AirHelp

Airhelp

AirHelp is the world’s largest air passenger rights company, helping millions of travelers claim compensation for delayed, cancelled, or overbooked flights.

Operating globally, AirHelp’s digital presence is central to its business model, making elite SEO and ASO leadership a strategic priority.

The brief

When AirHelp’s internal talent team reached out to Search For Hire, they needed more than a senior SEO hire.

They needed a director-level operator capable of leading both global organic search strategy and the launch of a new app, two distinct disciplines that rarely sit in the same individual.

This was not a standard executive search. The dual-channel remit across SEO and ASO demanded rare, validated expertise. Search For Hire delivered a director-level placement in 31 days.

“Best experience!

Clear process, quick communication, and great candidates who really matched our feedback. We closed a tough hire in just a month.

Super grateful and excited to work together again! ”

— Agata Kruszka, Head of Global Talent Acquisition Strategy at AirHelp

The challenge

AirHelp approached Search For Hire to find a Director of SEO & ASO who could deliver across a demanding and genuinely unusual brief:

• Operate with the gravitas and accountability of a director-level leader
• Lead global organic strategy across multiple international markets
• Demonstrate strategic innovation in local and multi-location SEO
• Break down enterprise-level SEO strategy for complex, regulated verticals
• Bring deep, validated expertise in App Store Optimisation
• Support the launch of a new app positioned to differentiate AirHelp from competitors

“Filling the Director of SEO & ASO role at AirHelp required finding someone who could lead two fundamentally different growth channels, organic search and app store, at enterprise scale, across international markets.

Finding a candidate who could credibly lead both at a director level is exceptionally rare. We found that person, and the team moved quickly to secure them.”

— Josh Peacock, CEO of Search For Hire

The Process

Search For Hire worked in close collaboration with AirHelp’s internal hiring team, bringing specialist market knowledge to a process that required more than standard in-house recruitment capability.

Within two to three weeks, six highly qualified candidates were presented, each assessed for technical depth, dual-channel expertise, and cultural fit with AirHelp’s international, fast-paced environment.

Candidate Criteria

• Confidence to lead a high-visibility function inside a scaling tech company
• Proven director-level experience in enterprise SEO environments
• Demonstrated ASO expertise, ideally tied to a product or app launch
• Track record operating across multiple international markets
• Ability to build and execute strategy, not just manage execution

Evaluation Process

• Initial chemistry call to assess communication, seniority, and strategic thinking
• Custom SEO task designed by Search For Hire for the second interview stage, ensuring every finalist could genuinely operate at the required level
• Final leadership alignment interview with AirHelp’s senior hiring team

Search For Hire maintained active involvement throughout, ensuring momentum was sustained on both sides and that every candidate who advanced had been rigorously validated, not just screened.

The results

Search For Hire placed Niek as Director of SEO & ASO at AirHelp. The hire was completed within 31 days of engagement.

Since joining, the Director has taken ownership of both AirHelp’s global organic search programme and the strategic rollout of the company’s new app, driving performance across two of the most critical growth channels in the business.

“I’m back from vacation and really happy to see that Niek is joining us. I wanted to say thank you, it was a real pleasure working with you.

You’re bringing a new quality to the market: fast, presenting very strong candidates, and always receptive to feedback. You’ve exceeded my expectations, and I’m sure that whenever we have new SEO hires, we’ll turn to you again.”

— Agata Kruszka, Head of Global Talent Acquisition Strategy at AirHelp

Why this matters

Enterprise tech companies with global digital footprints cannot afford a mis-hire at director level. The cost is not just financial, it is months of lost strategic momentum across channels that compound growth.

AirHelp’s brief was unusually precise: a director who could lead organic search and app store strategy simultaneously, across markets, at pace. That profile does not come from a job board. It requires access to a network of senior, passive talent, and a rigorous process to validate that the candidate can genuinely perform in real-world conditions, not just present well.

Precision in search creates stability in teams. The right hire at director level compounds growth. The wrong one sets a programme back by twelve months or more.