Project reference · Hospitality
One European waitress, a fixed opening date, under ten weeks.
A family-run Italian restaurant in the Gulf, part of a local investment group, was opening its second branch and wanted one experienced European waitress on the floor for the opening. She landed less than ten weeks after the contract was signed. In between: 613 CVs screened, a salary that matched what candidates already earned at home, a first choice who changed her mind, and a work permit that stalled on a nationality check.
613 CVs screened in six weeks
Sourcing
22 profiles over three searches
Shortlists
7 client interviews by video
Selection
Under 10 weeks, contract to arrival
Speed
The timeline
From signed contract to first shift
Sourcing took the first four weeks. Everything after that was selection, paperwork and one near miss after another.
The brief
What the client actually needed
One waitress with at least a year's experience and fluent English, ready to relocate on a two-year contract. The owners wanted a European profile to suit the restaurant's style. They asked first for one country, then widened the search to the rest of Eastern and Southern Europe.
The package was a basic salary of about USD 960 plus tips, shared accommodation, transport to work, duty meals, medical insurance, the visa and flights. The employer paid for the visa and the ticket; the candidate paid nothing.
The hard parts
Where it gets difficult
A salary equal to home pay
For candidates inside the EU, the basic salary was roughly what they already earned at home, and most dropped out after the first call. After three and a half weeks we put the numbers in front of the client: 613 CVs, 119 calls, 21 interviews, and EU expectations of USD 1,150–1,200. The client agreed to move for the right person.
An opening date that would not move
The branch was due to open at the end of October. The client would only consider candidates who already held a valid passport, because a new one could take five weeks.
A first choice who changed her mind
The client's first pick was chosen after her interview and withdrew two days later. We went back to the pool the same week and had four new profiles in front of the client within five days.
A permit that stalled on nationality
The selected candidate's nationality triggered an extra screening at the permit stage, on the day her visitor visa ran out. The employer took her through a security check with the labour authorities, and the employment visa followed five days later.
Getting through at all
The client's mail filter blocked every new sender from our domain, so the first profiles never arrived. We re-sent them, confirmed by phone and switched to batches of three to five, as the client preferred.
Interviews across time zones
Seven video interviews in two weeks, fitted around the client's weekend and the candidates' working hours, and hosted on our own video accounts.
What we did
Source, select, move
- Weeks 1–4 · Sourcing. Adverts in English and Russian, our candidate database and European job boards. Every applicant was screened by phone and video before a numbered profile went to the client, and shortlisted candidates got an information letter on the city, the climate, the dress code and the restaurant.
- Weeks 5–7 · Selection. Video interviews with the executive chef and the group's HR, a second shortlist when the first choice withdrew, and a signed offer four days after the decision.
- Weeks 7–10 · Paperwork and travel. Passport copies, the work permit, the extra nationality screening, the employment visa and the flight, coordinated between the candidate and the employer's government-relations officer.
- 2016–17 · Follow-up searches. The client came back twice for more waiting staff, including Italian speakers. The last search was paused when a planned new outlet was not confirmed.
One hire sounds small. For a restaurant opening a branch, it is the difference between a full floor and a short one on the first night.
In the client's words
“We just need somebody who is ready, willing and sure to join us.”
The group's HR officer, on the day the first-choice candidate withdrew.
How we work
We do not show you another company's name
The client, its owners and its people 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
Hiring European staff for a restaurant in the Gulf?
One role or a whole opening team: in thirty minutes we can tell you what the package has to look like to attract the people you want.
