Building a team in a new market: five lessons from cross-border hiring
Opening in Portugal or France starts with the right people. Here is what makes the difference when companies hire across borders.
Expanding into a new country is exciting, and the first hires often decide how fast the new team finds its feet. Over nearly twenty years of international recruitment across Europe and North Africa, the same lessons come up again and again.
1. Start with the business, not the job description
A job description lists tasks. A good search starts with the context: why the team exists, what success looks like after twelve months, and which decisions this person will make alone. That context is what candidates want to hear, and it is what lets us assess them properly.
2. Hire the first leader before the team
The first local manager shapes the culture, the next hires and the relationship with headquarters. Getting this hire right makes every following hire easier.
What to look for
Look for someone who understands the local market and also works comfortably with a head office abroad. It is often the rarest combination.
3. Respect local expectations
Notice periods, contract types, salary structures and the pace of decisions differ from one country to another. Candidates notice when a process ignores them.
Languages matter
Holding the conversation in the candidate’s language builds trust early, even when the working language will be English.
4. Reach the candidates who are not looking
The strongest profiles rarely answer job ads. A direct, discreet approach reaches people who are doing well where they are and need a good reason to move.
5. Plan the integration, not only the hire
A signed offer is the start, not the finish. Clear onboarding, regular check-ins in the first months and a direct line to headquarters make a new team member far more likely to stay.
The right first hires make a new market feel less foreign.