[ Boutique Technical Search ]

Connecting exceptional
technical talent
with the teams
building

Gradient Search Group is a boutique search partner for companies hiring high-impact technical talent across software engineering, data science, and AI.

Recruiting, like gradient descent, is an optimization problem. We iterate toward the best possible hire, converging on signal through every stage of the search.

What We Place
  • Software Engineers
  • AI / ML Engineers & Researchers
  • Data Scientists
  • Analytics Leaders
  • Enterprise & Solutions Architects
  • DevOps & Platform Engineers
  • Founding Technical Teams
  • Enterprise Technology Leaders

[ 01 Our Approach ]

Rigorous search. Precise delivery.

Each engagement is run with the rigor of an executive search. Structured, deliberate, and built around genuine technical understanding of the roles we fill.

01
Technical Depth First
Every search starts with a genuine understanding of the role — the tools, the team context, the problems the hire will actually own. That groundwork shapes how we source, how we screen, and what we bring to you.
02
Structured Screening
Before a candidate reaches you, they've been evaluated against a defined set of criteria covering background, trajectory, technical fit, and culture. The goal is simple: your time goes toward people worth meeting.
03
High-Signal Shortlists
We deliver a curated slate of three to five candidates, each accompanied by a brief that explains the fit in plain terms. The list is short by design.
04
Partnership, Not Transactions
We stay close to hiring managers, talent acquisition, and founders throughout the search, sharing market context and adjusting course as needed. A good placement matters more to us than a fast one.
Active Searches

[ 02 Engagement Models ]

Services built around how you actually hire.

Whether you need a single critical hire or ongoing talent support, we offer flexible engagement models to match your recruiting needs.

/ 01
Direct Hire Placement

Full-cycle contingency or retained search for permanent technical and leadership roles. Managed from intake through offer.

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/ 02
Embedded Talent Acquisition

On-demand recruiting support integrated into your team. Ideal for scaling phases or teams without dedicated TA capacity.

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/ 03
Sourcing & Screening

Top-of-funnel candidate pipeline development with structured screening delivered directly to your hiring team.

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/ 04
Talent Market Intelligence

Landscape analysis of talent availability, compensation benchmarks, and competitive positioning to inform your hiring strategy.

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[ 03 Industries & Roles ]

Where we place talent.

Focused on the technical disciplines where the right candidates are hardest to reach and hardest to evaluate.

Client Companies

Early-Stage Startups
Seed, Series A, Series B
Growth-Stage Companies
Series C and beyond, scaling engineering and data teams
Mid-Market & Enterprise
Established technology firms, enterprise engineering teams
AI-Native Companies
AI-first products, foundation model labs, applied AI teams

Functional Areas

Core Engineering
Software Engineering (Backend, Frontend, Full Stack, Platform, Distributed Systems)
AI & Machine Learning
AI Engineering, Applied ML, Research, LLMs, Generative AI
ML Platforms & Infrastructure
MLOps, ML Infrastructure, Model Deployment, Data/ML Platforms
Data & Analytics
Data Engineering, Analytics Engineering, Business Intelligence, Data Analytics

[ 04 Active Searches ]

Searches in progress right now.

A live view of open engagements. Client names are confidential. Roles and search timelines are public.

[ 05 Who You'll Work With ]

Allen Harper

Founder · Principal

Allen Harper

Founder & Principal, Gradient Search Group

Allen Harper is the founder of Gradient Search Group, with technical recruiting experience across some of the most demanding hiring environments in the industry. His career spans RPO engagements with seed through Series D startups, in-house recruiting at Meta, and enterprise talent work at Marathon Petroleum.

[ 06 Start a Search ]

The next hire
defines the team.
Let's get it right.

// Email
allen@gradientsearchgroup.com
// Locations
United States · Serving clients nationwide
// Hours
Monday–Friday, 9am–6pm

Whether you're looking to make a critical technical hire, explore an embedded talent model, or simply get a read on the market, we're happy to have a conversation. No obligations.

Email Directly → LinkedIn

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