Our capabilities
A Proven Track Record in Complex Scientific Hiring
Biotech and pharmaceutical companies encounter inflection points where hiring precision directly impacts valuation, pipeline advancement, and regulatory execution. SGSD partners with leadership teams during these critical moments.
Our experience spans more than 550 searches across therapeutic areas and modalities, from Associate Director to C-suite. We engage in situations where expertise, discretion, and market access are essential.
Single Search: Growth or Strategic Replacement
Whether adding a critical scientific leader or upgrading key talent, we execute focused, partner-led searches designed for speed and precision.
Each engagement includes:
Targeted market mapping
Direct outreach to passive candidates
Structured evaluation and calibration
Alignment on scientific, cultural, and strategic fit
We accept only assignments we are confident we can complete successfully. Our performance-based fee model ensures full alignment with our clients’ objectives.
Department Build / Group Hiring
Building a new function such as Clinical Development, Regulatory Affairs, Medical Affairs, or Scientific Communications requires sequencing, structure, and leadership clarity.
We typically begin by identifying the senior leader who will architect the function. From there, we build the team around that leader, ensuring:
Clear reporting lines
Role definition and capability mapping
Efficient hiring cadence
Cohesive team integration
This approach enables emerging and growth-stage biotech companies to scale intelligently and avoid costly misalignment.
C-Suite Search
Executive leadership hiring requires more than access; it requires judgment.
We partner directly with CEOs, boards, and investors to identify leaders capable of advancing pipelines, managing capital markets, and building high-performing scientific organizations.
Our process evaluates:
Technical and modality expertise
Prior stage-appropriate experience
Leadership style and team-building capacity
Strategic alignment with company trajectory
Our role is to mitigate risk and maximize leadership impact.
Succession Planning &
Leadership Transition
Leadership transitions must be orchestrated carefully to preserve institutional knowledge and operational continuity.
We manage structured overlap periods between outgoing and incoming executives, ensuring:
Strategic knowledge transfer
Stakeholder alignment
Team stability
Preservation of development timelines
Timing, discretion, and communication are central to successful succession planning.
Confidential Replacement Search
Replacing a senior leader while maintaining operational stability demands absolute discretion.
In tightly networked scientific communities, confidentiality failures can damage morale, investor confidence, and pipeline momentum.
We conduct covert market outreach, protect client identity, and manage candidate engagement without compromising the incumbent. Our process safeguards both the organization and the transition timeline.
