Your first hire, or your first team, in France

Hiring your first team in France

You know your business. The French job market is a different story.

Companies coming to France rarely lack ambition. What they lack is local knowledge: what a role really pays here, how long a search actually takes, where the right people are working today, what candidates expect from an employer they've never heard of, and why an offer that looks generous on paper can still get turned down.

That's where I come in. I run the search on the ground, in French, and work with your headquarters in English. No go-between, and nothing lost in translation.

Typical first hires: country manager, sales manager, business development manager, technical lead, project manager.

Becoming an employer in France: the right experts at the right time

Hiring in France comes with obligations from your very first employee: registering as an employer with Urssaf (the agency that collects social security contributions), declaring each new hire before their start date, running French payroll and filing social security returns every month, and drafting the employment contract.

That work belongs to specialized providers in my network. I introduce you at the right moment, factor their timelines into the search schedule and, if you'd like, coordinate with them until your new hire's first day. Each provider works within its own area of expertise and takes responsibility for its own work.

Building your team abroad

The reverse situation: a company hiring outside its home market, whether for export managers, country managers, subsidiary heads, international sales roles or engineers.

Finding candidates is rarely the hard part. The hard part is knowing which of them are genuinely strong in that particular market. A resume that looks impressive from headquarters may be quite ordinary locally, and the opposite is just as true. Salary expectations do not translate from one country to another, and neither do job titles.

I've recruited in nearly 40 countries and work with local HR contacts in those markets. That lets me check a candidate's background or salary expectations against local practice instead of judging them by home-market standards.

My specialty is the international side of hiring, not a single industry or country

What an international hire demands on top of a local one is the same in aerospace, cosmetics or manufacturing, and the same whether the job is in Dublin or Casablanca.

Which of these points matters most depends on where the role is based. I work through each one, from scoping to onboarding.

• The role: where is it based? Who does it report to? How much autonomy does it carry, and how much travel does it involve? A loosely defined international role attracts the wrong candidates.
• The talent pool: knowing where to find people who combine the language, the trade and firsthand knowledge of the region, and how to reach them, including outside your home market and across time zones.
• The assessment: the working language tested in the interview itself (I interview in English, no interpreter needed), the ability to operate far from headquarters, and ease with other ways of working and negotiating.
• The move itself: partner, children, housing and the plan for coming back, when the role is abroad. A resume won't tell you whether someone is truly ready to relocate, or what might make them back out halfway through.
• The package: a comparison in net terms that factors in cost of living, social security coverage and relocation costs. A candidate who compares a French gross salary with their current take-home pay will turn down a perfectly competitive offer.
• Timeline and paperwork: notice periods, the move, work authorization, the contract. I spot early the questions that belong with a specialist.
• Onboarding: the search doesn't end with a signed offer. I stay in touch with the candidate through the notice period, then check in after 30 and 90 days.

And a search that doesn't rely on a job posting alone.

A job posting only reaches people who are actively looking. For a senior international role, the people you want are usually employed, happy where they are, and not reading job ads.

Direct outreach is how you reach them. Depending on the role and the market, I combine it with posting the job, searching professional databases and tapping my network of local HR contacts. We choose the channels during scoping, based on the role, not out of habit.

Countries where I've recruited

Nearly 40 over the course of my career:

How I work

I follow the same method on every search. What changes from one role to the next is the market map (the countries, the target companies, the channels), not the process.

1. Before anything else

   Qualification

   Together, we confirm that the role is budgeted, that the package is in line with the target market, and that the search can be done in the time you have. If any of these is missing, I'll tell you then, not six weeks in.

2. Week 1

   Briefing and written role profile

   I talk with the hiring manager and turn that conversation into a written profile for you to approve: what the job really involves, which criteria are must-haves and which are nice-to-haves, the package, and when your team is available to interview. Nothing starts until you've signed off.

3. Weeks 1 to 2

   Talent mapping

   I identify 60 to 150 people by name, depending on how rare the profile is, at your competitors and in adjacent industries. If the target pool turns out to be too narrow, I tell you at this stage.

4. Weeks 2 to 6

   Sourcing and direct outreach

   I contact about a hundred people directly and, where it makes sense, also post the job and search professional databases. That typically leads to 20 to 40 conversations and about ten candidates who are seriously in the running. Every first conversation covers motivation, availability and whether relocation is realistic.

5. Weeks 5 to 7

   Assessment

   Each candidate goes through an in-depth interview built on the same structure, which is what makes the comparison fair. I score every criterion on a scorecard and back each score with facts, not a general impression.

6. Weeks 7 to 8

   Shortlist with written assessments

   Three to five candidates, each with a written file: summary, achievements, scorecard, motivation and availability. I also flag any concerns about each profile, because a useful assessment tells you what could go wrong too.

7. Weeks 8 to 14, then 3 months

   Offer, notice period and onboarding

   Hires most often fall apart between the offer and the start date: a counteroffer, second thoughts at home, administrative delays. I stay in touch with the candidate throughout the notice period, then check in after 30 and 90 days.

Hiring abroad: three ways to work together

Hiring in France? The single engagement described above covers everything, scoping included. For searches in other markets, or if you only need part of the process, you can choose from three options. The feasibility study has a fixed, published fee. Search engagements are priced according to the role, and I share the budget in our first conversation, before any written proposal.

Where the feasibility study fits: my first thoughts on your role (free, within two business days) tell you whether the search is a fit for what I do. The feasibility study helps you decide before you open the role. Scoping is included in every search engagement.

About me

Frequently asked questions

How long does an international search take?

Eight to fourteen weeks from the time you approve the role profile to a signed offer, for a senior role. Some countries add administrative lead times on top of that, and we identify them during scoping.

We don't have a French entity yet. Can you still help?

Yes, with the hiring itself. The search, the salary benchmark and the candidate assessments can start before your entity is up and running. In fact, knowing what your first hires will cost is often part of deciding whether to set up in France at all. Company formation, payroll and employment contracts are handled by specialized providers in my network, and I'll introduce you.

How do you charge?

The feasibility study has a fixed, published fee. Talent mapping and sourcing is a flat fee due when the list is delivered, whatever happens next. End-to-end recruitment is billed as a percentage of first-year gross compensation, with a minimum fee. In every case, I share the budget in our first conversation, before any written proposal. For a first hire in France, scoping is included in the recruitment fee.

Do I have to start with the feasibility study?

No. If the role is already defined and budgeted, you can go straight to a search. The study is worth it when the target market, the salary level or the timeline is still uncertain. Its cost is deducted from my fee if you hire me for the search within three months.

Do you handle visas and work permits?

No. I don't provide legal advice or handle administrative procedures. What I do is identify the available options and their lead times during scoping, introduce you to a global mobility lawyer or a specialized provider in my network, and build those lead times into the search schedule so they don't come as a surprise midway.

Do you only use direct outreach?

No. Direct outreach is the main tool for senior international roles, because the people you want usually aren't looking. But I combine it with job postings, professional databases and my network of local HR contacts. We choose the channels during scoping, based on the role and the market.

Do you cover every country?

I've recruited in nearly 40 countries, listed above. My specialty is the international side of hiring, not one particular region. If your search falls outside what I can do well, I'll say so in our first conversation.

Why work with you instead of a large firm?

Because the person who takes your brief is the same person who contacts the candidates, runs the interviews and presents the shortlist. Nothing gets handed off from a partner who sells to a junior consultant who delivers. The trade-off is that I take on a limited number of searches at a time, and I turn down the ones I can't deliver well.

What languages do you work in?

French and English. Candidate interviews, written reports and your weekly updates can be in either language. I can also write the reports in English for your headquarters while the search itself runs in French.

Let's talk about your role

Tell me who you're looking to hire, where, and by when. I'll get back to you within two business days with my first thoughts. If the search isn't a fit for what I do, I'll say so, and point you in the right direction if I can.

By phone: +33 4 23 50 07 19 (France, Central European Time)