Bill Donohue Appointed SVP Sales, Global Public Sector at interos.ai
AI & Machine Learning Leadership
AI Executive Search for Boards and CEOs
Christian & Timbers conducts partner-led retained searches for Chief AI Officers, Heads of AI, VPs of AI, and Chief Data Officers. We evaluate candidates based on the systems they have taken into production and the decisions they personally owned. Clients receive the first slate in 30–90 days.
Confidential. No candidate lists. No fee until you engage.
Christian & Timbers has completed over 2,000 AI and technology leadership searches
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AI & technology searches
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AI leaders mapped
30–90
days to first slate
0+
years of C-suite search
Where we have placed technology and AI leaders
The assessment
How We Assess AI Leadership Experience
Many AI leaders in the current market have only about eighteen months of direct AI experience. A title alone gives little indication of the depth of that experience. We examine the systems each person has taken into production and the decisions they personally owned.
Titles are cheap in this market. Production systems are not.
- 01Systems delivered in production, including their scale and any failures
- 02Model and architecture decisions the candidate personally owned
- 03Governance and risk decisions made under regulatory pressure
- 04The organization the candidate built, including hiring and retention results
- 05The candidate’s response when a model underperformed in front of the board
What you receive
You receive a ranked slate of three to five candidates. Each profile includes a written assessment against the criteria above, along with a direct account of the candidate’s strengths and areas of risk. The reasoning behind the ranking is documented for the hiring team and board to review.
Market access
Reach AI Leaders Beyond the Applicant Pool
Many qualified candidates are established in successful companies and have meaningful equity at stake. They are unlikely to respond to a job posting or an unfamiliar recruiter.
Christian & Timbers maps the relevant market and approaches leaders whose experience fits the mandate, including people who are settled in their current roles. Relying on applications limits the search to candidates who happen to be available at that moment.
A poor appointment can delay the company’s AI roadmap by a year.
Roles we place
- Chief AI Officer
- Head of AI
- VP of AI
- Chief Data Officer
- Chief Scientist
- Head of Machine Learning
- VP of AI Engineering
- AI Platform Leader
- Chief Innovation Officer
Sectors
- AI infrastructure & models
- Semiconductors
- Robotics
- Drones
- Aerospace & defense
- Data infrastructure
- Developer tooling
- Fintech
- Cybersecurity
- Biopharma
- Healthtech software
- Manufacturing
Recent placements
Leaders we have placed
Jerry Becker Appointed SVP, Head of AI & Digital Transformation at Smith+Nephew
Ashok Paranjothi Appointed SVP of AI at Acosta Group
William Jellison Appointed to the Board of Directors at Telix Pharmaceuticals
Maria Rivas, MD Appointed to the Board of Directors at Telix Pharmaceuticals
Sylvia Isler Appointed CTO at Atropos Health
Sriprasanna Sharma Appointed VP, Product Management at Insurity
The engagement
What the first 90 days look like
Days 0–7
The partner, hiring executive and board sponsor define the mandate and agree on the assessment criteria before outreach begins.
Days 7–21
The research team maps the full relevant market, including executives whose experience matches the role and candidates who are settled in their current positions.
Days 21–45
The team begins outreach and assesses candidates against the five criteria above.
Days 30–90
The client receives a ranked slate of three to five candidates, accompanied by a written assessment of each person.
After the slate
The same partner leads the engagement from mandate calibration through the offer process and onboarding.
The comparison
Three ways to run an AI leadership search
| Global retained firm | Technology recruiter | Christian & Timbers | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who runs it | Associate team after the sale | Contingent representative | One senior partner, start to finish |
| Who they can approach | Off-limits agreements remove client companies | Active job seekers only | Full relevant market |
| How they screen | Pedigree and prior title | Keyword match on a CV | Systems shipped, decisions owned |
| First slate | Three to four months | Days, unvetted | 30–90 days, assessed in writing |
| AI market depth | Generalist bench | Engineering-focused network | 12,000+ AI leaders mapped |
| If it doesn’t work out | Repeat the retainer | Repeat the search | Guarantee terms |
Since 1985
Four Decades of Technology Leadership Search
- Steve Jobs’ final two board searches at Apple
- Carly Fiorina, Chief Executive Officer at Hewlett-Packard
- Executive searches for WebMD, Upwork, F5 Networks and McAfee
- Founder named to the Forbes Midas List twice and author of The Headhunter’s Edge
- More than 200 AI startups backed through CT Access Ventures
The firm’s search experience spans the internet era and the rise of AI.
Start a search
Talk to the partner who will lead your search
The first conversation focuses on your mandate and the relevant candidate market. You will speak directly with the partner who would lead the search. No candidate list or pitch deck is used during this initial discussion.
Jeff Christian
Founder & CEO · AI & Technology Leadership
Forbes Midas List · Author, The Headhunter’s Edge
A senior partner responds within one business day. Confidential. No candidate lists. No fee until you engage.