Our story
About VDV Search
Charlotte founded VDV Search in 2020 to bring an international perspective to the creative economy.
Between us, we’ve called London, Singapore, Amsterdam, Bali and Manila home. What started in Asia is now an international search business, partnering with international agencies, studios and consultancies across London, Europe, the US and the Middle East, from AKQA to PORTO ROCHA.
We’ve built teams from the ground up, backed founders through pivotal growth and made leadership hires that changed where a business was heading.
It works because we know this industry from the inside. We understand how a business operates before we look for anyone, and we stay close long after the hire.
And we’re endlessly curious about what’s next.
Build without boundaries.
Our team has lived and worked across London, Singapore, Indonesia, the Netherlands and the Philippines. Our network runs through the UK, Europe, the Middle East and the US.
The global network that we’ve built over the years gives us the scope and reach to find who you might need wherever they might be.
We know these markets from the inside: how people work, what they expect, what inspires them, and what it takes for the move to hold.
UK
London
Europe
Amsterdam, Paris, Berlin and beyond
Middle East
Dubai, Abu Dhabi
Americas
New York, Los Angeles, Mexico
“Charlotte is a relationship architect”
A client's phrase, not ours. We kept it.
Finding who you need is half the job. The other half is building what sits between the two sides: trust, timing, expectations, ambition.
We start with the leadership team, not the job spec.
Our philosophy
Where the business is going. What is holding it back. What the next three years demand. Only then, who.
Five principles shape every search.
Character over credentials
01
A track record tells you what someone has done. It doesn't tell you who they are. We look beyond experience to understand character, emotional intelligence and how someone thinks, behaves and leads.
Few searches, done properly
02
We take on a limited number of mandates and give each one personal attention from start to finish.
Advice, not just delivery
03
We challenge the brief when it needs challenging, tell you what the market will actually bear, and look after every person we approach, well past their first day.
We move people, and the thinking they carry, between markets. Bringing perspectives a business might never find on its own doorstep.
Global by default
04
Judgement over algorithm
05
Search is instinct, sharpened over 16 years. Knowing who will change the chemistry of a leadership team is something you often sense before you can prove it.
Small. By. Design.
Three people. Decades of experience. Nothing between you and the people running your search.
We are small on purpose. Decisions are quick, conversations are direct, and every search is led by someone senior.
We are not built for volume. We are built for relationships.
The team
Operations Manager
Fifteen years of commercial and operational experience, from London to Southeast Asia. Flora runs the business behind every search, and plays a key part in client relationships and new opportunities across our markets.
Global Talent Manager
Jo began her career in Manila, building in-house teams for financial services and tech, before moving to Singapore and into high-growth start-ups. Her searches have spanned the Philippines, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Australia. Now based in Manila, she leads strategy, creative and leadership searches across EMEA, the US and APAC.
Thinking about who you need?
Tell us what you’re building.