Are you regularly
confronted with foreign CVs and resumes?
Do you know
how to target the best graduates in a foreign country?
Do international applicants still scare you?
If your are
looking for any of the answers to the above questions have a look
at the ELM sources that help you to successfully recruit in another
country:
See the highlight reports in PDF below (click on flag of country
of interest)
Recruitment
Culture in China: The
Dutch magazine Management Team runs an article about the difficulties
of expat life in China and how difficult it is for expat managers
to run their organisations in the Chinese market. On the 12th of October
2006, Nannette Ripmeester spoke at a conference in London about recruitment in China and how to make it work.
Within 10 years 75.000 managers with international experience are
needed in China, whereas now only 4.000 are available. Click if you
want to find out about recruiting
in China or if you want to do
business successfully in China.
Click on the flag of the country to view the information sheet (PDF).
If you want to view the pdf-file you have to install Acrobat Reader.
You can download this programme for free.
Recruiting in Australia In
a country where class barriers are virtually non-existent, employers
are more interested in whether a candidate is able to do the
job, than to which school or university he or she went. Fake
behaviour and bragging is not much appreciated in Australia
- down-to-earth honesty and straightforwardness are preferred.
Employers are more interested in 'the right attitude'. For candidates
it is more important to demonstrate what they have done with
their talents than showing what talents they might posses.
Recruiting in Austria
Candidates should arrive at least 15 minutes before the job
interview advances in the building. They have to make sure they
are dressed formal; women are advised to wear skirts (not too
short!) And men need to wear a suit for their application interview.
Recruiting in Belgium
Language plays an important role in this country. Candidates
need to be aware of this as writing an application letter in
French will not gain them any bonus points by a Flemish company!
Recruiting in Canada
The application procedure in Canada is more commercial than
in most other Western countries. By consequence both the letter
and the resume (Canadians speak about resumes instead of CVs)
contain words that express accomplishment and action. This said,
there are some differences within the country itself. In English-speaking
Canada applying for a job is very much like in the US: You have
to sell yourself. But in the French part of the country it is
more formal and a little less direct.
Recruiting in China
Letters of recommendation from academic supervisor and/or employers
are essential for Chinese candidates to positively back-up their
capabilities.
Recruiting in the Czech Republic
Chronological, functional CVs in which the information is structured
per item are relatively new, but because many - especially foreign
- companies like a biography presented in this format, most
candidates have got into this habit now. Czech candidates still
specify exactly when and where they have studied
what (i.e they mention the discipline into some extent).
Recruiting in Cyprus Be aware of the importance of personal
contacts. It is the numebr one methode of recruiting people.
Recruiting in Denmark
Application letters will never start with "Dear Mr/Ms X",
instead candidates will write at the beginning "for the
attention of Mr/Ms X" or they will put "Reference:
personnel manager of XXX" on top of the letter.
Recruiting in Estonia The most successful way of finding
suitable candidates in Estonia is through job advertisements
in both national and local newspapers and through Estionian
jobsites.
Recruiting in Finland
The importance Finns attach to interpersonal relations is reflected
during the interview. Candidates will try to prove their social
skills, communication skills and teamwork abilities. For Finns
teamwork skills are more important than a candidate's technical
competencies.
Recruiting in France
Some French candidates might send a hand-written application
letter as graphology is still a wide-used selection method in
France. Be not surprised by this!
Recruiting in Germany
A German CV is something totally different compared to the CVs
of other European countries. It is in strict chronological order
(Tabellarischen Lebenslauf), with a photo attached with a paper
clip to the right above corner. Nothing is being left out, which
leads to CVs of 2 to 5 pages. Together with the supporting material,
neatly bound, this can easily lead to a package of between 10
and 20 pages. Do note that unsuccessful candidates expect their
application returned.
Recruiting in Greece
Any Greek candidate will provide you with at least of few letters
of recommendation.
Recruiting in Hungary
The best method to recruit a suitable Hungarian candidates is
through personal contacts. Press advertisements are usually
less successful, but certainly worth trying.
Recruiting in Iceland
Icelandic candidates are usually fluent in more than just one
foreign language.
Recruiting in India
Indian candidates ask rather direct about their chances in
your organisation - be not surprised by this. Please note
that Indian CVs never include place of birth, race or religion.
Recruiting in Ireland
Ireland and the UK are often mentioned together, however in
Ireland the focus is more on personal development. As a consequence
Irish candidates appear less competitive than most Bristish
candidates will.
Recruiting in Italy
To recuit the best graduates in Italy try to organise a dinner
at the campus you want to recruit from and ask the professor
to inform you which are the best students. Spend some time and
money in making sure that the dinner is excellent. Invite a
good guest speaker. Ensure you have your (local) recruiters
seated at each of the tables. This will give you the excellent
opportunity to select the best candidates, without having to
go through all the reactions that a press advertisement will
automatically lead to.
Recruiting in Japan
Most Japanese candidates are not that familiar with writing
CVs and resumes and might find it difficult to write a good
CV. For them it is more common to complete a standard application
form.
Recruiting in Latvia
The amount of Internet CV databases and jobsites
is growing tremendously and these have proved to be a successful
means of finding suitable candidates.
Recruiting in Lithuania The Lithuanian Labour Exchange (www.ldb.lt)
is a state institution which provides free of charge services
and information for everyone active on the Lithuanian labour
market. This service provides all kinds of information on
the Lithuanian labour market. This agency consists of one
national and 46 local labour exchanges.
Recruiting in Luxembourg
Please note that Luxembourg does not have a full university
system.
Recruiting in Malta Due to the small size of the country and the dense population
there are many interconnected networks. Business is highly dependent
of these networks and personal contacts. It is not surprising
that the best candidates are found through personal contacts.
Recruiting in the Netherlands
Dutch candidates are rather direct in their approach of employers.
Even with little or no experience they might respond to jobs
that require management experience. The economic downturn in
the Netherlands has brought the market slightly back into perspective:
Candidates again need to be able to demonstrate that they are
good at something.
Recruiting in New Zealand Probably
one of the best ways to recuit suitable candidates is through
the Internet. Use of New Zealand site to advertise your jobs.
Recruiting in Norway
Norwegian CVs always start with the candidate's personal details,
including name, address, date of birth (note that the day, the
month and the year are written densely together, without blank
spaces or dots in between), telephone number and their civil
status.
Recruiting in Poland
Use the national newspaper "Gazeta Wyborcza" for your
job advertisements. In particular the supplement on Mondays,
"Job", is well read. Plus another advantage; most
of the advertisements are in English.
Recruiting in Portugal
Portuguese candidates send in rather detailed CVs. For a Portuguese
employer it is important to know if a candidate has been allowed
any courses by their previous boss. This is reflected in a detailed
section with training-on-the-job.
Recruiting in Romania
Please note that degree relevance is important in Romania, i.e.
economics students become economists and language students become
teachers.
Recruiting in Russia
CVs are normally handwritten and very detailed. Russian employers
expect a biography in full sentences, explaining everything
a candidate has done.
Recruiting in Singapore
Candidates from Singapore are usually fluent in several languages
including English. Singapore is a good stepping stone for businesses
into the Asian market.
Recruiting in Slovakia For senior and managerial positions a Slovak or international
recruitment agency with a branch office in Slovakia is probably
the best method of finding suitable candidates.
Recruiting in Slovenia Ever since its independence in 1991
Slovenia has been one of the most successful countries in
transition from a socialist to a market economy. Thanks to
privatisation of the economy, stabilisation of inflation and
pay increases, the decrease in unemployment, the strong currency
and modern tax system Slovenia has been successfully transferring
its economy from a socialist economy to a market economy.
This has had effects on the recruitment process; candidates
are used to Western European application procedures ... but
expect similar salaries too.
Recruiting in South Africa
South African employers think post-school education is very
important. You will see this reflected in both the application
letters and CVs from South African candidates.
Recruiting in Spain
The use of posters on campus is highly effective.
Recruiting in Sweden
Be aware of the fact that during a public sector job interview
there is usually a trade union representative present, i.e.
a person working within your organisation who is a member of
the trade union.
Recruiting in Switzerland
Many Swiss candidates are fluent in several langues due to the
trilingual nature of the country. Swiss candidates are used
to filling in on-line applications and assessment tests.
Recruiting in United Arab Emirates
Be aware that there is an UAE law which aims to stop people
from job-hopping. This law enables former employers to give
an ex-employee a (minimum) six months ban from working in the
United Arab Emirates if they resign from a job after only a
short period. Such a candidate is not able to accept another
job unless the former employer agrees before the person was
banned.
Recruiting in the United Kingdom
The British are focussed on results, competencies and competition.
This is clearly displayed in the format of the British CV in
which reached goals, achieved results and hobbies hold a prominent
position.
Recruiting in the United States of America
Americans use many ‘power words' in their resume (note
they do not call it a CV) that show accomplishment and action.
Bear in mind that looking for a job is much like selling a product.
Accordingly American candidates might appear very forceful and
strong in their quest for a job.
On this particular
subject ELM holds more information, which is available through our
service HR Abroad, our guides and our courses.
In case you need more information, do not hesitate to contact
us.
Are you recruiting
from abroad? 
Recruiting in China
Recruiting in France
Recruiting in Greece
Recruiting in Hungary
Recruiting in Iceland
Recruiting in Luxembourg
Recruiting in New Zealand
Recruiting in Romania
Recruiting in Russia
Recruiting in Spain
