Executive Summary
A Swiss company in the field of medical and diagnostic software with an international footprint faced the challenge of filling a newly structured leadership role in Technical IT Services. The search was for a personality combining technical depth with strong leadership skills and a pronounced service orientation — in a market where such profiles are only available in limited numbers. Through a sharply defined requirements profile, strategic market outreach, and a structured selection process, the mandate was successfully completed within 3.5 months. The appointed Head not only matched the full requirements profile but impressed from day one with the speed at which he integrated into the company's dynamic culture.
Initial Situation & Challenge
Internal transformation meets a thinned-out talent market
The client is an international market leader in medical and diagnostic software solutions. As a Swiss company with more than ten international locations and approximately 500 employees, it serves laboratories and hospitals with a broad portfolio of analysis and diagnostics solutions. The digitalisation and optimisation of clinical processes is central to its mission, as is close collaboration with customers on site.
As a result of internal restructuring, the requirements for the Head of Technical IT Services role changed significantly. The position was expected to go beyond operational management and take on increasing strategic responsibility for service processes, customer satisfaction, and team development. The team comprises more than ten staff members and acts as the direct interface between product development and the customer base.
The search proved demanding: the shortage of skilled professionals in the IT sector was clearly felt, and a profile combining technical leadership with customer orientation and a genuine willingness to actively shape change was scarce. Adding complexity was the company's distinctly dynamic and agile corporate culture — a cultural fit that cannot simply be read off a CV.
Key challenges:
- Newly re-scoped role with expanded strategic requirements compared to the previous incumbent
- High simultaneous demands on service orientation, team leadership, and technical depth
- Pronounced shortage of skilled professionals in IT, particularly for profiles with leadership experience
- Strong cultural requirements within an agile, growth-oriented organisation
- Specific industry knowledge in lab software and medical technology as a key differentiator
Our Approach
Understand first, search second: the role definition as the foundation of all market activity
At the outset of the mandate, the focus was on gaining a thorough understanding of the client itself: its direction, the internal changes underway, the specific demands of the role — and the question of which leadership personality would fit sustainably into this environment. This step was deliberately given time, yet it laid the foundation for everything that followed.
Together with the client, the requirements profile was sharpened and deliberately defined beyond purely technical qualifications. Team leadership, a genuine passion for customer satisfaction, and the ability to professionalise service processes were established as criteria of equal weight alongside IT expertise. In parallel, the market was assessed to understand which weighting of these criteria would yield realistic placement prospects — and where compromising on certain requirements carried strategic risk.
Market outreach was conducted exclusively through targeted, direct approaches. The focus was on leaders from IT services and software consulting backgrounds with proven experience managing technical teams — ideally with knowledge of the healthcare or lab software sector.
Guiding principles:
- Deep understanding of the client as the prerequisite for a credible and differentiated positioning of the role
- Joint prioritisation of requirements based on market knowledge and strategic foresight
- Targeted direct outreach to relevant leaders from IT services, support, and software consulting
- Transparent communication of the role, the environment, and cultural context in every initial conversation
- Cultural fit as a decision criterion of equal weight alongside professional qualification
Search & Selection Process
Staged, clearly structured, and maintained through constant dialogue with the client
Following the joint role definition, a systematic market research phase identified suitable profiles, who were then approached directly. A first qualified shortlist was presented within just two weeks — a result that reflects the rigorous preparation invested in the opening phase.
The multi-stage selection process assessed both professional and cultural suitability with care. Beyond technical competence, the evaluation focused on leadership philosophy, service orientation, and whether the individual had the potential to integrate quickly into an agile environment and develop the existing team further. The process was tightly scheduled, transparent, and clearly traceable at every stage — for the client as much as for the leaders approached.
The successful candidate was ultimately sourced from a direct competitor and brought the complete requirements profile — together with deep knowledge of all relevant lab software systems and a well-founded understanding of the market.
Process overview:
- Kickoff and role clarification: In-depth understanding of the organisational structure, internal changes, and long-term role requirements
- Systematic market research: Identification of relevant profiles from IT services, support, and software consulting with sector relevance
- Targeted direct outreach: Confidential approach to suitable leaders, including active profiles from direct competitors
- Shortlist within two weeks: Presentation of qualified profiles with a clear evaluation matrix
- Multi-stage interviews: Six candidates in the final interview round, evaluated on professional and cultural dimensions
- Close coordination: Ongoing feedback loops and clear communication with the client throughout every phase
Outcome & Client Value
The complete package: professionally convincing, culturally aligned, integrated from day one
The mandate was successfully completed 3.5 months after the engagement was confirmed. The appointed Head of Technical IT Services not only met the jointly defined requirements profile but exceeded it in several key areas: he brought comprehensive knowledge across all relevant lab software systems, a solid understanding of the market, and had been sourced from a prominent direct competitor.
Particularly noteworthy was the speed of integration: in a company that had previously experienced recurring difficulties with onboarding new leaders, the new Head settled in with exceptional smoothness — both in terms of his personal integration and the team's acceptance of new leadership.
Value delivered to the client:
- Successful placement of a strategically important leadership role despite a tight talent market
- Appointment of a leader with a complete professional profile and deep industry expertise
- Fast and sustainable integration into a demanding, dynamic corporate culture
- Strategic advisory on the prioritisation of requirements criteria with a view to the long-term development of the role
- High decision confidence through a structured, comparable selection process with clear evaluation criteria
Key KPIs
- 2 weeks from mandate start to shortlist presentation
- 6 candidates in the final interview round
- 3.5 months total duration of the mandate
Lessons Learned
What made this placement possible
- Investing in client understanding pays off. Knowing the organisation, its dynamics, and the long-term direction of a role enables you to approach the right personalities with the right message.
- Requirements must be prioritised and weighted. Not every criterion carries the same importance. A shared discussion about which skills are non-negotiable and where development potential is acceptable significantly improves the quality of the decision basis.
- Cultural fit is not a soft criterion. It is a decisive factor in whether a leader stays and creates impact in the long term — particularly in agile, dynamic organisations.
- Direct outreach reaches candidates who would otherwise be unavailable. Sourcing the successful candidate from a direct competitor would not have been possible through any other channel.
- Structured processes create commitment on both sides. A clearly managed selection process with tight timelines and regular alignment reduces uncertainty and accelerates decision-making.
