In its role as a key partner to organisations and leaders seeking to improve their performance, the Grant Alexander HR services group is launching a new Organisational Transformation & Human Resources initiative. The aim is to help organisations and businesses work towards more rapid change through a combination of innovative digital technology and bespoke human support.

Henri Vidalinc, President of Grant Alexander, has entrusted the management of this new scheme to Bruno Chaintron, whose company Role Crafting, founded nearly 11 years ago, has become part of the Group.

TRANSFORMING ORGANISATIONS FOR GREATER RESILIENCE

In a year that has been unprecedented for companies, and in which the challenge of mobilising teams to ‘build back better’ remains daunting, Grant Alexander has decided to consolidate its HR expertise to create a new initiative dedicated to organisational transformation. Headed by Bruno CHAINTRON, a strategy expert who specialises in helping companies and executives bring about change, this new business offers a smooth, collaborative approach and radically new digital tools to transform the organisation and develop roles and talents.

With objectives focused on improved performance and agility, clearer, more legible and more committed organisations, and new practices designed to contribute to greater employee well-being, centred on customers and employees, Bruno Chaintron’s team relies on the proven methodologies and powerful and ergonomic digital tools developed by Role Crafting.

A COMPLETE SUITE OF DIGITAL TOOLS TO ACCELERATE AND MANAGE TRANSFORMATION

With the acquisition of Role Crafting, the company created by Bruno Chaintron, the Grant Alexander Group relies on an innovative tool called “Role Scanner”, which creates a rapid and in-depth 100% scan of the organisation, taking into account the views of employees, customers and partners, to analyse hot spots and sticking points. A diagnosis of the status quo that takes less than a month, regardless of the size of the company!

Second, the tool enables you to identify action levers, priorities and risks, the obtain feedback on action proposals from the field, and align your teams in a lively and visual way around a diagnosis and shared action priorities. Finally, the Role Scanner also enables you to measure the progress of change over time. 

In addition, “Role Crafting” helps you to optimise and reinvent roles, analysing them in depth, mission by mission, activity by activity, as well as identify past achievements, plus the skills and motivations of employees, and finally to build scenarios which enrich the roles within your company. It can also be used to renew jobs, arbitrate between different scenarios of roles and responsibilities, and initiate a dynamic of continuous and sustainable improvement.

“This new solution is unique, complete, modular, lively, and intuitive, and provides rapid and concrete benefits, and has achieved strong positive impact on the organizations and teams where it has already been implemented,” said Henri Vidalinc, President of Grant Alexander. “With the integration of this new dimension into our service offering, our group is consolidating its position, thinking outside the box and supporting companies with their organisational transformation, recruitment and skills development issue, helping them build an exciting future.” 

¹ The major French groups that have implemented the solution posted a 93% employee satisfaction rate

About:

For 30 years, Grant Alexander has been a partner in the performance of organisations and their leaders, providing comprehensive and tailor-made support for all their competency management and development needs. A multi-specialist HR services group with four main activities (Executive Search, Executive Interim, Leadership Development, HR and Organisation Transformation), it operates in all sectors, across all roles (managers / experts / rare profiles), all over the world, via several offices in France (Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Toulouse), an Africa office in Abidjan, and a network of first-rate international partners. As a socially committed company, Grant Alexander is in the process of obtaining Lucie 26000 certification.

A PARTNER IN THE PERFORMANCE OF ORGANISATIONS AND THEIR MANAGERS, THE GRANT ALEXANDER HR SERVICES GROUP IS EXPANDING INTERNATIONALLY AND SETTING UP ITS FIRST OFFICE ON THE AFRICAN CONTINENT, IN ABIDJAN, IVORY COAST. IN ORDER TO MEET THE STRONG NEEDS FOR EXECUTIVE RECRUITMENT AND SKILLS DEVELOPMENT OF COMPANIES IN THE REGION, AND TO BE AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE TO ITS CLIENTS, HENRI VIDALINC, CHAIRMAN OF THE GRANT ALEXANDER GROUP, ENTRUSTS THE MANAGEMENT OF THIS AFRICAN REPRESENTATIVE OFFICE TO EUGÉNIE ATTIA KASSI.

A CONTINENT WITH HIGH HR CHALLENGES

According to a PwC study[1], nearly 90% of business leaders in Africa are concerned about the availability of key skills. This is a structural problem which, as the African Development Bank[2] points out in its report on the regional economic outlook for Central Africa, threatens the area’s future growth.

Despite the pandemic, the continent has been able to resist and show resilience, and 70% of its leaders are generally optimistic about the speed of the recovery[3]. Thanks to its dynamic demography, the technological changes underway, and its unique and exponential economic potential, notably with the African Continental Free Trade Area (ACFTA) which came into force last January, which “paves the way for Africa, with a population of 1.2 billion and a combined GDP of 2.5 trillion dollars, to become the largest common market in the world”[4], the African continent possesses, in its great diversity, real strengths. However, to support its development and transformation, it must have the capacity to strengthen its human capital and make the development of local skills one of its key priorities.

It is in this context that the Grant Alexander Group has chosen to deploy its expertise locally and sustainably.

AN OFFICE TO SUPPORT COMPANIES IN ALL THEIR HR ISSUES AND PARTICIPATE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL SKILLS

Based in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, the representative office will be managed by Eugénie ATTIA KASSI, a seasoned human resources professional who is well known on African soil. With more than 25 years of experience as a Human Resources Director of large national and international companies, Eugénie ATTIA KASSI, Officer of the National Order of Merit, is strongly involved in HR associations and the local economic fabric.

Eugénie ATTIA KASSI’s mission will be to support the establishment of the Grant Alexander group in French-speaking Africa and to promote the group’s four business lines: direct approach to senior executives, interim management, development of managerial skills and advice to human resources departments to assist them in the transformation of the organisation.

“The establishment in Côte d’Ivoire is part of our internationalisation strategy and corresponds to our desire to support markets that are facing strong recruitment and skills development challenges. I am delighted that we are doing this on this continent with Eugenie, a local HR expert, by creating a close and lasting relationship with the companies present in the region, in order to help them develop with the best talent, in the service of their performance” underlines Henri VIDALINC, President of the Grant Alexander Group.

About Grant Alexander:

For 30 years, Grant Alexander has been a partner in the performance of organisations and their leaders, providing them with comprehensive support for all of their skills management and development needs, always with a tailor-made response. A multi-specialist HR services group with 3 activities (Executive Search, Executive Interim, Leadership and Organisation Development), it operates in all sectors, for all functions (managers/experts/rare profiles), all over the world, via several offices in France (Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Toulouse), an office in Abidjan for Africa, and a network of first-rate international partners. As a socially committed company, Grant Alexander is in the process of obtaining Lucie 26000 certification.

1] Source: PwC, 22nd annual global CEO Survey, 2019

2] Source: African Development Bank, Central African Regional Economic Outlook Report, 2020. https://www.afdb.org/fr/documents/perspectives-economiques-en-afrique-centrale-2020-faire-face-la-pandemie-du-covid-19

3] Source: Deloitte, Africa CEOs Survey, 2020

4] Source: Dr. Ibrahim Mayaki, CEO of the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), Challenges and opportunities on the occasion of the 57th Africa Day, 25 May 2020 – emagazine Africa Renewal

AS A PARTNER IN THE PERFORMANCE OF ORGANISATIONS AND THEIR MANAGERS, THE GRANT ALEXANDER GROUP CONTINUES ITS INVOLVEMENT IN EMPLOYMENT BY SUPPORTING THE 60 000 REBONDS GRAND OUEST ASSOCIATION, WHICH ASSISTS POST-LIQUIDATION ENTREPRENEURS TO BOUNCE BACK AFTER AN ENTREPRENEURIAL FAILURE.

AN ACTIVE SUPPORT APPROACH TO BOUNCE BACK AFTER A FAILURE

The mission of the 60 000 rebonds association is to encourage and support entrepreneurs after liquidation. They can thus reorientate themselves or return to the business world with the help of advice provided by the association’s partners, and now also the consultants of Grant Alexander Grand Ouest.

According to the Bilan National des Entreprises des greffiers des tribunaux de commerce (1) published in January 2021, 5,217 judicial liquidations were recorded in 2020, representing more than three quarters (77.5%) of the collective procedures opened over the period, four points more than in 2019 (73.5%). This is a particularly difficult period for many entrepreneurs, and Grant Alexander wants to support them by providing its multi-specialist HR consulting and services expertise to all those who have experienced failure and want to continue to invest in a new professional project.

SUPPORTING SO THAT NO ONE IS LEFT ALONE IN THE FACE OF FAILURE, THAT IS ALSO ATHLETE THINKING®.

Through this partnership, the Grant Alexander Group, which has been socially committed for several years, wants to support French entrepreneurship in a concrete way by accompanying business leaders who have filed for bankruptcy but whose talents and expertise remain essential to the vitality of the regional economy.

“I am sincerely pleased with this new partnership with 60,000 Rebonds to support employment and skills in the Grand Ouest region,” said Henri Vidalinc, President of the Grant Alexander Group. “I hope that this is the beginning of a great story with 60,000 Rebonds, whose mission is totally aligned with the spirit that we all share at Grant Alexander and with our candidates: Athlete Thinking®. It’s a mindset of thinking like an athlete, of seeing competence differently, and of seeing failure as an experience. It is also a development methodology that integrates 9 mental dimensions and allows us to optimise performance” adds Henri Vidalinc.

Through this partnership, Grant Alexander is actively pursuing its civic action, here in the territories, and has moreover begun a process of Lucie 26000 certification in order to be part of a process of progress in terms of CSR.

(1) Source: https://www.greffe-tc-paris.fr/uploads/paris/Actu/bian_national_cngtc_2020.pdf

About Grant Alexander: For 30 years, Grant Alexander has been a partner in the performance of organisations and their leaders, providing them with comprehensive support for all their skills management and development needs, always with a tailor-made response. A multi-specialist HR consulting and services group, with 3 activities (Executive Search, Executive Interim, Leadership and Organisation Development), it operates in all sectors, for all functions (managers / experts / rare profiles), in France via its offices in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes and Toulouse, and internationally thanks to a network of first-class partners. A socially committed player, Grant Alexander is in the process of obtaining Lucie 26000 certification.

About 60 000 rebonds: 60 000 rebonds is an association present in 26 cities, recognised as being of general social interest since 30 June 2016. On a national level, it supports more than 660 post-liquidation entrepreneurs to help them bounce back from business failure. These entrepreneurs are currently supported by regional teams that include a total of more than a thousand volunteers. A force for good for their company.
Website: 60000rebonds.com/lassociation/

GRANT ALEXANDER, THE HR CONSULTING AND SERVICES GROUP THAT PARTNERS WITH ORGANISATIONS AND THEIR LEADERS TO IMPROVE THEIR PERFORMANCE, CONTINUES ITS GROWTH STRATEGY AND ANNOUNCES THE ARRIVAL OF AN ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR AND A SENIOR CONSULTANT.

Vincent Wallner joins the Grant Alexander Group as Associate Director of Executive Interim

An expert in business transformation and performance, he began his career in auditing at Arthur Andersen, then consolidated his expertise in the financial and operations departments of major groups in the retail and luxury sectors, before taking over the general management of a company he founded in 2007. After developing and structuring high-profile brands in France and internationally, he carried out several interim management assignments between 2016 and 2018 within various management committees for fashion and e-commerce players, and then joined an interim management company (EMT) as Associate Director. His experience in strategic and operational functions in various sectors has given him a thorough understanding of the issues and problems of his clients, whom he assists in the context of transformation/structuring and crisis management. He now joins Grant Alexander as Associate Director to support the strong development of the group’s interim management activity.

Didier Vidalinc joins the Grant Alexander Group as a Senior Consultant in the Executive Search practice

With 30 years of experience in the automotive industry, Didier Vidalinc is an expert in the sector. His varied career within the Renault Group, in the management of operational entities and support functions, both in France and internationally, as Marketing Director at Renault SA and General Manager at Renault Retail Group, has given him a thorough understanding of the various aspects of the automotive trade. In the second part of his career, he joined private distributors representing Renault and then PSA to assist them in their development. He now joins the group as Senior Consultant – Executive Search to develop the automotive practice.

About: For 30 years, Grant Alexander has been a partner in the performance of organisations and their leaders, providing them with comprehensive support for all their skills management and development needs, always with a tailor-made response. A multi-specialist HR consulting and services group, with 3 activities (Executive Search, Executive Interim, Leadership and Organisation Development), it operates in all sectors, for all functions (managers / experts / rare profiles), in France via its offices in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes and Toulouse, and internationally thanks to a network of first-class partners. As a socially committed player, Grant Alexander is in the process of obtaining Lucie 26000 certification.

partner in the performance of organizations and their leaders, independent firm Grant Alexander has been providing companies with tailored consulting and HR services for 30 years. In the current economic environment, its positioning as a multi-specialist in the top management segment has resulted in revenues of €14.5 million for fiscal 2020, up 23% on 2019.

For 2021, it is targeting revenues of €17 million. To achieve this, it will consolidate its premium positioning and international development, while capitalizing on innovation and acquiring external expertise.

GROUP DYNAMICS DRIVEN BY NEW ACTIVITIES AND NEW ASSIGNMENTS

The interim management activity, which has enjoyed sustained growth since it was set up 4 years ago, has continued to perform well through a period of crisis and company restructuring, and its revenues grew by 52%. In 2020, the firm’s Executive Interim branch lent its support to some big businesses, mid-caps and fast-growing scale-up companies as they underwent transformation. It also worked with a number of global players, assisting them with crisis management, most notably alongside general management and human resources departments.

Executive Search, the firm’s long-established core business, has also maintained its growth rate in a significantly weakened market environment. “This year saw some great assignments, such as the recruitment of the Chairman of EMOVA (Monceau Fleurs, Happy, etc.), and the Country Manager for Germany for one of the world’s leading engineering consultancies,” notes Henri Vidalinc, Chairman of Grant Alexander.

Meanwhile, the Leadership & Organization Development activity has continued its structuring with programmes to support leadership development at individual and collective levels (through assessment and coaching). It also assists with the HR transformation of organizations. This division ended the financial year with revenues almost 15% up on the previous year. One of its most noteworthy assignments of the year was assisting with the HR transformation of an organization created after the merger of a number of professional training companies.

INNOVATION, THE GROWTH DRIVER

The firm’s growth can, of course, be attributed to the strengthening of its teams in all business lines, in Paris and in the regions where Grant Alexander is based (Lyon, Marseille, Nantes and Toulouse). In 2020, 16 new recruits bolstered or added to the firm’s range of expertise.

Above all, however, it is the constant innovation that enables Grant Alexander to acquire and retain clients.

For example, the firm has forged a strategic partnership with Role Crafting, a digital HR transformation solution that helps optimize organizations by getting everyone in the company on board with the upgrading of roles and skills, and engaging and successfully aligning everyone with the company’s roadmap and action plan.

“This type of partnership and investment allows us to anticipate our clients’ HR needs and then help them through the appropriate solutions,” adds Henri Vidalinc. “In a turbulent and challenging market, being ever more agile and creative is one of the keys to development and performance.”

STEADFAST AMBITION

For 2021, the stated objective is to post revenues of €17 million. This growth will be achieved by consolidating the firm’s premium positioning and international development, both through its own facilities and partnerships. The firm’s growth strategy also draws on organic growth and acquisitions. “To sustain these ambitions in a market that will remain highly turbulent in 2021, we will also be counting on our Athlete Thinking methodology. This unique approach, which is part of our genetic make-up, means developing the mental faculties that help optimize performance and leadership development,” explains Henri Vidalinc.

“With our different business lines, our ability to innovate and the ‘athletic’ mindset shared by everyone at Grant Alexander, we are able to support organizations and their leaders – especially through the current period – and to assist them in a holistic way with all their HR issues, with a unique, personalized solution each time,” he concludes.

About… For 30 years, Grant Alexander has been a partner in the performance of organizations and their leaders, providing them with all-round support for all their management and skills development requirements, taking a tailored approach every time. A multi-specialist Human Resources consulting and services firm, with three business lines (Executive Search, Executive Interim, Leadership and Organization Development), the firm operates in all business sectors, for all roles (managers/experts/highly unusual profiles), in France through its offices in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes and Toulouse, and internationally through a network of first-rate partners. Grant Alexander takes its corporate responsibility seriously and has applied for the Lucie 26000 CSR label.

THE FIRM COMPLETES ITS OFFER IN THE LEGAL AND TAX FIELDS AND STRENGTHENS ITS TEAMS IN TWO OF ITS OFFICES: LYON AND NANTES. 

A historical player in the executive search market for the past 30 years, Grant Alexander has long pursued its growth strategy as a multi-specialist human resources consulting and services firm. In order to better assist its clients with their various recruitment needs, the firm is expanding its offer in the legal and tax fields, and is strengthening its teams in two of its offices: Lyon and Nantes.

Isabelle Rolland and Charles Suinat join the group as Executive Search Consultants

Holder of a Master’s degree from EDC Paris Business School and an MBA in International Management from Kedge Business School, Isabelle Rolland has more than 20 years of experience in commercial and strategic development, mainly acquired within companies in the service and industrial sectors, in France and Africa. In 2012, she joined a recruitment firm and set up the Marseille office, which she ran for 8 years. A specialist in legal and tax matters, she also applies her talents in finance and human resources for a clientele of law firms, SMEs, ETIs and large French and international groups. Based in Lyon, she will work with fellow-consultant Morgane Coenen to grow the Group’s Executive Search activities in the legal and tax fields.  

A graduate of the Kedge Business School’s Grande Ecole program, Charles Suinat began his career in 2003 in purchasing with major international groups (Bouygues Construction, Soletanche Bachy, Louvre Hotels). In 2011, he joined a recruitment firm as an expert consultant in industry and then co-founded the firm CPO Recruitment, specialising in senior management and executive profiles, with particular expertise in purchasing and supply chain professions. In 2016, he moved to Décideurs Magazine and developed the content offer (HR, recruitment, change management, etc.) for executives and HR directors of major French groups. He joins the Grant Alexander office in Nantes as an Executive Search consultant, with a view to supporting the group’s development in the West of France.

 “We are delighted to welcome Isabelle and Charles to the group. They will strengthen our presence in segments where we had little or no previous presence and in dynamic regions, enabling us to establish and maintain a close relationship with business leaders, and to be their local partner for all HR and leadership issues,” says Henri Vidalinc, Chairman of Grant Alexander.

About Grant Alexander

For 30 years, Grant Alexander has been using its direct approach to help companies and organisations of all sizes to recruit executives, managers and experts who can enhance their performance. Today, this multi-specialist Human Resources consulting and services firm deploys a multi-disciplinary approach to provide a global response to HR departments and CEOs. This approach is based on four complementary areas of expertise: direct approaches to senior executives and outstanding profiles, transition and transformation management, development of managerial skills, and consulting and support for HR departments. To support the development of managerial performance, Grant Alexander has developed a proprietary methodology known as Athlete Thinking®, designed together with sports coaches and mental trainers.

The firm currently has 50 employees and operates throughout France from offices in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, and Toulouse, and internationally through a network of partners.

www.grantalexander.com

Contact

Emmanuelle Farand

Marketing and Communication Director

Grant Alexander

06 75 88 32 93

emmanuelle.farand@grantalexander.com

To support its growth strategy in the interim management business, Grant Alexander strengthens its teams

A historic player in the direct approach recruitment market, Grant Alexander is continuing its development as a multi-specialist human resources consulting and services firm, offering its clients support, since 2016, for their specific and urgent needs in operational skills with C-levels executives interim management. In 4 years, and thanks to very strong growth in this activity, Grant Alexander has succeeded in positioning itself among the key players in the business.

In a context of increased transformations within companies, the firm is today strengthening its capacity to accompany them and is thus pursuing its development strategy with the recruitment of three people.

Antoine Grenet and Matthieu Jan join the group as Associate Directors.

After graduating from SKEMA Business School in 2006, Antoine Grenet began his career with Danone in business development functions in France and then internationally, in Asia, Africa and Oceania. At Kraftfoods, then Mondelez International, he was successively in charge of category development, negotiations with key accounts and then the National Sales Department. A player in numerous transformations for more than 14 years, he has developed a global expertise in change management and the evolution of organizations.

A graduate of the Panthéon Assas University (Paris II) with a Master’s degree in Marketing, Matthieu Jan began his professional career by marketing the offer of one of the first hotel reservation web platforms. He then joined an Ipsos subsidiary specialising in data processing, where he successively held key positions in marketing, customer care and sales management. In 2016, he joined a pure player in interim management to develop the “Industry” practice.

Anne-Claire Ohara strengthens the Talent Assessment team.

Anne-Claire Ohara holds a Master 1 AES degree from the Panthéon-Assas University and a Master 2 in Human Resources Development from the Institut Catholique de Paris. She joined an Executive Search firm as a research officer, before joining a salary management company where she assisted entrepreneurs managers in their consulting activities. She then took charge of the recruitment and animation of a network of consultants and interim managers working with SMEs on behalf of a public investment bank.

“We are very pleased to welcome Antoine, Matthieu and Anne-Claire to our team dedicated to the Executive Interim business, which now numbers 10 people and will be further expanded in the coming months. Anne-Claire is an expert in sourcing and assessment and brings us her in-depth knowledge of interim managers and community management. Antoine’s experience in change management in the food industry allows us to strengthen our ability to assist organizations in their various transformation projects, with a focus on the development of the Greater West region. Matthieu, finally, knows the business very well and has already been assisting many companies for several years with their transition needs. His experience and appetite for digital tools will be real assets to support our development” underlines Alban Azzopardi, Managing Director of Grant Alexander – Executive Interim.

About Grant Alexander

For 30 years, Grant Alexander has been helping companies and organizations of all sizes to recruit executives, managers and experts who will serve their performance. Today, this multi-specialist Human Resources consulting and services firm offers a multi-disciplinary approach to provide a global response to HR departments and CEOs, based on 4 complementary areas of expertise: direct approach to senior executives and rare profiles, transition and transformation management, development of managerial skills, consulting and support for HR departments. To support the development of managerial performance, Grant Alexander has developed a proprietary methodology, designed with sports coaches and mental trainers: Athlete Thinking®.

Today, the firm has 50 employees and operates throughout France from offices in Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Toulouse, and internationally through a network of partners.

Contact us :

Alban Azzopardi

Chief Executive Officer

Grant Alexander – Executive Interim

+33 6 33 01 56 35

alban.azzopardi@grantalexander.com

Emmanuelle Farand

Marketing and Communication Director

Grant Alexander

+33 6 75 88 32 93

emmanuelle.farand@grantalexander.com

François Humblot, fondator of our cabinet 30 years ago and Director Associate of Grant Alexander, give us his vision of the market of recruitement of executives over the last few years and his outlook.

The executive search market is booming, and has been breaking records every year since 2016.

But it is a cyclical market that can vary greatly from one year to the next, as shown by the figures* for the last forty years.

1993 was the worst year ever for the executive search market, which reached a low of 71,000 new hires.

In 2007, the number of executive hires topped the 200,000 mark for the first time, peaking at 208,000, only to fall back to 143,000 in 2009!

But expansion has continued steadily since 2010, and for the past four years we have been seeing record growth figures: the first at 218,000 hires in 2016, followed by 240,000 in 2017 and 266,400 in 2018.

The latest APEC (executive hire association) study of July 2019 forecast a record 280,000 recruitments in 2019 and still anticipates a slight growth of 3% per year in 2020 and 2021, which would culminate in 300,000 executive recruitments in two years’ time.

The executive unemployment rate is currently below 3%, which corresponds to full employment.

These excellent figures can be explained by the growth of the service sector and the major transformations facing companies.

Digitisation, energy transition and new forms of organisation mean that ever more managers and experts need to be hired.

This situation would be ideal for executives if the labour market were a real market, within the economic meaning of the term, i.e. with total fluidity between job providers and job seekers. But this is far from the case: each executive is in a specific market, and in a position of strength or weakness depending on their skills and current attractiveness to companies.

The job market for executives is certainly at full employment, but this truth embraces a wide range of realities.  

As “headhunters”, we are well positioned to see this.

There is a complete dearth of applicants for some jobs, as with positions for experts in Digital and IS firms, certain CEO positions, and Studies, R&D and Production posts.

On the other hand, for the past few years, professionals in Communication, HR, Administration and Finance have enormous problems in finding new posts: competition between applicants is fierce, and there are far fewer offers than vacant positions.

As many applicants share the same know-how, standing out in these professions most often depends on interpersonal skills: ease in conducting relationships, situational intelligence, open-mindedness, negotiating skills, and so on.

Having been at the forefront of the executive search market for 30 years, I have seen how quickly things change. 

It is clear that these situations are not set in stone and can change over time. So what should we do?

Here are a few tips I’d like to share…

Executives who are in a position of strength today must not take the easy way out by changing jobs too often and systematically going to the highest bidder. This is the surest way to find themselves in difficulty ten years on, with an inconsistent CV that features no valuable experience and no convincing achievements.

Executives in difficulty need to develop ways of being different in the long term, to stand out from their colleagues. For example, international experience, crisis management, transformation management and new activity creation are always valued by hirers.

They also need to prepare very carefully for job interviews if they are to have an edge at that particular moment. As hirers, we observe huge differences between applicants interviewed for the same position: when they have equal or virtually equal skills, meticulous preparation always makes that crucial difference. The person finally taken on is nearly always the one who has asked the most pertinent questions, thus demonstrating an ability to respond quickly to the challenges of the job.

This year, 2020, Grant Alexander is celebrating its 30th anniversary. This makes me very happy and proud.

A big thank you to everyone, applicants and clients alike, who have followed us faithfully since the beginning of Humblot Grant Alexander #Athlete Thinking.

* AP statistics

 François Humblot

Director Associate of Grant Alexander

Tuesday7th of January

IT’S BEEN ANOTHER YEAR OF GREAT GROWTH FOR GRANT ALEXANDER, WITH REVENUES INCREASING BY 37% – THAT’S €11.5 M – IN THE 2018-2019 FINANCIAL YEAR.

GRANT ALEXANDER NOW EMPLOYS 45 PEOPLE.

Grant Alexander continues to develop its business as a multi-specialist HR agency, building up its expertise and sector-specific practices with the arrival of new consultants.

Pierre Brigadeau joined the firm in September as Deputy Managing Director, and his extensive insurance industry experience adds invaluable weight to our Insurance Practice.

Leadership Development is now headed up by Anne-Laure Pams, Consultant & Coach.

Jean-Philippe Collin also joins the ranks of Grant Alexander as Senior Advisor, bringing the benefits of over 40 years’ experience in the industrial sector.

To support the firm’s growth, we are adding a new Toulouse office to our existing Paris, Lyon, Marseille and Nantes bases.

This move springs from Grant Alexander’s policy of decentralizing operations so we can offer localised services, as closely woven into the regional economic fabric as possible.

Headed up by Grégory Garcia-Bratti, the Toulouse team already boasts the skills of Sourcing Manager Marine Jung and an Executive Search Consultant, Morgane Coenen, who specialises in legal and tax practice.

Our Transition Management unit is also thriving.

Grant Alexander Executive Interim has recorded 38% growth and is gradually establishing itself as a key player in the Transition Management market (just three years after inception, it is ranked “Excellent” by Décideurs Magazine).

The team gained two new members this year, with the arrival of Consultant & Associate Director Joelle De Saint-Martin and Talent Assessment Manager Stéphanie Guibot.

For more information contact: veronique.mauge@grantalexander.com