Small by design. Senior by default.
ROES was founded in Dubai on a simple frustration: the leadership searches that matter most were too often run by the most junior people in the room. We built the opposite. A practice where the person who wins your trust in the first meeting is the person who does the work, makes the calls, and sits across from your board at the end.
“Routes” is the idea behind the name. Careers and institutions move along routes that are rarely advertised. Our work is knowing those routes, the people on them, and which ones are quietly ready to change direction.
Four principles that have guided every mandate since we opened.
Discretion is the service.
Most of our best work never becomes public, and that is exactly how our clients want it.
A shortlist is an argument.
We don't send volume. We send a small number of people and a clear case for each.
Fit is measured, not guessed.
We assess against the role, the board, and the reality of the business, not a wish list.
We say no.
If we can't run a search properly, or we're conflicted, we tell you on the first call.
We are based in Dubai and operate across the GCC and wider MENA, with direct reach into the international markets from which many regional mandates draw. London, New York, and Geneva matter here, and we have the relationships in each to work them properly.
Much of what we handle touches government-linked and family-owned institutions. These organisations require a standard of discretion that most firms cannot meet. We do not discuss our clients, our mandates, or our candidates without explicit permission. That is the baseline, not a selling point.