David Dickey was a consistent $500K biller for years. This year he is on pace to break $1 million. When asked what changed, his answer was not a new sales script or a bigger client list. It was one hire.

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David is the founder of The Patriot Group, an executive and technical search firm focused on aerospace and defense, with deep work in the unmanned and drone space. Before recruiting, he was a Marine officer who went on to build government contracting companies. When the VP offers started coming in, it was his then girlfriend, now wife, who asked why he did not just go out on his own again. That question started The Patriot Group, which turns 15 this January.

In this conversation, David walks through every pivot. From government consulting to running veteran career fairs, 25 events in four years, to going all in on recruiting. He explains why contract-funded GovCon roles are a race to the bottom on margins, and why he only works headquarters roles that are not tied to a single contract.

Then the big one. David recruited for about 12 years before making his first CEO placement. The fear that held him back is the same one most recruiters carry: if I call myself an executive recruiter, I lose everything else. He shares the referral that opened the door, what he would tell himself five years ago, and why owning your positioning on LinkedIn matters more than waiting for credibility to catch up.

We also get into the hire that changed the year. In the summer of 2024, David brought his youngest stepson into the business from a sales background. He took over the processes, the forms, and training the firm's AI on Claude, which freed David to focus on better clients and sharpen the firm's message.

David also breaks down why he moved away from contingency to an engagement fee model, why the first move for a recruiter stuck at a low average fee is to raise it, and how years of building his LinkedIn network turned simple connection messages into searches.

What You'll Learn:

• Why David only works headquarters roles in GovCon, not contract-funded seats
• The fear that kept him from executive search for 12 years, and what finally tipped it
• How one hire freed up his time and put him on pace for $1M
• How his stepson uses Claude and Loxo to automate submissions and curated resumes
• Why he dropped contingency for an engagement fee model
• How his LinkedIn DM game turns connections into executive searches
• The Marine Corps principle he still applies when a placement does not work out

🔗 Links:

🎖️ Connect with David Dickey: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dickeydavid/

🏢 The Patriot Group: https://thepatriotsgrp.com/

🚀 Firm Leaders Summit: https://firm-leaders-and-owners-recruiting-summit-2026.heysummit.com

⚡ Atlas: https://recruitwithatlas.com/

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