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Interim
Management
Very often the burden of running an organisation on another continent
with the associated time difference, can seriously over-stretch
a small company. The ability to be able to call upon a trusted,
experienced and accountable manager to ‘get things started’ can
be a critical success factor. We can offer our clients access to
such resources on a part and full time interim basis, with a clearly
defined succession strategy in place right from the outset.
Definition
of Marketing Strategies
The decision to establish a Sales and Marketing organisation in
Europe is an obvious step for a new company looking to maximise
its opportunities in this major economic region. However, many options
are available to maximise the business potential without draining
limited cash and resources. Such options include: setting-up a base
to be used as a European HQ, creation of local sales offices, defining
the best mix of direct sales and distributor networks. Having gone
through this process a number of times, we can help our clients
understand the pros and cons related to the various approaches,
so that they can lay out a clear path to achieve the corporate objectives.
Selection
of Distribution Networks
A network of motivated distributors can be a cost-effective solution
for companies looking to penetrate specific markets. However, distributors
have their own agendas, not necessarily synchronised with those
of the companies that they represent. The selection of a distributor
in a territory is an important decision, which, if done without
adequate research and verification, can seriously impact the path
to profits. We help our clients define the key attributes of an
ideal distributor and then methodically identify the best candidates.
The final step is the negotiation of the distribution contract and
the launching of the product or service through this new channel
and the implications on such considerations as: languagisation of
marketing material, training sessions for the distributor sales
staff, attendance at exhibitions, etc. Our experience in the big
and small picture will seriously lessen the burden on the client
organisation and ensure a rapid and successful business launch in
the territory.
Recruitment
of key personnel throughout Europe
The importance of having ‘the right person in the right position’
cannot be overestimated for a small company. For example, finding
the Country Manager for Germany who has experience in domain of
the clients products and services, who understands the culture of
the mother company, who can operate efficiently within his own market
without daily management, who is resourceful enough to find solutions
to the introduction of new technology or concepts into this wary
but lucrative market, is no small undertaking. A mistake can cost
more than wasted salary and separation costs, it can add years to
the cycle of building the business to profitability by undermining
the potential customer’s confidence in the reliability of the company.
Our experience in Executive Search will enable us to find that ‘needle
in a haystack’ that will ensure our clients future success.
Creation
of legal entities
When the decision to enter the European market has been made and
the various marketing strategies defined, the practical side of
creating legal entities in each different country must be dealt
with. What is the best solution for Germany, an AG or GmbH, or for
France, an S.A. or a Sarl or maybe a ‘Branch office’ ? All of these
solutions have their advantages and disadvantages according to the
business model and the tax efficiencies sought. We can help clients
find their way through this maze of complexity so that the organisational
structure is adapted to the companies objectives
Selection
of optimum location for a European Headquarters
If the corporate strategy is to establish a headquarter operation
in Europe, there are many pros and cons to selecting the best location.
Issues such as: language skills, cultural compatibility, political
stability, local market growth potential, government subsidies,
infrastructure costs, etc all play their part in the decision to
set-up shop in the ‘ideal’ location. With careful analysis of the
clients business objectives, the best location can be identified
and the best deals negotiated with the local authorities.
Interface
with local authorities for negotiation of Grants and Tax Concessions
Many countries or regions offer interesting grants to incoming
companies. However nothing is ever totally ‘for free’. There may
be good reasons to stay away from the big grant regions due to a
variety of less-than-obvious reasons, such as: difficulty in finding
skilled labour, high overall corporate taxation or social costs,
restrictive labour practices, etc. The same applies to the various
tax concessions available for inward investment into certain regions;
definitely worth looking at; but they must be weighed against the
inevitable strings that are attached. We can help our clients to
navigate through these rocky issues and chose the best mix of grants/tax
concessions versus freedom-to-do-business.
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