Project reference · Recruitment for a market entry · Renewable energy
A new office’s first hire, chosen from another country.
An international solar-power contractor was opening its first office in Ukraine. The managers who would decide sat in a regional office abroad and flew in for a few days at a time. They needed an office assistant first, and a logistics supervisor for equipment deliveries. We ran both searches. Our candidate became the office’s assistant; the logistics role went to a person the client had found itself. One placement, and we tell it as one.
2 roles briefed: office assistant and logistics supervisor
Brief
5 assistant candidates put in front of the client
Shortlist
2 interview rounds: online first, then in person
Process
1 placement, accepted about five weeks after the job description
Result
The shape of it
Five weeks, two roles
Two interview rounds for one seat: online while the managers were abroad, in person the morning they were back.
The brief
What the client actually needed
The first message came from the client’s finance manager, who ran the new Ukrainian company from the group’s regional office abroad. The company had a registered address, a local director and outsourced accounting. It had no staff of its own yet.
He asked about scope, payment terms, how fast we could present three to five candidates, and what exclusivity would mean if they were also looking themselves. We answered in writing and on a call, agreed the fee and sent the agreement draft. The job descriptions arrived the same day; a few days later came a stop list with a name the client already had in view.
The assistant was the role that mattered most. The person would run the office, translate documents, help the director and be the link between the foreign managers and the outsourced accountants. Ukrainian, Russian and good English, from the first day.
Why it matters
The first hire is the one the others depend on
In a new office the first person on the payroll answers the phone, files the papers and carries every message between the managers abroad and the people on the ground. If that hire is wrong, the next ones are made from a distance, by people who are not there to notice. The client could not interview at length, and it could not afford a second search.
The hard parts
Where it gets difficult
The decision-maker was abroad
The finance manager decided from another country. We ran the first round as video calls at hours that suited him and the candidates, some from our office, some from home or their own workplace.
One job, three jobs
Secretary, translator and contact for the accountants. Office experience alone was not enough; translation and written English counted as much.
The strongest CV raised a question
The most experienced candidate had been with one employer for many years. The client wondered whether a new, small office would hold her. A second, face-to-face round answered it.
Candidates move on while you decide
Days before the final round, one shortlisted candidate took another job. We rebuilt the interview schedule the same day and told the client why.
The client’s own candidate
For the logistics role the client had a person of its own in view. We kept that name on the stop list from the start, and when the client chose that person, the search simply closed.
A third role, priced and parked
The client’s regional director asked about a business-development manager. We gave a market salary range and a separate fee. The client did not open the role.
What we did
Brief, search, interview, decide
- Week 1 — Brief. Offer and process explained, fee agreed, agreement draft sent, job descriptions and the stop list received.
- Week 2 — Search. First shortlists: three assistant candidates and a logistics candidate, all interviewed by us first.
- Week 3 — Interview online. Video interviews with the finance manager; the logistics candidates met in person by the client’s country manager; a meeting with the regional director.
- Week 4 — Widen. Two more assistant candidates on the client’s request, interviewed online the same way.
- Week 5 — Decide. Final round of three in the client’s office, one morning, 30 to 45 minutes each. Offer the next day, accepted four days later.
- Afterwards — Follow up. Invoice and act for the placement; months later, an offer for an accountant search under the same agreement.
It was a small assignment: two roles briefed, one person placed. We would rather show it as it was than make it bigger.
In the client’s words
“I think we have a good match for the position.”
The client’s finance manager, after the final round.
How we work
We do not show you another company’s name
The client, its managers and the people we presented are not named here, and they will not be named in a meeting either. We are glad to talk this project through in detail. What we will not do is discuss the last client that way with you, or you with the next one.
Next step
Opening an office in Ukraine and deciding from abroad?
Tell us the first roles and when your managers are in the country. We will plan the interviews around their trips, and tell you early if the brief and the market do not meet.