Finding the right engineering leader is one of the most consequential decisions a growing company can make. Onboard Recruiting Partners serves as a trusted Chicago Engineering Recruiter for companies that need more than a fast fill. The firm brings a deliberate, structured search process designed to identify engineering leaders who fit the role, the team, and the direction of the business.
Headquartered in Rochester Hills, Michigan, Onboard Recruiting Partners serves a national client base, working with growth-stage companies across the United States that need experienced leadership in engineering and other critical functional areas.
A Retained Search Model Built Around the Right Hire
Onboard Recruiting Partners operates on a retained basis, which means every search begins with a genuine commitment from both sides. Unlike contingency arrangements that reward speed, the retained model keeps the focus on fit, alignment, and long-term success. When companies need a Chicago Engineering Recruiter who will stay invested through the full process, that distinction matters.
Founder Chris Masson brings more than 25 years of hands-on management experience from corporate environments including Sherwin-Williams and AkzoNobel, as well as his own entrepreneurial work. That background shapes how every search is approached: not as a transaction, but as a meaningful business decision with real consequences for the team and the organization’s future.
Learn more about Chris Masson and the firm’s background.
What Sets This Chicago Engineering Recruiter Apart
Most recruiting firms match resumes to job descriptions. Onboard Recruiting Partners goes further, evaluating leadership style, team dynamics, and cultural fit before a candidate is ever presented. Engineering leaders carry outsized responsibility for product quality, team morale, and delivery timelines. Placing the wrong person in those roles creates problems that compound quickly.
As a boutique firm, Chris personally leads every search. Clients work directly with the expert they hired, not a junior associate handed the file after the contract is signed. That direct involvement produces more precise candidate evaluations and honest conversations throughout the process.
Explore the firm’s expertise across functional areas.
Positions We Help Clients Hire with Confidence
Onboard Recruiting Partners focuses exclusively on leadership and key functional roles. The firm does not engage in high-volume or entry-level staffing. Engineering searches are one part of a broader practice that spans the functional needs of growing organizations.
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C-Suite
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Engineering Manager
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Operations Manager
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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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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
See how Onboard Recruiting Partners supports employers through each search.
Markets We Serve
As a Chicago Engineering Recruiter and national search partner, the firm works with a range of organizations that share one common trait: they are serious about building leadership teams that last.
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Mid-Sized Companies: Organizations with established structures that need experienced engineering leadership to support continued growth.
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Growth-Focused Organizations: Companies scaling quickly and building out functional teams to match expanding operations.
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Private Companies: Founder- or family-led businesses that want a thoughtful hiring process without the friction of large enterprise approaches.
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Corporate Teams: Larger internal teams that need a focused external partner for specific leadership roles.
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Entrepreneurial Businesses: Companies moving from early-stage to a more structured leadership model.
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Leadership-Driven Environments: Organizations where culture, accountability, and management quality define long-term outcomes.
Engineering Leadership Requires a Different Kind of Search
A Chicago Engineering Recruiter who understands what engineering managers actually do in practice brings a different lens to candidate evaluation. Technical competence is a baseline expectation. What separates the right hire from a capable candidate is the ability to lead cross-functional teams, communicate with stakeholders outside of engineering, and make decisions that balance speed, quality, and resource constraints.
Onboard Recruiting Partners evaluates those dimensions directly. Candidates are assessed for how they lead, not just what they have shipped. That distinction matters most when the role is a first engineering management hire or when the incoming leader will need to build a team from the ground up.
Follow Onboard Recruiting Partners on LinkedIn for search insights and perspective on leadership hiring.
Why Growing Companies Choose a Retained Search Partner
Companies in the 50 to 500 employee range face a particular challenge: they need experienced leadership, but they rarely have the internal bandwidth to run a thorough executive search alongside day-to-day operations. Partnering with a Chicago Engineering Recruiter on a retained basis provides the structure and commitment that in-house sourcing typically cannot match.
The retained model also creates accountability. Because Onboard Recruiting Partners is engaged from the start, the firm has full context on the role, the team, and the business goals. That context produces better conversations with candidates and more accurate assessments of fit before any offer is extended.
Visit the Onboard Recruiting Partners homepage to start a conversation.
If your company is preparing to hire an engineering leader and wants a search process built around alignment and long-term fit, reaching out to discuss the role and the team is the right first step.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a Chicago Engineering Recruiter at Onboard Recruiting Partners actually do during a search?
The process begins with a detailed intake conversation to understand the role, the team structure, Onboard Recruiting Partners’s growth stage, and what success looks like for the incoming hire. From there, the firm builds a targeted candidate profile, identifies and engages candidates through direct outreach, and evaluates each person against the role requirements and cultural dynamics before making any introductions. Chris Masson personally leads every search, so clients receive consistent communication and informed perspective throughout.
How is a retained search different from a contingency recruiting arrangement?
In a contingency model, recruiters are paid only when a placement is made, which creates pressure to move fast rather than move carefully. The retained model involves a structured engagement with fees distributed across the search process. That structure aligns the firm’s incentives with finding the right hire, not the fastest one. It also ensures the recruiter has full context on the role from the beginning, which leads to more accurate candidate evaluations and fewer surprises late in the process.
Does Onboard Recruiting Partners only work with companies in the Chicago area?
No. While the firm serves as a Chicago Engineering Recruiter for companies with needs in that market, Onboard Recruiting Partners is headquartered in Rochester Hills, Michigan, and works with clients across the United States. Geography does not limit the firm’s reach. Most searches involve a combination of local and national candidate pools, and the firm’s process is built to work effectively regardless of where the client is located.
What kinds of companies does Onboard Recruiting Partners work with?
The firm focuses on growth-stage companies, typically in the range of 50 to 500 employees, that are building or strengthening their leadership teams. Clients include mid-sized companies, private and family-owned businesses, entrepreneurial organizations moving into a more structured phase, and corporate teams that need a focused external partner for specific functional roles. What these organizations share is a serious interest in making deliberate hiring decisions with lasting impact.
What types of engineering roles does Onboard Recruiting Partners place?
The firm’s engineering practice focuses on leadership and key functional roles, with Engineering Manager being a primary placement area. The firm does not handle entry-level or high-volume technical staffing. The focus is on leaders who will manage teams, shape processes, and contribute to strategic decisions. Companies hiring a first engineering leader or replacing a critical management role are well suited for this kind of dedicated search process.
How does Onboard Recruiting Partners evaluate cultural fit for engineering leadership roles?
Cultural fit assessment goes beyond asking candidates to describe their management style. The firm evaluates how candidates have handled specific team challenges, how they communicate across functions, how they approach disagreement with peers or leadership, and how their priorities align with Onboard Recruiting Partners’s current growth stage. This kind of evaluation requires honest conversations with both the client and the candidate, and it is a central part of every search Onboard Recruiting Partners conducts.