When Our Customer Wins, We Win.
Guided by Values. Driven by Service. Powered by People.
Our Values
At Naviga, our values are the foundation of everything we do. Integrity drives how we build partnerships, fostering trust through transparent, honest communication and a commitment to long-term success. Honesty guides our interactions, ensuring clarity with both clients and candidates, even in difficult conversations, so solutions are reached efficiently. Ethics shape every decision we make, keeping our process fair, respectful, and principled, and ensuring we never compromise for short-term gains.
These values define how we operate, how we support careers and how we build lasting relationships with the businesses and people we serve.
Boutique Flexibility. Big-Firm Results.
Agility
Naviga Recruiting Executive Search combines boutique agility with the capability to execute high-caliber searches comparable to the Big-5 industry executive search giants; Korn Ferry, Spencer Stuart, Heidrick & Struggles, Russell Reynolds Associates, and Egon Zehnder (The SHREK). Unlike large firms with vast red-tape and less personalized service, we offer a deeply customized, hands-on approach and immerse ourselves in your culture, framework, and strategic goals.
Our Talent Acquisiton process delivers exceptional results with direct communication and rapid responsiveness, acting as a true extension of your team. Clients appreciate how our personalized partnership secures the right leaders to drive their future growth, an experience that often exceeds expectations.
Built to Win Together
Our Team
Redefining Talent Acquisition with Passion
Our History
Naviga was founded in Chicago,IL by CEO Kathleen Steffey, a corporate recruiter with a deep understanding of the corporate hiring landscape. Beginning as a solo-preneur’s passion, her talent acquisition approach soon captured widespread attention in the corporate market. Her professional but agile approach towards talent selection and the talent acquisition process was widely received by employers across the US.
This foundation of professional agility and personalized recruiting service has been carefully cultivated within our team as Naviga has grown. Each employee is trained to embody these core principles, ensuring consistency and excellence in every search. In turn, this disciplined yet flexible approach has allowed us to successfully extend our impact beyond the U.S., delivering tailored talent acquisition solutions to a global marketplace.
Empowering the U.S. Special Operations Forces
Community Impact
Naviga respects the leadership, resilience, and strategic mindset of U.S. Special Operations Forces. These exceptional individuals face unique challenges when transitioning from military service to civilian careers, and we are committed to helping them translate their invaluable experience into successful professional opportunities.
We achieve this through personalized, hands-on support including executive coaching, resume refinement tailored to military-to-corporate translation, mentorship, and direct introductions to employers who value veteran talent. By acting as trusted advisors and advocates, we help SOF veterans confidently navigate the recruitment process, ensuring their skills and discipline shine in every interaction.
Why Choose Naviga?
We Deliver. They Talk.
I was completely prepared for my interview. Everything was super helpful, especially the different tips and tricks that you gave me. There were things you included in there that I didn’t even think about.
Matt Sprague, Inbound B2B Sales professional
Placed with our client Bulletproof
Naviga has a team of good listeners and asked some great questions when learning about us. They had the desire and ability to customize a search to our needs. Naviga listened to our ideas and were able to overlay them with their expertise to find us some great salespeople.
Sven Kins
Managing Director, Cook M&A
It felt like we were true partners with Naviga and that was really big. They took the time to understand who I was, who the firm was, what our needs were and our pain points. Instead of feeling like a business transaction, there was a partnership in Naviga helping us find the right person for the right reasons.
Nicholas Halar
Senior HR Associate, Forensic Risk Alliance
I felt I was prepared and it did give me a little bit of an advantage knowing some of the details about the role and where they were going with this opportunity and where the company was going as a whole.
Fred Tort, Senior Talent Acquisition Recruiter
Placed with our client InTegrum Resources
Naviga was the first recruiter I had ever worked with and they set the bar high. I had a very positive experience working with them. I can tell that they really care about their candidates and that they really want them to succeed.
Cindy Dickens, Director of Brand and Culture
Richman Property Services
I felt very comfortable and confident in what Briggs was looking for. I could tell that you had worked with this company before and had a good feel for them. And that meant a lot.
David Fee, Sales Manager
Placed with our client Briggs Equipment
Throughout the whole process, Naviga was super organized and really provided a lot of great background information.
Jennifer Folsom, Sr. Sales Executive
Selerix Systems
I received a lot of information about the company.
I found it to be really helpful to work with a recruiter. It takes some of the pressure off to have someone that you can ask more in depth questions.
Sara Staszak, HR Generalist
Placed with our client Sammons Warehouse Solutions
Naviga did a really good job of representing my interests and representing the interest of the client equally. It restored my faith in dealing with recruiters and set a new standard.
Brian Purcell, Vice President of Sales
Placed with our client Lockstep Technology Group
Working with Naviga really made the hiring process easy for me. I was fearful of getting back out there and looking for something but they really made it a pleasant experience.
Mina Patel, Director of Business Development
Placed with our client Nix United
Thank you for a job well done! Your hire is doing excellent. We will be contacting you for asssitance to recruit our Q4 sales rep hire in the next few months.
Executive Leader
Dimension Design
Working with Naviga made me feel like I had a partner who was very invested in me and that made the entire experience simple. Someone who could reach out to the company so I didn’t have to do all of the legwork. I could really focus on what mattered to me.
Robyn Spanier, Senior Director of New Business Intake
Placed with our client DLA Piper
Helping You Navigate Your Career or Talent Search
Research & Insights from Naviga's Blog
Why Boutique Executive Search Beats Big-Box Bureaucracy
Naviga Recruiting Executive Search is redefining the executive search landscape by offering a boutique alternative to the world’s largest executive search firms. Naviga delivers the same high-caliber results as global giants such as Spencer Stuart, Heidrick & Struggles, Russell Reynolds Associates, Egon Zehnder, and Korn Ferry (the “SHREK” firms) but
Naviga Recruiting Executive Search: A Boutique Alternative to Global Executive Search Firms
Naviga Recruiting Executive Search is redefining the executive search landscape by offering a boutique alternative to the world’s largest executive search firms. Naviga delivers the same high-caliber results as global giants such as Spencer Stuart, Heidrick & Struggles, Russell Reynolds Associates, Egon Zehnder, and Korn Ferry (the “SHREK” firms) but
How Modern Leaders Drive Digital Value
When executive leadership treats technology purely as an “IT responsibility,” the result is almost always software sprawl: a bloated ecosystem of expensive, siloed platforms, low adoption rates, and disjointed data. To build a high-performing organization, modern C-suite leaders, COOs, CFOs, and Sales VPs, must act as the primary architects and
The Executive Search Symphony: How Hiring Leaders and Recruiters Align to Land Top Talent
When hiring an executive, whether a VP, an SVP, or a C-suite leader, the rules of engagement completely change. You aren’t just filling a vacancy; you are acquiring a strategic architect for your company’s future. Yet, many executive searches drag on for six months or longer, ultimately collapsing at the