Global HR Director Search for an AI Start-up in London; Building the people foundations to accelerate business strategy
Client Overview
An AI start-up experiencing rapid international growth engaged Crexia Search to appoint its first Global HR Director. Having successfully raised growth funding and expanded its customer base, the company was scaling quickly across North America and Europe.
Headcount had doubled in less than two years, and the leadership team recognised the need for a senior people leader who could build the infrastructure, processes, and culture required to support continued growth.
The successful candidate would be responsible for creating a global people strategy, strengthening leadership capability, and ensuring the company could attract, retain, and develop world-class AI, engineering, product, and commercial talent.
The Challenge
Like many high-growth technology businesses, the company had scaled faster than its people infrastructure.
Policies, performance management, compensation frameworks, and workforce planning varied by region. Recruitment remained largely founder-led, leadership development was informal, and managers needed greater support as teams expanded.
The board wanted an HR leader who could introduce structure without creating unnecessary bureaucracy and preserve the entrepreneurial culture that had contributed to the company’s success.
Our Search Strategy
We worked closely with the CEO and investors to define the leadership profile required for the next stage of growth.
Together, we identified four critical success factors:
Experience scaling high-growth technology businesses internationally
Strong expertise across talent, organisational design, and people operations
The ability to build leadership capability and management effectiveness
A pragmatic approach that balances culture, performance, and scalability
Our search focused on senior HR leaders from AI, SaaS, software, and venture-backed technology businesses that had experienced significant headcount growth and international expansion.
Rather than targeting candidates solely from large technology companies, we prioritised leaders who had successfully operated in founder-led environments and understood the challenges of scaling organisations during periods of rapid change.
Candidate Assessment
Candidates were evaluated through a structured process designed to assess both strategic capability and operational execution.
Finalists presented a 12-month people strategy covering organisational design, leadership development, talent acquisition, performance management, and employee engagement.
Leadership interviews explored previous experience with scaling teams, supporting founders, navigating hypergrowth, and building high-performance cultures across multiple geographies.
References focused on leadership impact, organisational outcomes, retention, and the candidate’s ability to introduce structure while maintaining agility.
Search Outcome
The successful Global HR Director brought experience from two high-growth software businesses that had expanded internationally and scaled beyond 1,000 employees.
The search was completed in twelve weeks from launch to offer acceptance.
Search Snapshot
Time to hire: 12 weeks
First shortlist: 6 candidates
Final panel: 3 candidates
Stakeholders involved: CEO, COO, investors, and executive leadership team
Diversity representation at first round: 60%
Results
Within twelve months of joining, the new Global HR Director had established a scalable people operating model capable of supporting continued growth across multiple regions.
Key outcomes included:
Global headcount scaled from 180 to 320 employees
Voluntary attrition reduced by 22%
Leadership development programme launched for all people managers
Company-wide performance management framework implemented
Global compensation and career architecture established
Employee engagement scores improved by 18 percentage points
The appointment provided more than HR leadership. It created the people foundations required for sustainable growth, strengthened management capability across the organisation, and helped position the company for its next stage of international expansion.