C-level Executive Search &

Organizational Consulting

We bring together deep expertise, AI-powered search, and advisory excellence to serve as your strategic partner in identifying and developing high-impact leaders. Our process is seamless, efficient, and transparent—designed to help you unlock potential and drive long-term success.

Our roots

Zavala Civitas, established in 1971, specializes in executive search and organizational consulting services, delivering transformative results for global businesses. With over 1200 successfully completed projects, Zavala Civitas aims to help clients enhance and expand their businesses across markets. The firm operates through its offices in North America, Latin America, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region.

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Our international partners

Talent is the foundation on which success is built. To serve our clients across regions and industries, Zavala Civitas has forged a global partnership of leading firms—each contributing distinct capabilities to redefine standards in executive search and organizational consulting. United by an entrepreneurial spirit, technological sophistication, and a shared commitment to excellence, we deliver the quality and impact our clients expect at a global scale.

CIVITAS Executive Search

CIVITAS, founded in Munich and London in 1971, is one of Germany’s most established executive search firms. With a strong foundation of professional expertise and deep market insights, we provide comprehensive advisory services tailored to our clients’ needs. Operating from offices in Hamburg, and Munich, CIVITAS stands as a premier leadership consulting firm, trusted by organizations across Germany for over five decades.

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Athena Executive Search & Consulting

Athena blends deep expertise with adaptability and a global perspective. Its talent strategies and executive search capabilities transcend borders, enabling businesses to achieve success in diverse markets. The firm operates through its offices in India and the MENA region.

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In numbers

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Our Leadership Team

EMEA | America | APAC

EMEA

Fernando Zavala brings a truly global perspective, with over 11 years of experience across the Americas, 12 years in Europe, and 7 years in the Asia-Pacific region. His career has been primarily dedicated to the HR sector. He established Zavala Civitas Executive Search offices in both Shanghai and Barcelona, following his earlier success as founder of IntuuChina, an award-winning placement firm based in China. A graduate of the University of Otago in New Zealand, he was awarded a full postgraduate scholarship to Georgetown University. Recognized by the Choiseul Institute as one of Spain’s high-potential young leaders, he was also named among the top 10 management consultants in the country by Nova Talent. He is fluent in Spanish, English, and Portuguese.

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Fernando Zavala

Partner | Spain

Pedro Gasset brings over ten years of experience in business development and sales strategy, with a strong focus on placing executive-level talent. His expertise spans managing senior-level client relationships, consultative sales, complex negotiations, and the design and execution of end-to-end commercial strategies. He also brings solid capabilities in data analysis and team leadership. Throughout his career, he has held key positions such as Senior Associate Director of Business Development at IE Business School and Principal for Tech & Digital at Robert Walters.

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Pedro Gasset de Leyva

Partner | Spain

Ivan Rodríguez combines an international background in Human Resources and Psychology with over six years of specialized experience in talent acquisition, particularly within Executive Search. He leads a multicultural team of consultants and oversees the end-to-end execution of global search projects. His role blends research excellence, leadership, team management, and strong attention to detail. Ivan has directed assignments across regions including Spain, Canada, Latin America (Brazil and Mexico), and China. His fluency in both Spanish and English allows him to operate effectively in cross-cultural and international environments.

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Ivan Rodriguez

Partner | Spain

Andrea has developed a strong cross-sector career, with a focus on the pharmaceutical and automation industries in the Italian market. He brings deep expertise in technical executive search, particularly within the life sciences and industrial automation sectors. He holds a Master’s degree in Law from the University of Pisa and has completed further studies in law and economics. Fluent in Italian, English, and Spanish, Andrea brings an international perspective to every project.

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Andrea Molinas

Principal | Spain & Italy

Leonor has served as HR Director for three of Ferrovial’s most globally oriented business units—Services, Construction, and Toll Roads—during a period marked by the company’s strategic transformation and rapid international expansion. With dual Mexican and Spanish citizenship, she played a key role in supporting Ferrovial’s growth across North America. Prior to joining Ferrovial, she held senior HR leadership roles in diverse industries, including technology (Bull), media and broadcasting (Televisa), and banking (HSBC), bringing a broad and adaptable perspective to her work in talent and organizational development.

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Leonor Pablos

Senior Advisor | Spain

Beatriz has over 40 years of experience advising companies and boards on corporate governance, with a focus on stakeholder engagement, ESG, and sustainability. Formerly a partner at Baker McKenzie, she led the firm’s top-ranked Corporate Governance practice. She has held global advisory roles, including co-chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Responsible Investing and member of its Climate Governance Community of Experts. Currently an independent board director, she holds the INSEAD IDP-C Certificate in Corporate Governance. Beatriz has been featured in 7 Traits of Highly Successful Women on Boards and recognized with awards such as Euromoney’s Best in Corporate Governance and Thomson Reuters Stand-Out Lawyer.

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Beatriz Baker Araujo

Senior Advisor | United Kingdom 

Christian Hirsch has specialized on advising clients in all segments of media & entertainment, e-commerce and digital business for a period of more than 20 years. Besides working for international corporations and large privately owned companies he has built a strong focus on searching for portfolio firms of private equity companies. In addition, Christian has broad experience in searches for Board Services, e.g. Members of the Advisory Board. Being a certified Business Coach he supports companies in building strong and effective management teams. Christian had worked for Burda Media as a Managing Director focussing on digital products and print, as Engagement Manager for McKinsey&Co., Inc. in different European countries and as a Brand Manager for Unilever.

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Christian G. Hirsch

Partner | Germany

Christian Keyser is a Managing Partner Civitas International in Hamburg. He advises companies across all industries, and is predominantly active in the Financial officers practice, executing C-level CFO positions as well as senior finance positions. Christian's clients include private equity portfolio companies as well as MDax companies and larger family businesses. Following his own professional career as a CFO, he has now been active in executive search for several years and has a unique network of CFOs and entry points into the CFO space throughout Germany. Christian has a strong professional background as an entrepreneur, line manager and consultant which puts him in an excellent position to deliver excellent search results. He has been responsible for numerous strategic and operational projects in medium-sized companies as well as in larger corporate environments. He worked as a consultant for Andersen Consulting's (now Accenture) financial services practice in Hamburg, Zurich and London. He was responsible for more than 30 restructuring and reorganisation projects in medium-sized companies throughout Germany and was involved in numerous corporate transactions. He managed several business units and post-merger integration projects for a globally active French engineering services provider. As an investor and manager, he participated in the development of a technical services company. Since the sale in 2013, he has been active in executive search. Additionally Christian has experience as a lecturer on financing topics.

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Christian Keyser

Partner | Germany

Magnus Graf Lambsdorff is a Partner at Civitas, advising companies—mainly Private Equity and Venture Capital funds—on executive searches for C-level positions. He also supports DAX corporations and family-owned businesses during generational transitions. Previously, he was a Partner at Egon Zehnder, leading their Technology and Global Leadership Services practices, advising clients like Deutsche Telekom, Google, and Facebook. He later joined Finleap and the Venture Capital fund Lakestar. He also assisted the Viessmann family with their generational handover. He studied at the University of St. Gallen and earned a Master of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University. Additionally, he is a member of the German Unicef committee, the board of the Elbphilharmonie Friends Association, and the economic forum of the FDP in the Bundestag.

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Magnus Graf Lambsdorff

Partner | Germany

Dr. Caspar Schauseil is a Partner of CIVITAS in the Munich office and Chief AI Officer. He advises ​small- and mid-sized businesses, often family owned, and investor clients - specializing in the placement of CEO, COO as well as digital, IT and transformative C-Level roles. Caspar is passionate about the application of technology, data-driven decision making and customer experience to drive ultimate client success. He has worked for Knauf Group building up and managing its Digital Office, for Amazon in the execution of a series of international, special projects and for Altman Solon in M&A advisory. As an active investor himself, Caspar has been working closely with several family offices. He is a graduate of Berkeley, Johns Hopkins, Bocconi and HEC.

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Caspar G. Schauseil

Partner | Germany

Carla Geday is a seasoned executive with over two decades of leadership experience across the Middle East, where she has led high-impact initiatives in corporate strategy, business development, and large-scale operations.

Carla Geday is a seasoned executive with over two decades of international leadership experience in corporate strategy, business development, and operations across the Middle East and Africa. She has successfully led complex initiatives in telecom, logistics, infrastructure, procurement, and humanitarian support, working with both public and private sector stakeholders. Based in Bahrain for the past ten years, Carla served as Senior Vice President of Corporate Business Development and Strategy at Palms Holding, W.L.L., where she played a pivotal role in driving strategic growth and cross-sector partnerships. Her career is marked by a consistent ability to deliver large-scale projects on time and within budget, while building high-performing, multicultural teams. Educated at École Spéciale d’Architecture in Paris, Carla began her career in the United States and has since become a trusted advisor bridging global organizations with regional execution. Contact us

Carla Geday

Senior Advisor Middle East | UEA

Americas

Mr. Zavala has more than 30 years of experience in executive search and leadership advisory, guiding multinational companies as they expand across geographies and sectors. He is the founder of Zavala Civitas and previously served as Partner and Managing Director at Russell Reynolds, where he was instrumental in launching the firm’s offices in Mexico, Argentina, and Brazil. Over the past five years, he has regularly delivered lectures on leadership, influence, and power at ESADE Business School in Madrid and Barcelona, as well as at the IUE in Florence. He is fluent in Spanish, English, German, and Portuguese.

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Lorenzo Zavala

Partner | Mexico 

José Carlos (Joey) Hassan Suarez spearheaded the launch of the firm’s Canadian operations from Toronto. He brings a truly international background, with professional experience across the Americas, Europe, and Asia. His career has focused on Executive Search and Private Banking, having held roles at BNP Paribas and JP Morgan, and co-founding the travel company Mondevia. He holds a double master’s degree in Business Administration and Law from Universidad San Pablo CEU. Joey is fluent in Spanish, English, and French.

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Jose Carlos Hassan

Partner | Canada & United States

Based in Washington, D.C., Marsha specializes in executive search for the commercial real estate sector, placing senior leaders in both public and private real estate and construction firms. She was a founding partner of Equinox Search, a boutique search firm, following her tenure at Russell Reynolds Associates, where she co-led the global real estate practice. Marsha also co-founded the firm’s Mexico City office—its first in Latin America. Fluent in Spanish, she brings a global perspective shaped by her upbringing across Latin America, Africa, and Asia. .

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Marsha Pearcy

Director | United States

Barbara has built a distinguished career over more than 20 years in executive search, with a strong focus on the real estate and financial sectors. She was a Partner at Equinox, where she led numerous senior-level searches in real estate. Previously, she spent eight years as a Principal at Rhodes Associates, a respected retained search firm specializing in real estate leadership. Earlier in her career, she held key positions in the financial industry, contributing to talent strategies at Mutual of New York and Bankers Trust Company. Barbara holds a BA from Hood College, an MA in Educational Psychology from Northwestern University, and an MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business.

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Barbara Beck

Director | United States

Aura Gómez is an experienced executive search and talent acquisition professional, with a strong academic background in psychology and people management. She holds a Bachelor’s in Psychology from Universidad de Los Andes, a Master’s in People Management for Organizations from the University of Navarra, and completed a Project Management program at CEF Centro de Estudios Financieros. With a holistic perspective that bridges executive search, HR, and talent strategy, Aura brings valuable insight to a wide range of organizational contexts.

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Aura Gomez

Principal | United States

With more than 15 years of experience in both the public and private sectors, Tomás applies a strategic and analytical lens to leadership identification focused on driving transformation and results. He holds a BA in Political Science and an MA in Project Management. His expertise includes in-depth regional knowledge of Latin America and over five years of professional experience in Europe. Known for his cross-cultural agility and sectoral insight, Tomás excels at evaluating talent across diverse industries. A native Spanish speaker, he is also fluent in English.

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Tomas Grimaldi

Partner | Argentina & Spain

Mariana Veras is a senior Human Resources executive with deep experience across the Americas, specifically: Brazil, Latin America, and the United States. As HR Director Latam at ED&F Man Commodities, she led cultural, digital, and organizational transformations, managed the Americas regional teams, and oversaw major projects in talent development, workforce planning, and diversity & inclusion. Mariana has also held leadership roles at Cummins Inc. and Morgan Advanced Materials, delivering measurable improvements in employee engagement, operational processes, and HR strategy. Fluent in Portuguese, English, and Spanish, she is recognized for driving high-impact HR initiatives in complex, multicultural environments. Mariana has an Economics Major in the prestigious Presbyterian University Mackenzie of Brazil and holds an MBA from the prestigious Pontifical Catholic University of Sao Paulo in Brazil.

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Mariana Veras

Consultant | Brazil

APAC

Bhavishya Sharma is a seasoned executive search and leadership advisory professional with over 20 years of experience. Trusted by global clients for C-suite and board-level searches, he is known for his sharp ability to identify and assess high-impact leadership talent. His advisory expertise includes strategic talent management, market entry strategy, HR due diligence, board and leadership assessments, and compensation benchmarking. Bhavishya also advises leading organizations in the Technology and Professional Services sectors on M&A-related talent and organizational matters. An alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi, he blends technical rigor with strategic insight to deliver transformative solutions.

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Bhavishya Sharma

Partner | India

María has served as HR Director for APAC and Africa at Prosegur for 8 years, managing human resources across Singapore, Australia, China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, and South Africa. In this position, she led major workforce transformations, streamlined recruitment processes, and negotiated complex labor agreements. Her earlier roles include senior talent acquisition positions at The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Oliver Wyman, and McKinsey & Company, where she spearheaded strategic hiring across global markets. In 2024, María was recognized as a member of the Harvard Business Review Advisory Council. She is fluent in Spanish, English, and Portuguese, and is widely respected as a thought leader in HR and talent strategy.

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Maria Angeles Bosch

APAC Managing Director | China

Jessica Jiang is an Executive Recruitment Consultant at Zavala Civitas Executive Search in Shanghai, specializing in C-level and cross-border placements. She supports companies in identifying and attracting the best-fitting executive talent, both locally and internationally. With a global academic background and deep insight into the Chinese market, Jessica brings a unique perspective to executive search and leadership consulting.

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Jessica Jiang

Executive Recruitment Consultant | China

Ekta brings close to 15 years of experience in executive search, with a career spanning India and Hong Kong. She has successfully led complex talent advisory and search mandates for clients across industries including Fintech, Power & Mining, FMCG, and Media, among others. Known for her structured approach and commitment to open, ongoing communication, she ensures transparency and alignment throughout the search process. A natural relationship builder, Ekta is skilled at understanding stakeholder needs and translating them into actionable talent strategies. She holds a Master’s degree in Administration and is a certified Cognitive Behaviour Coach.

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Ekta Wadhwa

Principal | India

Insights on Organizational Consulting

Executive Search in Spain: Talent Gaps and Leadership Trends 

The Spanish talent market is perceived to be mature and easy to operate in. This makes some sense from afar. There is a solid network of business centers, a developing international business presence, and a considerable pool of experienced talent.  Problems arise when businesses attempt to recruit senior executives.  In Spain, executive search is shifting from talent arbitrage to understanding the true gaps and the reasons behind their expansion.  Where the Talent Gaps Are Actually Emerging  Spain may appear to have many senior professionals, but the issues here are more complex.  The problem is not the experience, but the type of experience that is most required by the different companies.  As per

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March 4, 2026

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