Since 1965, the executive search consulting firm Knight Gianella has focused on national and international search and evaluation of key executive, CEO, and board positions.

Founded as a member of an American consulting group, Knight Gianella has been an independent boutique partnership with a Swiss mindset since the mid-nineties. Knight Gianella is often consulted for specific and carefully designed succession plans or new appointments.

The success rate over recent years has been 98 percent, and repeat business is over 70 percent. In the past years, partners Sandro V. Gianella and Dr. Fabienne E. Meier have successfully and sustainably filled around thirty key positions at executive management, CEO, and board levels each year.

The partners of Knight Gianella guarantee independent cooperation at eye level characterized by mutual trust, without conflicts of interest. They have the courage for new solutions with the goal of finding the best possible staffing for their clients.

In the relationship with our clients and candidates, we attach particular importance to discretion and trusting cooperation at eye level.

Our business principles include:

• Highest professionalism towards all stakeholders
• Cooperation at eye level
• Discretion and trust
• Independence, no conflicts of interest
• Project execution in all phases of the consulting mandate by the mandate-leading partner(s)
• A deep understanding of the business model and culture is a crucial basis for each consulting mandate
• Client- and task-specific conception and execution of the consulting mandates
• Up-to-date network of partners supported by experienced in-house research and data management as well as professional project assistance
• Focus on (gender) diversity and inclusion by conviction
• Validation, calibration, and recommendation of the appropriate leader exclusively by the mandate-leading partner(s)
• Objective and solution-oriented negotiation support in the acquisition of the selected leadership personality

In the search and evaluation of key positions, we attach great importance to the highest level of professionalism towards all stakeholders and guarantee independent cooperation at eye level. At Knight Gianella, we observe the entire candidate target segment without conflicts of interest and without being constrained by parallel searches of similar mandates. As a result, we rarely have white spots on the longlist, minimizing the risk of bad hires and increasing the success rate for sustainable solutions.

This is made possible by Knight Gianella’s independent boutique nature. As a boutique, we grant each client exclusivity for the duration of a consulting mandate and guarantee not to take on any comparable assignment to exclude any competitive situation in the narrower candidate target segment. Knight Gianella also has comprehensive insider regulations to ensure that all employees can operate without conflicts of interest. At Knight Gianella, we embody the same values: Integrity, Performance, Collaboration, and Courage. We live by high ethical standards, act solely in the interest of our clients, and are entirely independent of third-party interests.

We acquire the necessary transparency in the national and international market through our professional and internationally oriented research. We either know or find the personality you are looking for. This is proven by our outstanding and sustainable track record.

The geographical search radius of our consulting mandates includes:

• Focus on clients with headquarters in Switzerland/Germany. Of these, around 40% of search assignments are from clients outside Switzerland.
• Around 80% of search assignments with a global search radius.
• Around 60% of shortlisted candidates are working and/or stationed outside their home market at the time of identification.

Our global reach operates from our headquarters in Zurich/Zollikon (Switzerland). For global searches, we selectively rely on experienced partners on other continents who share our business principles.