Boutique firms & sole practitioners
Fast, thorough candidate research when you need a partner who can disappear into the work and return with a shortlist.
Contract executive search · Serving Canada and the United States
Precision and speedin executive hiring.
Martha Papsin is the research partner boutique firms, boards, and HR leaders call when the role is senior, confidential, or cannot wait.
20+
Years in search
C-suite
Director to chief
US · CA
Cross-border
4–6
Candidate shortlist
01 — Approach
Who I serve, and when to call.
Twenty years inside boutique search — not a generalist agency. The work is research-led, discreet, and built for people who already know what good looks like.
Leadership teams & boards
Strategic market mapping and research for the hires that change a company’s direction.
HR departments
Curated shortlists and assessments that let an internal team move with the precision of a search firm.
When you need me
- A niche or urgent role with no room for a long search
- A confidential replacement that cannot go to market
- A cross-border hire between Canada and the United States
- A high-stakes C-suite appointment
02 — Services
Specialized executive search research.
From the first specification to the day the leader starts — or just the research, if that is what the mandate needs.
01
Senior-level research
Director, vice president, and C-suite talent across finance, banking and capital markets, private equity, real estate, IT, retail, insurance, human resources, logistics, and legal — in Canada and the United States. Networks and market insight to reach passive candidates, not only the ones already looking.
02
Search strategy & client management
A launch conversation to lock the specification, then a plan aimed at the right industries, competitors, and geographies. Regular update calls on pipeline, progress, and what needs to shift.
03
Outreach & engagement
Targeted identification through LinkedIn, industry directories, and competitor mapping. Outreach by LinkedIn, email, and phone — in the channel the candidate actually answers.
04
Profiles & assessments
Behavioral interviews, executive biographies, compensation breakdowns, and career motivations. Clients receive a market landscape, not a stack of résumés.
05
End-to-end support
Offer negotiation, resignation counsel, and reference checks — then a quiet check that the hire is landing. A trusted partner through close, not a hand-off at the shortlist.
03 — Process
A fixed-fee search in three movements.
No retainers that linger. Each stage is paid when the work is done — the same structure used with boutique firms and boards across North America.
01
Project initiation
A launch call to define the need, set the search strategy, and name target companies. In-depth research begins immediately.
One-third of the fixed project fee, due at start.
02
Shortlist presentation
After extensive outreach, a curated shortlist of four to six candidates — with profiles, assessments, and market context.
One-third of the project fee, due on shortlist delivery.
03
Final placement
Support through interviews, offer, and transition until the successful candidate is in the seat.
One-third of the project fee, due on successful placement.
04 — About
Two decades inside boutique search.
Martha Papsin is a senior executive search consultant based in Toronto. Her practice began here, where she spent years at three boutique search firms and learned the work at every level of a mandate — from research through close.
She has worked in executive search and human resources since 2005. Clients come to her for speed without sloppiness: a market mapped, the right people reached, and a shortlist that can be acted on.
The mission is simple — connect organizations with the executives who will shape what happens next.
- Education
- Master’s degree, York University
Advanced Program in Human Resources Management, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto (2008–2009) - Practice
- Contract executive search research
Canada and the United States
“Martha’s research is fast, thorough, and spot-on — second to none. She’s elevated our ability to place top executives.”
Boutique executive search firm owner, Toronto
Questions
Direct answers.
- Who is Martha Papsin?
- Martha Papsin is a contract executive search consultant based in Toronto, Ontario. She has worked in executive search and human resources since 2005, including years at three Toronto boutique search firms.
- What does a contract executive search consultant do?
- She provides specialized research for Director, vice president, and C-suite searches: market mapping, candidate outreach, assessments, and a shortlist of four to six people. Boutique firms, boards, and HR teams hire her when a mandate is senior, confidential, or urgent.
- Where does Martha Papsin work?
- The practice is based in Toronto and runs searches across Canada and the United States in finance, banking and capital markets, private equity, real estate, IT, retail, insurance, human resources, logistics, and legal.
- How are executive search fees structured?
- Work is typically a fixed-fee project billed in thirds: at project initiation, on shortlist delivery, and on successful placement. Specific terms are confirmed in writing before a search begins.
05 — Contact
Let’s find the executive your business needs.
Share the brief. If the mandate is confidential, say so — the conversation stays that way.
Telephone
416-849-2949Email
marthapapsin@gmail.comLinkedIn
/in/marthapapsinStudio
Toronto, ON
FinanceBanking & Capital MarketsPrivate equityReal estateInformation technologyRetailInsuranceHuman resourcesLogisticsLegal