Pete Wessel

Pete grew up in Canada and started his career as an equity analyst at Merrill Lynch in Sao Paulo, Brazil, before transferring to investment banking. He then spent nearly a decade investing in and advising companies on turnarounds, corporate finance, and M&A before he ever ran a search.

In 2011, he co-founded a boutique executive search firm focused on financial services and energy in Houston and New York that became one of the most respected executive search practices in the market. Korn Ferry acquired the firm in 2018, and Pete stayed on as Senior Client Partner and regional leader until 2023.

After years of building one of the deepest networks in energy and banking, Pete launched Elevation Partners to bring the work back to what matters most: senior judgment, trusted relationships, and a search process fully accountable for whether the leader succeeds after the hire.