fastest one. This alignment yields more intentional hiring decisions and, over time, better outcomes for your team and business.
What types of companies benefit most from this approach to executive leadership recruiting?
Growth-stage companies, typically 50 to 500 employees, that need to build out or strengthen their leadership teams. These are often founder-led businesses, private companies navigating transitions, or mid-sized organizations that have outgrown their original structure. This service is not designed for high-volume or entry-level hiring.
What functional areas does Onboard Recruiting Partners specialize in?
The firm’s core expertise covers human resources, marketing, engineering, operations, and merchant functions. Within those areas, the firm works on roles from the C-suite down through director, manager, and key individual contributor positions that carry substantial impact. Each search is treated as a distinct engagement, not a generic process.
Who leads the search process at Onboard Recruiting Partners?
Chris Masson, founder of Onboard Recruiting Partners, personally leads every search. Chris brings more than 25 years of management experience from corporate roles at Sherwin-Williams and AkzoNobel, plus direct entrepreneurship. This background provides a practical, operator-informed perspective on what strong leadership looks like in a growing organization.
How do I get started with Chicago Executive Leadership Recruiting through Onboard Recruiting Partners?
The best first step is a direct conversation about your organization, the role you need to fill, and the team context. Chicago Executive Leadership Recruiting begins with understanding your business, its structure, culture, and where leadership gaps are creating friction. This initial discussion helps determine fit with the retained model and to start outlining what success looks like for the hire. You can request a consultation via the form on this page or visit the employers section of the site to learn more before reaching out.