We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Sarah Englade. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Sarah below.

Alright, Sarah thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. The first dollar your business earns is always special and we’d love to hear how your brand made its first dollar of revenue.

I started my company in the middle of the pandemic with zero book of business. No clients, no leads, just grit. For six months, I focused on compounding activity and posting daily on LinkedIn, sharing real stories from my conversations with job seekers and hiring managers, and building a presence around authenticity.

My first client came from a cold LinkedIn message. I reached out to a company hiring a Senior Accountant, and while they didn’t need help with that role, the next day, the same contact reached back to say they had a Controller opening and asked if I could help.

I took the call at 7 a.m. before flying home to Boston, pitched Monarch, and shared my mission to put humanity back into hiring. When she asked how many Controller roles I’d filled since starting my firm, I told her honestly, “None yet, but if you give me this chance, I can finally say one.”

She did. And that became my first client, my first placement, and my reminder that consistency, honesty, and showing up, even when no one’s watching, is what builds momentum.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m Sarah Englade, Founder of Monarch Talent Solutions, a boutique executive search firm based in Houston, Texas. I launched Monarch in 2020, right in the middle of the pandemic, with no book of business, no safety net, and a simple mission: to put humanity back into hiring.

I’ve spent over 13 years recruiting across Houston’s Accounting, Finance, and Human Resources landscape, primarily within energy and manufacturing sectors. Over that time, I saw firsthand how transactional the recruiting process had become. Candidates were treated like checkboxes, and companies often lost incredible talent because of broken communication or poor candidate experience.

That’s why I built Monarch. We’re intentionally small and relationship-driven. We focus exclusively on senior to C-level roles such as Controllers, CFOs, VPs of Finance, and HR Leaders, and we only recruit within Houston. That local focus is our advantage. My network here runs deep, and every search we take on gets white-glove attention.

What sets Monarch apart isn’t just who we recruit; it’s how we do it. We prioritize authenticity, communication, and transparency. I believe hiring should feel human again for both the company and the candidate. We advocate for fair compensation, meaningful feedback, and the kind of hiring experience that reflects the integrity of the brand behind it.

I’m most proud of the relationships we’ve built and the reputation we’ve earned. Clients trust us not just to fill a role, but to represent their brand with the same care they would. And candidates remember how they were treated, because we never forget that behind every résumé is a real person with a story, a family, and a future.

At the end of the day, Monarch Talent Solutions isn’t just about placements. It’s about helping Houston companies grow with leaders who elevate culture, drive results, and stay for the long haul, while keeping humanity at the center of every search.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been showing up consistently and building trust through value-driven content and genuine relationships.

When I started Monarch Talent Solutions, I didn’t have a book of business, so I leaned into what I could control: visibility, authenticity, and connection. I became extremely active on LinkedIn, not selling, but sharing. I posted about real conversations I was having with job seekers, hiring managers, and other recruiters in Houston. Those stories resonated because they were honest and relatable, and over time, they built credibility.

I also make a point to nurture my network offline. Whether it’s hosting intimate HR and finance leadership dinners, grabbing coffee with a past client, or simply checking in with candidates months after a placement, I invest in the long game.

For me, growth has never come from hard selling or cold outreach. It’s come from consistency, visibility, and treating every interaction like a relationship, not a transaction. People remember how you make them feel, and that’s what keeps them coming back or referring others your way.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

One of the biggest lessons I’ve had to unlearn is that working harder doesn’t always mean working smarter.

When I first started Monarch Talent Solutions, I believed that success came from outworking everyone. Longer hours, more calls, more hustle. And while that mindset helped me build momentum early on, it wasn’t sustainable. I realized that being constantly “on” didn’t necessarily move the business forward; it just kept me busy.

Over time, I learned to focus on intentional activity, spending my time where it actually makes an impact. That meant prioritizing quality conversations over quantity, being more selective with the clients I take on, and building systems that allow the business to scale without burning out.

Now, I measure success less by how many hours I work and more by the quality of relationships, results, and balance I’ve built along the way.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.monarchtalentsolutions.com
• Instagram: @monarchtalenthtx
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/monarch-talent-solutions-llc/?viewAsMember=true
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@monarchtalentsolutions