Leadership
Kate Ward
FOUNDER & CEO, Head of Client Partnership
Kate founded her Boston-based firm in 2020 after 17 years recruiting for pharmaceutical and biotech companies. Her specialty is physician search, and over the last 23 years she has successfully completed 400+ searches ranging from Chief Medical Officer to entry-level physicians moving from academia. Over 75% of these searches were with repeat clients.
From 2003 to 2020, Kate was with The Higgins Group, Inc., a specialty executive search firm for the life sciences, rising from research manager to senior search consultant to SVP, Client Management. That progression gave her direct experience across every stage of the search process, from candidate identification through final placement.
Kate started Ward Search Group to build the kind of partnership with clients that larger firms often can’t; expert counsel paired with authenticity, transparency, and a sense of urgency that builds trust and delivers results. Six years in, that approach remains the core of how WSG works.
Karl Tradewell
SVP, Head of Candidate Development
At Ward Search Group, I take a personal, relationship-driven approach to executive recruiting— getting to know candidates and clients as people first, not just what is on the CV or the requirements for a role. I believe great searches are built on collaboration, trust, and transparency, and I apply that philosophy to help companies identify exceptional leaders for their most critical positions.
For more than 18 years, I have focused on building relationships with senior R&D leaders across the life sciences sector, giving me deep marketplace insight across the biotech landscape. With 300+ searches to date, the majority of my work has centered on physician executives and other R&D leadership roles.
WSG believes executive search should be more than a transaction. We stay deeply involved throughout every search, providing straightforward counsel, market perspective, and consistent communication to both candidates and clients. Our goal is to build lasting relationships that extend well beyond a single search.