Our Story

Maven began in 2009 during the turmoil and aftermath the GFC. It was a business that was born out of both wisdom and necessity.

Like many others in the architecture and design industry Director, Dean Dewhirst, had been caught out by the downturn of the GFC and had to fight hard to divest – without going into administration – from the general recruitment business he had set up from his Brisbane office in 2003.

It was a sobering experience being that close to the brink but it gave him the space and opportunity to reflect on how to build a more robust business model while at the same time experiencing first-hand the plight of design and property firms which are often the bellwethers of business cycles.

It became clear to Dean that there was a real opportunity to do things better. In creating Maven, Dean set out to help businesses grow by finding the right mix of people, not simply fill a tightly defined ’role’. He built Maven to focus on a single sector – architecture and design – and set out to provide value to those organisations by having a future strategic viewpoint on behalf of the businesses he worked with. This, by extension, led him to focus on key senior leadership appointments, succession planning and mergers and acquisitions.

Dean is seen as a business partner by many firms in the industry because he understands each organisation is different and the mix of people needed for success varies every time.

“By immersing ourselves in this industry we stay ahead of trends and know which sectors are thriving and where opportunities lie.”

Today Maven is widely regarded as the number one design and architecture focussed search practice in the senior leadership space. Maven has successfully placed many talented and design professionals across the country. Since 2009 maven has placed close to 1500 leaders, which have helped define and shape the industry we know today.