Lindauer Acquires Pearl Street Collective

December 4, 2025 – Lindauer has acquired Boston-based Pearl Street Collective. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The acquisition forms an executive search partnership that will build on both firms’ strong commitment to the non-profit sector and create new possibilities for organizations in search of the mission-driven talent essential to their success.

“Pearl Street understands that executive search is fundamentally about connecting organizations with the people who will drive their missions forward,” said Deb Taft, CEO of Lindauer. “At this moment of growth, we’re welcoming expert search leaders who share a deep commitment to guiding mission-driven organizations through truly meaningful leadership transitions. I am incredibly energized by the prospect of unlocking additional possibilities for our clients through the seamless integration of executive search services that can be further tailored and calibrated to clients’ unique needs, goals, and aspirations.”

Co-founded by Adele Mezher and Maeve Clifford in 2019, Pearl Street provides high-touch executive search and talent strategy services to identify purpose-driven leaders for the non-profit sector. Operating out of main offices in Boston and San Diego, CA with team members around the country, the firm supports organizations in higher education, arts and culture, social justice, human services, philanthropy, health, and more. Pearl Street was named by Women of Color in Fundraising and Philanthropy as the Top Search Firm for Women of Color for two consecutive years.

Ms. Mezher brings nearly 30 years of leadership in executive search to her role as co-founder and managing partner of Pearl Street. Highly skilled in strategic marketing and business development, she began her search career implementing programs that supported new market entry and practice expansion before assuming a search portfolio of CEO and vice president-level engagements on behalf of the Fortune 500 and venture/private equity portfolio companies in technology and industrial manufacturing.

Ms. Clifford has more than 20 years of blended non-profit and executive search leadership to her role as co-founder and managing partner of Pearl Street. In addition to search management, she has led, built, trained, and guided research teams for multiple search firms in the non-profit and for-profit sectors, and was an integral contributor to the launch of two national search firms before establishing Pearl Street. Her non-profit career includes functional roles at Harvard University, a charter school network, and a community non-profit, as well as board experience.

Strategic Growth

Lindauer has expanded both its geographic scope and functional expertise through the strategic growth of its leadership team. With the arrival of Paula Fazli, co-founder of Sage Search Partners, in the spring of 2024, Lindauer broadened its recruitment services to a range of leadership roles in human resources, finance, research and administration, and student and academic affairs. In the fall of 2025, Campbell & Company transitioned its executive search practice to Lindauer. As part of the transition, Lindauer welcomed Dan Nevez, a national search leader based on the West Coast with more than 30 years of professional experience in higher education, arts and cultural institutions, and retained executive search.

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In joining Lindauer, the Pearl Street team will continue Lindauer’s evolution and help initiate its next phase of client-focused growth. “Backed by decades of collective experience in the executive search industry, Pearl Street has become a trusted collaborator to leading institutions nationwide in higher education, healthcare, and mission-driven sectors,” Lindauer said. “Through its embedded partnership model of recruiting, the Pearl Street team functions as a seamless extension of client teams. This innovative approach, now powered by the combined research capabilities and talent networks of Lindauer and Pearl Street, will offer clients the ability to build their teams with agility and at scale.”

“What drew us to Lindauer is the potential to build on our shared values to achieve even greater results for clients and for the nonprofit sector as a whole,” said Ms. Clifford. “We’re excited to join a team that approaches this work with the same rigor, integrity, and genuine commitment to the sector that has always guided our practice. Together, we’re expanding what’s possible for our clients and for the field.”

“Deb and the Lindauer team have had a tremendous impact on professionalizing the field of nonprofit executive recruitment,” added Ms. Mezher. “We’re honored that Pearl Street’s innovations and human-centered approach aren’t just recognized—they’re being embraced as essential to the field. With this partnership, we’re setting a new standard for executive search, one that is integrated, strategic, and grounded in a deep understanding of the people and organizations we serve. The future of search demands flexible client offerings and genuine care for the individual as much as the outcome. Our coming together positions us to lead that future with purpose.”

Lindauer serves higher and secondary education, hospitals, academic research centers, think tanks, research facilities, and foundations, as well as advocacy, public service, social justice and other mission-driven non-profits. The firm has led searches for the Boston YMCA, Center for Applied Special Technology, Healthy Minds Innovations/Center for Healthy Minds, the University of Texas at Austin, and the Cockrell School of Engineering, among others.

Ms. Taft leads Lindauer with over 25 years of executive and senior-level experience across the non-profit sector, from education to healthcare/academic medicine to the youth service and voluntary sectors. Her expertise includes governance, strategic planning, fundraising, program and staff management, strategic marketing, analytics, and constituent engagement, as well as talent recruitment, retention, and development.

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Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor  – Hunt Scanlon Media