Vellum Executive Search places professionals from field management to C-level executives across the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction industries — pairing AI-driven talent intelligence with judgment you only earn on the ground.
I came up in this industry. I didn't parachute into it.
I started out in Architecture, drafting high-end residential work, so I understand your world from the drafting table out: billable hours, deadlines that move, and pressure that doesn't let up.
For 14+ years I've recruited across Architecture, Engineering, and Construction, and I've earned every relationship in my network the hard way — one honest conversation at a time. I've built practices from the ground up, and I've got a reputation I can hang my hat on. I'm old enough to have sourced candidates out of the Yellow Pages and the Dex, working down the columns to find the right person.
Today we put AI to work doing what those phone books never could — creating a blueprint, mapping the market, getting results in hours instead of weeks, right out of the saddle. But the handshake behind it hasn't changed. That's what Vellum is: my roots kept intact, with better tools built on top of them.
Think of us as an extension of your team — a power-house alongside your HR — so you can keep doing what built your company in the first place: hard work, your own two hands, and a vision.
— Ben David, Founder · Vellum Executive Search
From the architects at the board to the principals who carry a firm's name — design and technical talent across every level of the practice.
Technical talent across structural, civil, and MEP — from the EITs coming up to the principals accountable for what gets built.
The people who deliver the work — office and field — across the full project lifecycle, from first estimate to final closeout.
We build a live blueprint to map the markets of the AEC landscape for your role — every firm, every credible leader, not just the ones already looking.
Talent intelligence surfaces qualified, mostly passive candidates that a network-only search would never reach — ranked by real fit signals.
Then the judgment: motivation, track record, culture, and whether they'll actually move. This part doesn't get automated — it gets earned.
You get a tight slate with real intelligence behind each name, polished and branded — not a stack of résumés forwarded and hoping they'll stick. True insight with honest feedback.
We manage offer, close, and onboarding, and we back every placement with a guarantee. The search isn't done until the hire is permanent.
We know the difference between an Estimator and a Project Manager, an Architectural 'Intern' and a licensed Architect, a PE from an accomplished managing Principal. No generic staffing desk translating a title it doesn't understand.
AI lets one focused firm cover a market like a much bigger one — mapping talent faster and deeper. But the product you're paying for is judgment. The tools just get us to the right conversations sooner.
If a search is going to be hard, we say so. If a candidate isn't right, we tell you. We'd rather keep a client for a decade than win a fee once — so you get honest counsel, not a sales cycle.
The AEC world is small and long-memoried. We treat candidates and clients the way you'd want to be treated, because today's candidate is next year's hiring leader.
Whether you're building a leadership team or thinking about your own next move, tell us what you're after. Every serious inquiry gets a real reply.
