Vehicle Technology · Clean Energy · Intelligent Transportation Systems

The search firm you call when the hire cannot go wrong.

Helping transportation, clean energy, and ITS companies solve critical leadership hiring before talent risks turn into business problems. Presidents, C-suite, directors, and senior managers across operations, sales, business development, product development, and engineering.

Start a search Call 360-835-2205

677Placements

96%Still there after five years

30Years in the industry

Gary Perman walking a commercial vehicle assembly floor with a client executive

On the floor, not behind a desk.

677Engineers, sales leaders, and operations professionals placed

96%Remain with their companies beyond five years

30Years headhunting inside these industries

2 to 5×Salary cost of a senior mis-hire once you count lost momentum

About

Transportation is being rebuilt. Growth still depends on leadership as much as technology.

Gary Perman, President of Perman Technical Search Group — **Gary Perman** President, Perman Technical Search Group

Electrification, connected mobility, and intelligent infrastructure are transforming the industry. I help Vehicle Technology, Clean Energy, and Intelligent Transportation Systems companies secure the critical talent they need before hiring challenges become business problems.

A key person walks out or quietly checks out, and now the question isn't growth. It's how not to lose ground while you fix this.

That's the call I get. Every CEO and senior leader faces that moment eventually.

I'm Gary Perman. For 30 years I've worked as an executive headhunter placing engineers, sales leaders, and operations professionals inside companies building the future of transportation, clean energy, and industrial manufacturing.

677 placements. 96% still with their companies five years later. That doesn't happen by accident. It happens when hiring is treated like a diagnosis, not a transaction.

What I actually do

The companies I work with are in one of two situations.

Both carry risk. The wrong hire makes it worse. The right one changes the trajectory.

They're scaling

Entering new markets, building out engineering and sales teams, and trying to move fast without hiring wrong in a market where the right people are scarce.

They're replacing someone mission-critical

No new headcount. A key leader exits, performance stalls, or internal confidence starts to slip.

The business needs to stabilize before anyone outside the room knows there is a problem. Quietly and carefully.

I operate inside these industries

Trade shows, direct conversations, and years of relationships, not a desk and a database. I know who is delivering results before they start looking.

I know which companies build talent

And I know which ones burn it. That context is the difference between a placement and a revolving door.

I know who performs under pressure

There's a real difference between someone who interviews well and someone who delivers. Skills get people hired. The right wiring determines if they stay.

The reality

A senior mis-hire costs far more than the salary line.

Factor in lost momentum, disruption, and recovery time and the number lands somewhere between two and five times salary. The right hire protects revenue, accelerates execution, and stabilizes the team.

2 to 5× salaryWhat a mis-hire at the senior level actually costs

96% retentionWhat happens when the fit is diagnosed correctly up front

Who I work with

CEOs, presidents, and senior leadership teams at OEMs and their suppliers.

The roles I recruit sit where revenue, product, and execution meet.

Presidents

C-suite

Directors

Senior management, operations

Sales

Business development

Product development

Engineering

Precision manufacturing

Industry specialties

We recruit for companies operating in innovative, forward-thinking sectors.

Deep understanding of these industries is what lets me attract the engineers, executives, and sales leaders who drive growth, and align them with where the business is actually headed.

Alternative fuels and clean energy

Renewable natural gas, hydrogen, compressed natural gas, and biogas technologies. Companies developing and implementing sustainable energy solutions for a cleaner future.

Intelligent Transportation Systems

Pioneering technologies in connected vehicles, traffic management, and autonomous systems that make transportation more efficient and safer.

Commercial vehicle manufacturing

OEMs and suppliers focused on trucks, buses, trailers, and heavy-duty vehicles, including those integrating electrification and alternative fuel solutions.

Industrial equipment manufacturing

Industrial compressors, power generators, and the related infrastructure that operational reliability depends on across diverse industries.

Innovative manufacturing ecosystems

Businesses at the intersection of advanced engineering, automation, and sustainability in vehicle and equipment production, where precision manufacturing talent is hardest to find and most expensive to get wrong.

What sets us apart

Consultative recruiting, not transactional.

30 years of high-impact hiringDelivering leadership solutions for executives in commercial vehicles, energy, ITS, and emerging technologies.

No resume farmingI headhunt, vet, and interview top talent to make sure there is alignment with your culture, your management style, and your long-term vision.

96% stay past five yearsBecause the work focuses on long-term cultural fit, not on filling the seat this quarter.

Active where the industry meetsNTEA, SAE, TMC, APTA, and IEEE Vehicle Technologies. Relationships built in person, year after year.

Start

Tell me about the role and what happens if it stays open.

Whether you're scaling a team or replacing someone quietly, the first conversation is a diagnosis, not a pitch.

VIP@permantech.comSend the role and the timeline 360-835-2205Direct line linkedin.com/in/permanConnect directly