The people behind every search.
Three partners, two coasts, and a combined career built on retained search, board service, and a genuine belief in the organizations we serve.
Derek Cotton
Derek Cotton is a veteran talent acquisition leader with more than twenty years of experience building recruiting organizations for some of the most respected names in financial services. Based in Los Angeles, he brings deep expertise in advisor and executive recruiting across wealth management, banking, insurance, and investment management.
During his seven-year tenure as Talent Acquisition Manager at Capital Group | American Funds, Derek led recruiting for advisor, investment, and enterprise leadership roles, partnering closely with senior business heads to shape national hiring strategies and strengthen leadership pipelines. Earlier, as Head of Talent Acquisition at Farmers Insurance, he directed a 30-plus-person team responsible for enterprise-wide recruitment, advisor development, and leadership succession.
Derek began his career as a financial advisor with Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch, grounding his recruiting work in a firsthand understanding of client-advisor dynamics and the performance culture of financial institutions. His background also includes experience with Egon Zehnder International, Century Group, and Robert Half, where he honed a retained-search discipline that now defines his consultative approach.
Derek has also been involved with several nonprofit organizations for over 15 years and has extensive board experience. As Treasurer for the United States Fencing Association, he helped guide that organization through financially challenging times and served on the committee to recruit and hire its new Executive Director. He was a Founding Board member of the Southern California Diversity Network, and has served on the boards of the Southern California Leadership Network, the Posse Foundation, and the Cal State LA College of Natural Sciences, advising on governance, fundraising, and human resources.
A lifelong competitor, Derek has represented the United States in the Olympic sport of fencing, serving as a US Olympic referee and international commission member. He earned his International MBA from Pepperdine University and his BA in Economics from San Diego State University.
Tom Valle
Tom Valle, with over 25 years of experience in the retainer-based search industry, has led executive search assignments across the financial services sector, including wealth management, banking, asset management, investments, and insurance. He has also managed senior-level projects for healthcare, life sciences, and nonprofit organizations across multiple functional areas — always helping clients recruit excellent leaders who demonstrate strong IQ and EQ.
Tom's search career spans decades of work in boutique firms. He began at J. Robert Scott, the retained executive search subsidiary of Fidelity Investments, where he worked as a player-coach — personally leading searches while hiring, training, and directing in-house research and recruiting teams.
Tom has consistently worked to improve his community, serving as Deputy Chief Secretary and Senior Advisor to then-Massachusetts Governor Paul Cellucci, as Cellucci's Campaign Manager, and as Deputy Campaign Manager for former Massachusetts Governor William F. Weld and former Governor and U.S. Senator Mitt Romney. He also founded and led his own political consulting and public relations firm.
Tom's civic dedication continues as a Foundation Board Member and Corporator for Emerson Health, and through service on the Career Advisory Networks of both Bowdoin College and Boston University, as well as the board of a Boston-area not-for-profit organization. He has lectured at the University of Southern California, Boston University, and Clark University on topics including compensation negotiations, and authored an Executive Report on Employment Negotiations published by Aspatore Books.
A graduate of Bowdoin College (AB with Honors in Philosophy), Tom also received an MBA in Finance with High Honors from Boston University.
Molly Moen
Molly brings more than 25 years of operations and leadership experience in Los Angeles' nonprofit sector in support of CV Executive Search's nonprofit practice. She is passionate about helping organizations build the capacity and staffing they need to achieve their missions and support their communities.
Molly has spent the past four years as a mission-based consultant, providing fundraising, organizational, and systems-change and leadership development support to nonprofit, philanthropic, and governmental organizations — including serving as interim development support during periods of transition. She has also held senior leadership positions at both Chrysalis and Downtown Women's Center, where she was responsible for staffing and leading teams; led fundraising, communications, and advocacy efforts; guided strategic work on mission, vision, values, intended impact, and theory of change; provided oversight for fiscal and human resources management; and led board development work — ensuring the funds, staffing, and strategic capacity for dramatic organizational growth.
Molly holds a Bachelor's degree in English from Wells College and a Master's in International Business from Pepperdine University's Graziadio Business School.