About Garrick Talent
Old-fashioned trust, modern search.
We built the executive search firm we always wished existed: honest with the people it represents, staffed only by senior consultants, and free for every candidate. Modern tools, an older idea of how business ought to be done.
The legend
A name that means something
Garrick Talent was founded in 2020 by James Garrick, who had spent twelve years at a large London executive-search boutique. He had seen the best of the profession and the worst of it — brilliant introductions that changed careers, and shortlists padded to justify a fee.
He left to build something plainer and more honest. The name is a deliberate nod to the old London establishment — the Garrick tradition of introductions made on reputation, not fees. It captures the belief at the heart of the firm: that a good introduction is still the most valuable thing in a career, and that the people making it should be judged on their judgement.
So the model was simple, if unusual. Employ only senior consultants — people who have actually done the job. Charge employers, never candidates. Send a shortlist a client can genuinely read, and be honest with everyone about what the market will bear. Modern search; old-fashioned trust.
Today James chairs the firm, while Managing Partner & CEO Kerry Howard leads it day to day. The business trades as Garrick Talent and is operated by Howard HR Consulting Ltd.
Four promises we don't break
These are not marketing lines. They are the operating rules the firm was built on, and they hold at every scale.
Free for candidates
We are paid by employers. Candidates never pay us a penny — for placement, for coaching, for anything. If you are the person being hired, you owe us nothing.
Senior consultants only
Every search is run by someone with nine or more years in the market. No junior screeners, no handoffs. The person you speak to first is the person who runs your search.
Referenced shortlists
We map the market properly and present three to five genuinely qualified, referenced candidates — people a client could actually appoint. A shortlist worth reading.
Honest advice
We tell clients and candidates what they need to hear, not what they want to hear. We have talked people out of the wrong role, and clients out of the wrong hire.
What we hold to
We would rather send three right people than thirty plausible ones. Quality of judgement is the whole product.
More than half of what we place is never advertised. Confidence and confidentiality are how good searches are run.
We stay in touch long after a placement starts. Careers and companies are decades long; so are the best relationships.
ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials and ICO-registered. Your search — and your privacy — treated with the care they deserve.
A steady climb to a hundred
From a single London desk to around one hundred people across four UK offices — grown without loosening the founding standards.
Founded by James Garrick. A team of 12, 41 placements, 18 clients. One office, one idea.
Grown to 26 people and 124 placements for 47 clients. The model started to prove itself.
Second office opened in Manchester. 44 people, 386 placements, 96 clients.
Edinburgh opened. 63 people, 712 placements, 158 clients — three offices and growing.
A tougher year for UK hiring, navigated well. 81 people, 1,048 placements, 214 clients.
Fourth office opened in Birmingham. 96 people, 1,517 placements, 261 clients.
Around 115 people across 4 offices, 275+ client companies and more than 7,800 placements made since 2020.
Led by people who've done the job
Doing things properly
Equal opportunities & responsible business
Garrick Talent is committed to equal opportunities. We welcome applications from all candidates regardless of age, disability, gender, race, religion or sexual orientation, and we hold ourselves and our clients to fair, inclusive hiring throughout every search.
- We recruit and represent candidates on merit, without discrimination.
- We expect the same fair standards from the clients we work with.
- We take a zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery and human trafficking in our business and supply chain.
Whether you're building a team or your next move, it starts with one honest conversation.