Founder-led Search for Startups in the AI Era
Founder-led recruiting for HealthCare SaaS, Vertical AI, and Data for all roles go-to-market
Talent is your most Powerful Moat
We combine over a decade of go-to-market recruiting experience with an intuitive understanding of which candidates will thrive in early stage environments.
Working with hundreds of teams, we know early stage environments require forward-thinking leaders with industry fluency, scrappiness, and comfort with ambiguity. You only uncover that through a informed, outbound-driven process.
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Our expertise is rooted in relationships, and our networks generally fall within these areas of B2B tech
Enterprise SaaS
The SaaS landscape has shifted from a land grab to financial efficiency. The growth market today belongs to vertical platforms acting as core operational systems. The structural winners have GTM teams with industry expertise, acting as consultative advisors who aggressively defend and scale NRR.
Data Infrastructure
We cut our teeth on big data and integration platforms over a decade ago. These buyer personas are deeply technical, requiring security and data reliability. Well-positioned reps can confidently show Enterprises that an AI defensibility is entirely dependent on a solid, governed data foundation.
AI and Developer Platforms
Enterprise AI Buyers want agentic orchestration that lets developers build with deterministic guardrails. You need forward-deployed engineers who can actually sit with a client, deal with their mess of internal data, and design a system that can handle (unpredictable) AI behavior.
Early-stage leadership Director through C-Level: Sales, Customer Success, Marketing, Product and Engineering.
Our Focus Areas
We understand that go-to-market is a system, not a list of job titles. The right GTM hire depends on your stage, investor expectations, and your current motion.
Revenue producers across new logos, strategic accounts and customer success, from founding AEs and BDR/SDRs through GTM leadership.
Technical customer-facing operators partner with sales during the pre-sales process while post-sales teams drive implemention, adoption and forward-deployed engineering.
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Early-stage leadership Director through C-Level: Sales, Customer Success, Marketing, Product and Engineering.
Scale on a foundation of trust.
In a rapidly changing market, our core values serve as our compass. We partner with companies that long-term success above quick, short-term gains.
Integrity
Trust is the foundation of successful hires. From candid conversations to fee structure, we believe honesty is the best policy, even when it's not an easy choice.
Excellence
We never settle. If you're going to tackle a task, aim to make an impact. Learning agility and a competitive streak drive us everyday to deliver exceptional outcomes.
Collaboration
We believe in partnering at every level, internally and externally. By putting relationships first, we leave people and things better than we found them.
Pruitt Search has worked with some of the fastest-growing startups - placing talent that changes lives and shifts a company's trajectory.
Average Hours Our Clients Save
AI-powered talent discovery.
Candidate Acceptance Rate
Automated insights for smarter evaluations.
Average Days to Hired Candidate Submitted
Faster recruitment from start to finish.
Clients who have reffered us or come to us as a referral
Helping businesses hire globally.
We let results do the talking
But every now and then, the folks behind them want to chime in.
Emily is by far the best recruiter that I’ve ever worked with. Not only is she extremely organized, she is very knowledgeable about the software industry and was able to place me into my dream job...
Brett de Avila
Arcesium
Engagement Options
Contingency
Contained
MEET THE FOUNDER
Hi, I'm Emily. I work with early-stage and high-growth companies on go-to-market and leadership hires.
Before launching Pruitt Search in 2024, I spent nearly a decade as a headhunter at boutique firms, building my network and partnering with sales leaders on critical revenue-producing roles. Between 2014 and 2024, I successfully placed hundreds of candidates, generating over 100M in revenue for their companies.
Throughout my career, I've built an deep understanding of venture-backed startups, and am deeply passionate about helping founders and leaders make the right hires.
Focused on long-term partnerships, I take a relationship-first approach with both candidates and clients to deliver exceptional outcomes for both.
Frequently Asked Questions
Clear answers to the most common questions about our hiring process and talent partnerships.
How long does the hiring process take?
Our data‑driven process typically identifies qualified candidates within 7–10 business days
Do you provide guarantees on placements?
We offer a 90-day replacement/refund guarantee on all placements.
What makes your approach different?
We lead with transparency. Starting at a position's successful outcome, we reverse engineer each search to find the exact fit to compound growth.
How does your contingency model work?
You pay nothing until you make a hire. Our fee is a percentage of the hired candidate's first-year base salary, invoiced at the time of hire. No upfront cost, no obligation if the search does not result in a placement.
What does Pruitt Search specialize in?
We exclusively place Sales and leadership talent at startups — Account Executives, SDRs, CSMs, Sales Engineers, GTM leaders, Heads of and VP+ roles.
What industries do you recruit for?
We recruit venture-backed software startups across a wide range of industries, including cybersecurity, fintech, healthtech, HR tech, developer and technical tools, proptech, vertical SaaS, and AI-native startups. Even if your exact category isn’t listed, odds are we’ve worked with a startup in your space, or one that sells to the same buyer you do.
What stage startups do you work with?
We work exclusively with SaaS startups at the Seed to Series C stage. This is where we have the deepest expertise and the strongest candidate network.
Who leads my search?
Emily Davis leads all client relationships and every search. Depending on the role, the sourcing may be conducted by a part-time resource, but you will never be handed off to a junior associate.
What does the process look like start to finish?
We follow our proprietary 5-step process. Discovery (define what great looks like for your role), Calibration (map the market and run targeted outbound), interviewing (matching and screen with structured interviews), Iteration (run prep and debrief to call out obstacles and close candidates/tweak search) and Offer Process (guide you through offer, negotiation, and onboarding).
How do I get started?
Book a short intro call. We will ask about your company, the role, and your timeline. We love meeting good people and are happy to be a resource - whether we’re the right fit or not.
Ready to scale your team with precision?
Let's cut through the chaos and turn your hiring process into a strategic advantage.
