Flatiron Search Partners Forms Alliance with Middle-Market Private Equity Firm Nonantum
January 20, 2026 – Flatiron Search Partners (FSP) has formed a growth partnership with middle-market private equity firm Nonantum Capital Partners. “We were intentional about finding a partner who truly understands what we’re building and why,” said Bill Stauffer, co-founder and managing partner of Flatiron Search Partners. “Nonantum shares our belief that great outcomes start with great teams. This partnership gives us the ability to continue investing in our people, our platform, and our clients, while preserving the culture and values that have always defined Flatiron.”
“Nonantum brings deep operating experience and a long-term mindset that aligns closely with how we lead the firm,” added Joe Miller, co-founder and managing partner of Flatiron Search Partners. “Bill and I remain fully engaged in the day-to-day leadership of Flatiron, and this partnership allows us to invest ahead of growth, expanding our capabilities while continuing to deliver at the highest level for our clients.”
“Joe and Bill have purposefully built a differentiated culture in the executive search industry by leveraging their experience as operators,” said Jon Biotti, managing partner at Nonantum Capital Partners. “By emphasizing collaboration and teamwork, and offering search professionals greater flexibility, Flatiron has created an environment that consistently attracts top search executives.”
Founded in 2018 by a team of experienced private equity and management executives as a spin-off from Charlesbank Capital Partners, Nonantum is a Boston-based middle-market private equity firm. Nonantum focuses on investing in family- and founder-owned businesses, and corporate carve-outs.
Established in 2018, Flatiron Search Partners is a boutique executive search and growth advisory firm with offices in New York City and Denver. The firm leverages a cross-industry network to focus on key sectors: beauty, business services, consumer products/ services, consumer healthcare, education and training, experiential/ specialty retail, food and beverage/restaurants, franchising, health and wellness/active lifestyle, hospitality and nightlife, and technology and SaaS. Flatiron leads recruitment efforts for CEOs and presidents, as well as executives and functional leads overseeing operations, customer experience, sales/revenue, marketing, training, HR, finance, product, technology, and real estate/development.
Mr. Stauffer has spent the past 20 years scaling brands at various growth stages across the consumer, food and beverage, and healthcare sectors. Mr. Stauffer has experience working with founders, boards of directors, executive teams, and private equity/venture capital sponsors.
Mr. Miller has spent the last 10 years driving scalable business strategies for high-growth companies in the branded consumer space. Mr. Miller has a background in cross-functional management and financial analysis, and a track record of attracting and managing winning teams, driving operational execution, and achieving growth targets.
Recent Deals
Hunt Scanlon Ventures has facilitated a number of M&A transactions across the executive search space in recent months. Here is a look at a few:
Talento Human Capital has acquired R2 Global, a highly respected technology recruitment and staffing firm known for its niche expertise across cloud & data, business systems, and e-commerce. This strategic move will expand TalentoHC’s existing footprint in the technology sector and launch, as well as strengthen, its technology search & staffing service lines. “The combination of TalentoHC’s talent acquisition expertise with R2’s deep technical focus marks an exciting new chapter for both organizations,” said Juan Gaitan, CEO of TalentoHC, based in Coral Gables, FL. “R2’s agile approach to technology staffing and recruiting aligns perfectly with our mission to deliver tailored recruitment solutions. Together, as R2 Powered by Talento, we are positioned to become a premier go-to partner for IT talent and innovation,” he added. “TalentoHC and R2 Global customers will benefit tremendously from the portfolio of human capital offerings that the combined organizations now provide,” said Scott A. Scanlon, CEO and co-founder of Hunt Scanlon Ventures.
Global talent advisory firm ZRG has acquired Aspen Leadership Group, a search firm focused on placing and supporting top fundraising leaders and executive talent in educational institutions and the broader non-profit sector. “The addition of Aspen Leadership Group is nothing short of transformative,” said Larry Hartmann, CEO of ZRG. “Their expertise in development and advancement is the perfect complement to our growing education practice, and as we roll into 2025 we are unlocking the collective power of these exceptional niche businesses under the unified banner of ZRG’s education practice, creating unmatched solutions for academic and non-profit leadership.” Aspen Leadership Group, established in 2013, conducts a wide range of searches across the fundraising, education and non-profit sector and is widely considered the eminent leader in its field. Its clients include Brown University, PBS, Robin Hood, the Humane Society of the United States, the Leakey Foundation, Carnegie Mellon University, and the Denver Zoological Foundation, among others.
Talento Human Capital (TalentoHC) has acquired The PeterSan Group and PeterSan Legal Staffing. The merger brings expertise in legal recruiting to TalentoHC’s customer experience model and comprehensive human capital services, including retained executive search, professional and management recruiting, RPO, staff augmentation, and human capital consulting. Managing partners Peter Gosule, Peter Goldfeder, and Sandy Friedman of The PeterSan Group will lead the TalentoLegal business unit from New York City, where the firm has been rooted for three decades. “The PeterSan transaction fits in well with our platform strategy as we build onto our customer-centric model and expand our industry and functional vertical focus,” said Juan Gaitan, CEO of TalentoHC, based in Coral Gables, FL. “The intersection of these two approaches will create opportunities for continued growth and value for our customers, candidates, associates and shareholders.”
ZRG acquired Jamesbeck, a New York City-based recruitment firm specializing in senior-level talent for the broad investment management community across private market and traditional firms. “This strategic move aims to establish ZRG’s presence in asset management and will support the firm’s existing private markets clients by adding a new channel for senior roles at the management company level across investments, product, and fundraising,” said ZRG. “Jamesbeck has been at the forefront of decisive changes that have impacted asset management leadership for more than two decades,” said Scott A. Scanlon, CEO of Hunt Scanlon Ventures. “The firm’s acquisition by ZRG will be beneficial to clients across the global investment management space who have come to rely on its network, judgment and guidance around senior-level leadership talent,” he noted. Jamesbeck specializes in the investment management industry across public and private markets. The firm recruits senior-level talent across investing, distribution, product and C-suite positions on behalf of a range of clients from boutiques to the largest multi-product organizations. Jamesbeck’s Melissa Norris, managing partner, and Beth Rustin, founding partner, will become the co-heads of asset management search at ZRG.
Related: How Search Firms are Winning Through M&A and Unlocking Value
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
