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Employers
Hire HSEQ, Safety, Environment, Quality, ESG and Risk Professionals With Confidence
Search² is a specialist HSEQ recruitment partner trusted by organisations across the UK to hire Health and Safety, Environment, Sustainability, Quality, Fire Safety, ISO, Risk and Compliance professionals.
We specialise in roles that protect people, strengthen culture and support operational excellence.
Whether you are recruiting your first HSEQ professional, replacing a key team member or building a full function, we provide a structured, transparent and results driven hiring experience.
Services
Search² provides three core recruitment services that support every stage of HSEQ, Safety, Environment, Quality, ESG, Fire, CDM and Risk hiring. From Executive Search for senior leaders, to permanent team growth and rapid deployment of interim specialists, our approach is structured, specialist and built around your organisation’s needs.
In addition to recruitment, we offer consultancy services that help organisations make better decisions. This includes role benchmarking, shaping and defining new positions, out-placement support during redundancy programmes, complimentary salary benchmarking, and detailed job advert audits with optimisation recommendations.
Whether you need to hire, plan, restructure or improve your approach to attracting talent, Search² provides a complete and credible partnership for HSEQ teams.
Executive Search
Specialist search for senior HSEQ, Safety, Environment, Quality, ESG and Risk leaders. We map the market, engage passive talent and deliver high calibre shortlists for Head of, Director and strategic leadership roles.
Permanent Recruitment
Structured, targeted recruitment for mid level to senior permanent HSEQ, Safety, Environment, Quality and Risk positions. Shortlists of three to five pre screened candidates delivered quickly and accurately.
Contract & Interim Recruitment
Our Recruitment Process
Our recruitment process is designed for accuracy, transparency and long term success. Every assignment follows a structured seven stage approach that ensures we understand your needs, attract the right talent, assess candidates thoroughly and manage every step through to a successful placement. From briefing to onboarding, we provide a clear, organised and high quality experience.
Discovery
We take a detailed brief to understand your role, culture, goals, team structure and challenges.
Good recruitment starts with clarity.
Attraction
We do this in two ways, inbound and outbound activity. Your role is marketed to a targeted cluster of our 250,000+ HSEQ network, specialist and generalist job boards, industry groups and passive candidates to attract inbound interest. Majority of the work at this stage will be our Consultants manually targeting, making contact and conducting outbound activity to identify prospective candidates.
Assessment
Candidates are thoroughly pre-screened for:
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Technical competence
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Industry experience
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Behavioural and cultural fit
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Salary and intrinsic / extrinsic motivation alignment
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Goals, ambitions & longer-term objectives
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Previous working experience and reasons for leaving
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Other opportunities that candidates are currently considering
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Leadership style preferences
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Personality profiling (Executive Search)
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Location / travel preferences
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Counter-offer preparation and risk mitigation
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Right to work / qualification verification with educational providers
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Certification knowledge (NEBOSH, IOSH, IEMA, Lead Auditor etc)
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Professional references obtained
Shortlist Delivery
You receive a shortlist of three to five fully pre screened candidates with structured profiles and clear qualification notes.
Coordination
We manage all interviews, communication and expectations professionally, proactively and with urgency.
Completion
We support offer stage, handle negotiation and mitigate the risk of counter offers.
Post Placement Support
Onboarding, obtaining feedback from both sides post start date to ensure smooth onboarding for you and the candidate.
Trusted by
Head of Corporate Security, Amazon
"Zac assisted me in my recruitment needs and offered first class service from beginning to end.
Zac's professionalism shone through from the start and he very quickly gained my trust and commitment to work with him. Zac was very knowledgable and able to answer any questions I had.
He always met his promises and communication was fantastic throughout. At every point, Zac ensured that I was supported and informed.
By the end of our interaction, not only was I thoroughly impressed but have since recommended Zac to friends and family."
Our Founder
My name is Zac Wilson
Search² was founded by Zac Wilson, a recruiter with more than ten years of experience specialising exclusively in HSEQ, working for a market leading HSEQ recruitment provider and part of the Senior Management Team through a successful sale. Zac has placed professionals at every level across organisations of all sizes. These range from small owner led businesses and one man/woman operations to FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and Fortune 500 multinational brands.
Across his career, Zac has successfully placed more than 500 HSEQ professionals into executive, operational and interim roles. Many have gone on to influence safety culture, lead transformational change and strengthen risk management across complex environments.
Beyond recruitment, Zac has facilitated introductions between health and safety consultancy organisations which have led to multi-million pound mergers and acquisitions. His network, judgement and understanding of the HSEQ landscape allow Search² to operate with clarity, accuracy and long term value at the centre of every search.
Away from work, Zac is an avid football fan and parent of 2 (girl and boy) which gives him even more perspective on how critical safety and sustainability is, not just for today but for tomorrow.
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Why employers choose Search²
1. Access to a specialist HSEQ talent network
You are not starting from zero. Your vacancy taps into a pre built network of thousands of HSEQ professionals across the UK, from Advisors through to Directors.
2. Candidates who match your technical and behavioural needs
We assess experience, leadership style, communication approach and cultural fit.
This ensures your shortlist is not only qualified, but aligned to your team and expectations.
3. Faster shortlists, less disruption
Most permanent roles can be shortlisted within 3 to 7 working days.
Interim and contract roles can be filled the same day from our contractor pool.
4. Accuracy that reduces hiring risk
Our structured screening reduces the risk of offer rejections, early turnover and poor fit.
Clients use us because the process is robust and the results are consistent.
5. Support from first conversation to post-placement
We manage everything from shortlisting and scheduling interviews through to offer handling and onboarding advice.
Employers - Recruitment FAQs
1. What roles do Search² recruit for within HSEQ and Risk? We recruit Health and Safety, Environmental, Sustainability, ESG, Quality, Fire Safety, Risk, Governance, ISO and Management Systems professionals. This includes advisors, managers, senior leaders and specialist technical roles for organisations across the UK. 2. Can you support permanent, contract and interim recruitment? Yes. We recruit permanent HSEQ and Risk professionals and also supply interim specialists for project work, audits, framework development, compliance gap closures and short term resource needs. 3. How quickly can you provide suitable candidates? Interim specialists can often be introduced within 24 to 72 hours. Permanent shortlists for HSEQ, Quality, Fire and Risk roles are usually delivered within 5 to 10 working days depending on the brief and sector requirements. 4. Do you recruit nationally or only in certain regions? We support employers across the whole of the United Kingdom. This includes on site, hybrid and fully remote positions, as well as multi site HSEQ roles in organisations with national operations. 5. What sectors do you work with for HSEQ recruitment? We recruit for construction, manufacturing, engineering, renewables, property, housing, facilities management, consultancy, logistics, utilities, energy, healthcare and other safety critical sectors where compliance and culture are important. 6. How do you ensure candidates are the right fit for our culture? We take time to understand your culture, reporting structure, leadership style, challenges and expectations. We then assess communication style, influencing ability, stakeholder management and values, alongside technical capability, to ensure your shortlist is aligned with how your organisation operates. 7. What does your recruitment process look like? Our seven stage process covers discovery, attraction, assessment, coordination, shortlist delivery, offer management and post placement support. This structure keeps you informed and ensures candidates are properly evaluated before interview. 8. Do you help with job descriptions or scoping a new role? Yes. We can help define responsibilities, reporting lines, technical requirements, behavioural expectations and realistic salary benchmarks to ensure the role attracts the right HSEQ or Risk professional. 9. Can you support confidential or sensitive hiring needs? Yes. We regularly manage confidential assignments where discretion is essential. We handle candidate outreach carefully, protect your branding until the appropriate stage and conduct full screening before submission. 10. What makes Search² a specialist recruitment partner for HSEQ and Risk? We focus solely on Health and Safety, Environment, Sustainability, Quality, Fire and Risk recruitment. Our specialist market knowledge, network depth and understanding of compliance led roles allow us to deliver accurate shortlists quickly and provide a high quality hiring experience.