Adrian Vale
Founder & Managing Partner
New York & London
Adrian founded Vellaris on a single conviction: a shortlist should be defensible in front of the board that has to live with it.
Background
Adrian founded the Vellaris practice after eighteen years advising boards on chief executive succession across North American and European markets. He works between New York and London, leads the firm's most sensitive mandates, and chairs its appointment quality review. Based in New York & London, Adrian works across Financial Services and Professional Services, and is trusted with mandates where discretion matters as much as reach.
How I work
Every engagement begins with a conversation about the organization, not the vacancy — what the next two years demand, what the last appointment taught you, and what the team around this role can absorb. Adrian maps the market before naming a candidate, tests evidence rather than impressions, and puts forward only people whose case can be argued in detail. When the honest answer is that a preferred candidate is not ready, you will hear it early.
What clients can expect
Direct access to Adrian throughout — no handover to a junior team after the pitch. Weekly written progress, a documented assessment for each finalist, calibrated market feedback on your proposition, and continued contact through onboarding and the first performance review. Confidentiality is managed as a design constraint, not an afterthought.
For candidates
Adrian treats every conversation as a long relationship rather than a transaction. You will be told what the role genuinely is, what the organization is not yet good at, and where the risk sits for you. Feedback is given plainly and promptly, whether or not a process moves forward, and interest is never manufactured to fill a shortlist.
Expertise
Chief Executive Search, Board Advisory and Succession. Adrian contributes to the firm's appointment quality review, where every shortlist is challenged internally before it reaches a client.
“I would rather lose a mandate than present a shortlist I cannot defend.”
Boards and chief executives return to Adrian because the counsel is candid, the process is documented, and the person who wins the work is the person who does it.
Have a critical appointment ahead?
When the appointment matters, the search should begin with a conversation.