How do you match candidates to the right opportunities?

Our priority is fit, not speed. We take time to understand your background, goals, and motivations, then provide clear insight into each opportunity so you're only considered for roles that truly align with your experience and ambitions.

What types of roles and industries do you specialise in?

We specialise in senior, specialist, and leadership appointments across the markets we serve. Our focus is on roles where experience, judgement, and cultural alignment are critical — typically mid- to senior-level management through to executive and board appointments.

How does working with Irving Knight benefit me?

You'll gain honest market insight, access to high-quality opportunities, and clear guidance throughout the process. Our aim is simple: to help you make the right move, at the right time, with confidence.

Do I need to pay for your services?

No. Our services are completely free for candidates. We are retained by our client partners to manage their hiring processes, meaning there is never a cost to you at any stage. Our role is to represent your interests professionally, provide guidance throughout the process, and help you assess opportunities objectively — without any financial obligation.

Will using your services put me at a disadvantage compared to direct applicants?

No — if anything, it gives you an advantage. We provide context, insight, and advocacy that ensure your experience and motivations are clearly understood from the outset. Our role is to strengthen your candidacy and guide you through a transparent, well-managed process.

What makes Irving Knight different from other recruitment firms?

We operate as a retained, partnership-led search firm rather than a transactional recruiter. That means fewer searches, deeper engagement, and a far higher level of commitment to outcomes. By combining sector specialism, market intelligence, and a disciplined search methodology, we deliver hires that are aligned not only to role requirements, but to culture, strategy, and long-term growth plans.

How do you find and assess candidates?

We don't rely on databases or job advertising alone. Our searches are driven by proactive market mapping, targeted outreach, and insight gained from long-standing sector networks. Candidates are assessed on capability, leadership style, cultural alignment, and long-term potential — not just CV fit — ensuring a robust and well-informed shortlist.

How do you approach confidential searches?

Confidentiality is fundamental to how we operate. Every search is handled with discretion, clear communication, and controlled market engagement. As your representative in the market, we protect your brand, manage messaging carefully, and ensure sensitive information is only shared when appropriate — safeguarding both your business and your candidates throughout the process.

What is your success rate in filling roles?

Our retained model is designed to deliver outcomes, not volume. Because we invest the time to fully understand the role, the business, and the wider context, we achieve a consistently high completion rate across our searches. More importantly, our focus is on long-term retention and impact, not short-term placement metrics.

What happens if a hire doesn't work out?

While our process is designed to minimise risk, we recognise that circumstances can change. In the rare event a placement doesn't succeed, we work closely with our client to address the situation and agree the most appropriate next steps. Our commitment is to the partnership and the outcome — not just the initial hire.

For more information on our Agriculture & AgTech services, get in touch with

Sebastian Nilsson

Business Consultant

Hundreds of 'Excellent' reviews

Agriculture & AgTech Executive Search

Helping Agriculture & AgTech companies unlock their next stage of growth

Specialisms We Cover

Advanced Breeding Ag-Machinery Agri-Business Agri-Genomics Agricultural Chemicals Agronomy BioStimulants Crop Inputs Crop Nutrition Crop Protection Farm Management Software Fertilizer Precision Agriculture Regenerative Agriculture Seeds Seeds & Traits Traits Vertical Farming / CEA

From farm to fork, agriculture underpins global society, employing around a quarter of the global workforce and supporting up to 40% of the world’s population. AgTech is transforming the industry at every stage.

With climate-change-driven weather volatility, increasing pressure on land and water resources, and a projected global population of 9.7 billion by 2050, the agricultural sector is facing unprecedented challenges. AgTech innovation is no longer optional—it is essential to improving productivity, resilience, and sustainability across the entire food system.

We work alongside forward-thinking AgTech and agricultural organisations navigating this transformation. By aligning high-calibre talent with commercial and technical objectives, we help our clients accelerate innovation, scale responsibly, and build the leadership and specialist capability required to shape the future of agriculture.

With agriculture accounting for a significant share of global land use and freshwater consumption, AgTech is playing a critical role in transforming how food is produced worldwide.

Research-led advancements such as vertical farming, AI-driven farm management, soil health intelligence, and the increasing use of robotics and drones are fundamentally reshaping the market, accelerating the transition towards more sustainable and efficient agricultural systems. That is where our expertise delivers value: insight gained through continuous engagement with industry leaders allows us to stay ahead of market developments, anticipate where talent and organizations align, and leverage our established network to execute highly targeted hiring solutions.

Whether through a deep understanding of technical language shaped by a background in chemistry and sustainability, or a strong grasp of evolving market dynamics, our commitment to delivering value to AgTech and agricultural organizations is clear. This depth of industry knowledge, combined with a highly personalized client approach, differentiates our consultative model and enables us to support businesses that are actively shaping a more sustainable future.

Download the Agriculture & AgTech Brochure

Download our brochure

Learn more about our services, approach and the sectors we operate in.

Did you know?

Hiring the wrong candidate costs more than just time—it can waste salary, training resources, and opportunities. The Department of Labour estimates a bad hire can cost up to 30% of the role’s first-year earnings.

We hire right

Organisations are often reluctant to use external recruiters due the percieved cost. Think about it like this - what financial benefit could a top candidate bring to your business unit? You could make a 100x return on your investment.

97% Placement Rate 1
1.78:1 CVs Sent to Interviews 2
Avg. 32 Day Engagement to Placement 3

1. Based on all roles engaged on by a client on an exclusive basis from Jan 4 2025 - Dec 31 2025.

2. All CVs Sent from Jan 4 2025 - Dec 31 2025.

3. From Jan 4 2025 - Dec 31 2025.

Stats

387 active opportunities

1,908 placements made across 25 sectors

262,736 companies in our CRM

"At Irving Knight, we don't just fill positions; we build lasting partnerships. Our commitment to understanding your unique needs ensures that we deliver leaders who drive success and embody your company's values. When it comes to identifying the high-performers of tomorrow, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Our bespoke approach ensures every search is personal, diverse, and tailored from the ground up — delivering an individual, unrivalled experience for both clients and candidates. "

- Joe Davey, Group CEO of Irving Knight Group

Franz-Leo Nedo

Territory Sales Manager

Joseph is an expert in recruting people. He has in-depth practical knowledge and helpful by solving potential issues....

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Kay Witte

Global Director Performance Excellence

Joseph was instrumental in making my last professional opportunity happen. He was easy to work with, responsive, and ...

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Veronica Hagborg

Senior Director Global HR, Sweden

I have had the opportunity to co-operate with Joseph in a process and I found him very proactive in keeping me inform...

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Nathan Radue

Channel Marketing Manager, US

Oliver is a thorough and effective recruiter, representing both sides with character and solid communication. He appr...

Oliver Kiddy

Flavors & Fragrances

Sandeep Kulshrestha

Formulation Director, US

Oliver is very good in matching skills of the candidates with the company’s requirements. I personally got benefits o...

Oliver Kiddy

Flavors & Fragrances

Valeria Pozzi

Procurement Category Manager, Italy

Working with Oliver has been a real pleasure!His highly professionalism and transparency made me comfortable to consi...

Oliver Kiddy

Flavors & Fragrances

Andreia Sa

Director, Italy

I would like to sincerely thank Evan Ball for all the support throughout the process. He provided assistance at diffe...

Ewan Ball

Food Ingredients & Biotechnology

Kerry Maye

Regional Sales Manager

Working with Joseph was a wonderfully positive experience from our first contact, through acceptance of my job offer....

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Joerg Schlagmann

Senior Global Manager

Great expert: supportive, challenging and always empowered for his customers and his work! Not more to say: just exce...

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Christoph Snaga

Investment Manager, Germany

Christopher from Irving Knight handled the overall process well and we managed to get to a successful completion smoo...

Christopher Clay

Real Estate & Homebuilding

Jane Scates

Packaging Engineer, US

Henry was a true professional, perfect attention to detail at every step of the process. Would definitely recommend!

Henry Spooner

Packaging, Paper, Recycling

Michel Cas

Sales Manager, France

Incredibly human oriented executive search, candidates handled with great care and respect, precise and concise infor...

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Ashley Maclean

Systems Sales Engineer, South Carolina

Jack Purnell with Irving Knight was the best recruiter I’ve worked with - by far. He communicated clearly, was respec...

Jack Purnell

Material Handling & Automation

Anja Florbach

Digital & Commercial Excellence Manager

Thank you so much Joseph! You have given me a great support. It was really nice to be in contact with you and I thin...

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Matt Engelbrecht

VP Industrial Ops, US

Working with Lily was a phenomenal experience. She was fully transparent, professional, and provided timely communica...

Lily Newton

Animal Health

Andrew Coutts

Director Global Strategy, US

First Class Service Emma shared details of a relevant opportunity and did a great job helping to manage lengthy nego...

Emma Conlin

Rishi Sarkar

Environmental Process Engineer, US

Irving Knight helped place me with a company that I could have a positive impact on that aligned with my career goals...

Cian ODonnell

CDMO & CRO

Michael Wilson

Senior Account Manager

Working with Joseph was a seamless and positive experience from our first contact along with the various steps of the...

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Nika Kuchaidze

Senior Continuous Improvement Chemist, US

It was a pleasure working with Joseph on transitioning to a position with a new company. Communication was prompt,...

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Jon Steele

CFO, US

Grace taught an old dog some new tricks! I had been in my previous position for 30 years. I loved my job for most of...

Emma Conlin

Rishi Sarkar

Environmental Process Engineer, US

Irving Knight helped place me with a company that I could have a positive impact on that aligned with my career goals...

Cian ODonnell

CDMO & CRO

Michael Wilson

Senior Account Manager

Working with Joseph was a seamless and positive experience from our first contact along with the various steps of the...

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Nika Kuchaidze

Senior Continuous Improvement Chemist, US

It was a pleasure working with Joseph on transitioning to a position with a new company. Communication was prompt,...

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Jon Steele

CFO, US

Grace taught an old dog some new tricks! I had been in my previous position for 30 years. I loved my job for most of...

Irving Knight Group delivers executive search across 20+ core industries.

Sebastian Nilsson

Helping Agriculture & AgTech companies unlock their next stage of growth

Specialisms We Cover

From farm to fork, agriculture underpins global society, employing around a quarter of the global workforce and supporting up to 40% of the world’s population. AgTech is transforming the industry at every stage.

With agriculture accounting for a significant share of global land use and freshwater consumption, AgTech is playing a critical role in transforming how food is produced worldwide.

Download our brochure

Did you know?

We hire right

Stats

Franz-Leo Nedo

Territory Sales Manager

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Kay Witte

Global Director Performance Excellence

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Veronica Hagborg

Senior Director Global HR, Sweden

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Nathan Radue

Channel Marketing Manager, US

Oliver Kiddy

Flavors & Fragrances

Sandeep Kulshrestha

Formulation Director, US

Oliver Kiddy

Flavors & Fragrances

Valeria Pozzi

Procurement Category Manager, Italy

Oliver Kiddy

Flavors & Fragrances

Andreia Sa

Director, Italy

Ewan Ball

Food Ingredients & Biotechnology

Kerry Maye

Regional Sales Manager

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Joerg Schlagmann

Senior Global Manager

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Christoph Snaga

Investment Manager, Germany

Christopher Clay

Real Estate & Homebuilding

Jane Scates

Packaging Engineer, US

Henry Spooner

Packaging, Paper, Recycling

Michel Cas

Sales Manager, France

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Ashley Maclean

Systems Sales Engineer, South Carolina

Jack Purnell

Material Handling & Automation

Anja Florbach

Digital & Commercial Excellence Manager

Joseph Davey

Group CEO

Matt Engelbrecht

VP Industrial Ops, US

Lily Newton

Animal Health

Andrew Coutts

Director Global Strategy, US

Emma Conlin

Rishi Sarkar

Environmental Process Engineer, US

Cian ODonnell

CDMO & CRO

Michael Wilson

Senior Account Manager

Joseph Davey