Director of Executive Search & Talent Management

About this role

At Trustpilot, we're on an incredible journey. We're a profitable, high-growth FTSE-250 company with a big vision: to become the universal symbol of trust. We run the world's largest open customer review platform, and while we've come a long way, there's still so much exciting work to do. Come join us at the heart of trust!

Our growth depends entirely on the strength and vision of the leaders guiding us. We are looking for a strategic, high-impact talent leader to shape, build, and sustain our executive capability for the future.

In this role, you will own the end-to-end lifecycle of our top leadership talent - balancing external talent acquisition with internal executive development to ensure our leadership teams are equipped to guide us through our next phase of scale. You’ll make sure the people sitting on our Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and Executive Leadership Team (ELT) are the right people for those roles - whether that means growing them ourselves or bringing them in from outside.

Reporting to the Senior Director of Talent, this role balances two critical priorities: leading our external executive search strategy and driving internal executive succession and development. On the search side, you’ll set the strategy for how we position Trustpilot to attract senior leaders while empowering your direct report, the TA Manager for Executive Hiring, to run seamless search executions. On the talent management side, you’ll partner closely with Business Partners to assess senior capability, build tailored successions plans, and ensure our highest-potential leaders are stretched, supported, and ready to step up.

What you'll be doing

Set the global executive search strategy: Define how we headhunt, target, and position Trustpilot to attract top-tier talent capable of stepping into SLT and ELT roles. Guide and empower executive search execution: Direct and develop the TA Manager (Executive Hiring) who manages live search delivery - giving them the autonomy to excel while keeping the bar exceptionally high. Drive senior leadership capability and development: Partner with People Business Partners to view our senior leadership cohort holistically, identifying what each leader needs to perform at their best - whether that’s targeted development, stretch assignments, or repositioning. Lead Big Talent, Big Patch: Drive our annual process for identifying critical senior roles and ensuring high-performing, high-potential leaders are positioned for maximum impact.Own the Global Talent Review (GTR) for executive tiers: Oversee performance and potential assessments across SLT and the tier directly below it, creating clear visibility on succession pipelines for SLT and ELT positions. Conduct targeted leadership assessments: Determine when formal leadership assessments are needed for incoming or internal talent, using insights to build tailored L&D plans to go beyond standard L&D frameworks. Build succession plans for key roles: Identify future successors across our executive ranks and design targeted development pathways to close critical capability gaps before vacancies arise. Inform executive stakeholders and the Board: Partner with the Senior Director of Talent to deliver clear, data-backed updates on leadership capability, talent pipelines, and succession to the People Leadership Team (PLT), Executive Leadership Team (ELT), and Board. Manage executive talent budgets: Oversee and optimise spend across executive search, leadership development programs, and external assessment tools.

Who you are

• An executive search strategist: You know how to position executive roles and headhunt top-tier talent. You don't need to execute every search yourself, but you have an expert eye for what exceptional talent looks like.

• A skilled assessor of leadership potential: You have a proven track record of building succession plans and conducting leadership assessments. You instinctively know whether a leader needs a stretch assignment, targeted coaching, or simply more runway to develop and grow.

• A trusted strategic partner: You can sit down with senior leaders and have honest, actionable conversations about their development and team's future - completely free of HR jargon or framework-speak.

• A pragmatic decision maker: When assessing talent readiness or future capability, you articulate your reasoning in plain, business-focused terms - not theoretical frameworks.

• An empowering people manager: You guide, develop and support your direct reports without micromanaging, give them room to own execution while you drive the overarching strategy.

What’s in it for you

• A range of flexible working options to dedicate time to what matters to you

• Competitive compensation package + bonus

• 25 days holiday per year, with an extra 5 days holiday allocated after your 1 year anniversary (prorated)

• Two (paid) volunteering days a year to spend your time giving back to the causes that matter to you and your community

• Rich learning and development opportunities are supported through the Trustpilot Academy and Blinkist

• Comprehensive health package, pension, and full access to Headspace, a popular mindfulness app to promote positive mental health

• Paid parental leave

• Central office with a laid-back vibe and constant buzz of different languages being spoken everywhere you go It’s complete with a coffee bar, canteen, and table tennis and has a wide variety of refreshments available - you can opt-in for breakfast and lunch at an affordable price

• Regular opportunities to connect and get to know your fellow Trusties, including company-wide celebrations and events, ERG activities, and team socials

• Opportunity to join the Trustpilot Social Club for a small monthly fee and attend regular social and leisure activities like go-karting, cooking classes, and escape rooms

• Employee discounts to restaurants and shops

• Restricted Stock Units

• Tailored leadership development program consisting of…