Hiring the people who move hard problems forward.
I'm Thomas Smith. I help deep tech founders fill the roles that decide whether the company ships — heads of engineering, founding scientists, technical operators — without the noise of a generic agency search.
Typically replies within one business day · Based in the US, working globally
Most recruiting for deep tech is built for software-as-a-service hiring — not for companies building physical, scientific, or frontier products.
You're trying to hire someone who can talk credibly with your founding scientist, hold a roadmap together, and not flinch when the first prototype fails. That person is not on a job board.
Generic agencies send you volume. Internal teams burn out chasing the same few candidates. What you actually need is a quiet, senior conversation with the right person — and someone who can make that introduction.
Three ways I work with deep tech founders.
Every engagement starts with a short conversation about what you're actually building, who you've already talked to, and what's not working. From there we decide if it makes sense to work together — and what shape that takes.
Executive Search
VP and C-level technical leadership — engineering, hardware, science, product. Retained search with a tight, named slate.
- —Founding & first-exec hires
- —Board-ready shortlist
- —Confidential when needed
Technical Search
Senior individual contributors and tech leads in domains where résumés don't tell the whole story.
- —Staff & principal engineers
- —Research-to-product hires
- —Hard-to-source specialties
Hiring Advisory
A focused engagement for founders building their first real hiring function — scorecards, interview design, market read.
- —Role definition
- —Comp benchmarking
- —Process design
A search practice that speaks engineer.
I've spent my career inside the deep tech ecosystem — long enough to read a résumé, a research paper, and a cap table in the same sitting, and to know which signals actually matter.
That means fewer candidates, better fits, and conversations your team will respect. The goal isn't to fill a seat. It's to bring you someone your founding team is glad to work alongside three years from now.
“The best deep tech hires usually aren't looking. My job is to find them, earn a real conversation, and bring them to the table prepared.”
Thomas Smith is an executive and technical recruiter focused on deep tech startups — companies where the product is hard, the talent pool is narrow, and the wrong hire is expensive. He partners with founders, CEOs, and heads of engineering to run quiet, focused searches that respect everyone's time.
A clear process, end to end.
Intro call
A 30-minute conversation about the role, the team, and what's actually getting in the way of the hire.
Calibrated search
We agree on the scorecard, comp range, and process. I run a focused outreach and surface a tight, named shortlist.
Offer & close
I stay in the loop through interviews, references, and offer — and help you close the person you actually want.
You'd rather hire one right person than interview thirty wrong ones.
- ◆Seed to Series B deep tech startups
- ◆Founders making their first senior technical hire
- ◆Teams that have tried agencies and been burned
- ◆Stealth or sensitive searches that need discretion
- ◆Roles where domain depth matters more than volume
- ◆Companies hiring 1–4 critical roles, not 40
A few things founders usually ask.
What stage of company do you usually work with?+
Most of my clients are seed through Series B deep tech startups — small enough that every hire matters, funded enough to bring on senior talent.
How is this different from a traditional recruiting agency?+
I run a small number of searches at a time, each one personally. You get a senior partner from intro call to offer accepted — not a junior associate working from a keyword list.
How do you charge?+
Engagements are typically retained, with fees scoped to the role and the work involved. We'll talk through it on the intro call so there are no surprises.
Do you sign NDAs and run confidential searches?+
Yes. Stealth and sensitive searches are a regular part of the practice.
What roles are out of scope?+
High-volume hiring, junior pipelines, and roles outside of technical or executive leadership. If it's not a fit I'll say so on the first call.
How fast can we start?+
Usually within a week of the intro call, depending on how scoped the role already is.
If you're hiring a role that matters, let's have a real conversation about it.
Thirty minutes. No deck. Tell me what you're building and what's stuck, and I'll tell you honestly whether I can help.