- Countries -

European reach,
local fluency

Six core markets where we run searches week in, week out - and a wider European network whenever a brief takes us beyond them.

- Beyond the six core markets -

We recruit anywhere in Europe and the UK on request

The six countries below are our day-in, day-out hubs. For Belgium, the Nordics, Ireland, Switzerland, Poland, Portugal and the wider European network we run on-demand searches through trusted local partners. Tell us where you need to hire.

Flag of Spain

Spain

ES

Strong reach into Iberian commercial leadership and Spanish-speaking talent for international expansions.

Hubs

  • Madrid
  • Barcelona
  • Valencia
Read more about hiring in Spain
Flag of Italy

Italy

IT

Senior commercial, marketing and engineering placements for Italian markets and southern European HQs.

Hubs

  • Milan
  • Rome
  • Turin
Read more about hiring in Italy
Flag of Portugal

Portugal

PT

Nearshore senior search across Lisbon and Porto - SaaS, fintech, gaming and customer-experience leadership at a lower cost base than Western Europe.

Hubs

  • Lisbon
  • Porto
Read more about hiring in Portugal

Looking to hire in Belgium, the Nordics, Switzerland or further afield? Let's talk - we extend into the wider European network on request. See our six recruitment specialisations or brief us on a new role.

- On the ground across Europe -

Six countries, one accountable partner

Darcie and Erwin travel regularly between the Netherlands, the UK and the wider European market, building the local network we lean on for every cross-border search. That is what lets a US, UK or APAC headquarters hire confidently in Madrid, Munich, Milan, Paris or Amsterdam through a single point of contact.

See how a cross-border search runs, the disciplines we cover, or read more about the people behind the agency.

Discuss a cross-border hire
Darcie and Erwin, founders of Go Ahead HiRe, sitting on Mediterranean tiled steps - representing the cross-border European reach of the agency
Darcie & Erwin - on the road across Europe

- Inside each market -

What hiring there actually looks like

Salary norms, notice periods, the right work-permit instrument and one common cross-border pitfall for each of the six core European markets we run searches in week in, week out.

Hiring in Netherlands

NL

The Netherlands is our home market. From our base in Twente we run senior searches week in, week out across the Randstad - Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht and The Hague - and into the Eindhoven Brainport region for deep-tech, semiconductor and high-tech systems leadership. Roughly 40 percent of our active mandates are placed inside the Netherlands, which means we know the comp bands, the candidate pools and the hiring rituals more intimately here than in any other European market.

Open the Netherlands guide

Hiring in United Kingdom

GB

The United Kingdom is one of our two largest European markets by search volume and the single most internationally connected hiring corridor we operate in. London still anchors UK senior hiring across financial services, B2B SaaS, consumer, life sciences and consulting, but Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol and Cambridge now hold their own for tech, finance and deep-science leadership. Brexit has changed the operational mechanics of cross-border hiring rather than the importance of the UK in a European search.

Open the United Kingdom guide

Hiring in Germany

DE

Germany is the largest economy in Europe and one of our most active senior search markets. The country splits cleanly into three hiring contexts: the established Mittelstand and DAX-listed corporates concentrated in Munich, Stuttgart, Hamburg and the Rhein-Main region; the hyper-growth Berlin scale-up scene; and the increasingly relevant Frankfurt financial corridor. Each context has its own pacing, comp norms, language expectations and decision-making rhythm. Treating Germany as one market is the single fastest way to lose a senior candidate.

Open the Germany guide

Hiring in France

FR

France is one of our largest senior search markets in continental Europe. Paris dominates senior commercial, marketing, finance and tech leadership and remains the obvious entry point for international companies opening a French entity. Lyon, Toulouse, Bordeaux and Nice add real depth in industrial, aerospace, life sciences and consumer leadership outside the capital. Our French searches run in French where required and in English where the working language allows it, with a deliberate emphasis on cultural fluency rather than literal language matching.

Open the France guide

Hiring in Spain

ES

Spain has matured into one of the most active senior hiring markets in southern Europe. Madrid leads on senior corporate, finance, energy and consulting leadership, while Barcelona is the centre of gravity for tech, consumer, e-commerce and lifestyle brand leadership. Valencia, Bilbao, Seville and Malaga add genuine depth across SaaS, fintech, tourism and industrial leadership. Iberia (Spain plus Portugal) is increasingly briefed as a single regional mandate, particularly for SaaS and consumer leadership covering Madrid, Barcelona and Lisbon.

Open the Spain guide

Hiring in Italy

IT

Italy is one of the four largest economies in continental Europe and one of the most distinctive senior hiring markets we operate in. Milan is the unambiguous commercial and finance capital, Rome anchors public-sector adjacent and corporate leadership, Turin carries automotive and industrial leadership, and the Veneto, Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany regions host significant family-owned business and luxury manufacturing leadership. Treating Italy as a single national market is the fastest way to misframe a senior search.

Open the Italy guide

Hiring in Portugal

PT

Portugal is one of Europe's fastest-growing nearshore technology and shared-services destinations and an increasingly active senior search market for us. Lisbon and Porto attract international SaaS, fintech, gaming and customer-experience leadership, supported by strong English proficiency, a large multilingual talent pool and a lower cost base than Western Europe. Lisbon hosts Web Summit and a dense scale-up ecosystem, while Porto offers a fast-growing engineering and product base at a lower cost than Lisbon. Many US and UK scale-ups now use Portugal as an Iberian or Southern European base.

Open the Portugal guide

Beyond the six core countries

On-demand searches in Belgium often follow Dutch or French patterns depending on the region. The Nordics (Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland) share a flat-hierarchy culture that rewards transparent leadership briefs and short interview loops. Switzerland stays its own world for executive comp, particularly Zurich and Geneva, where finance and life-sciences leadership commands premium packages. Ireland's Critical Skills Employment Permit is increasingly used for senior tech and pharma leadership in Dublin and Cork. Tell us where you need to hire and we will be honest about whether we can do justice to the brief.

- Country FAQ -

Coverage, languages and cross-border logistics

Five practical answers about how Go Ahead HiRe runs European searches across multiple countries.

Last reviewed: · Source: goaheadhire.com

Which European countries does Go Ahead HiRe actively recruit in?

Six core markets: the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain and Italy. Together these cover the majority of cross-border European hiring volume. We also run searches on demand into Belgium, the Nordics (Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland), Switzerland, Austria, Ireland, Poland, Portugal and the broader EU. The same six-step process applies in every country.

Related: See the full country list, Brief us on a role outside the core six

Reviewed · Source: goaheadhire.com

How do you source candidates in countries where you do not have a local office?

Go Ahead HiRe operates as a remote-first European boutique with a vetted network of in-country sourcers, language specialists and reference contacts in each of the six core markets. For a search in Madrid, Paris or Berlin we pair a lead consultant in the Netherlands with native-speaking sourcing capacity on the ground, so candidate outreach reads naturally in the local language and we stay within local employment law and salary norms.

Related: See our six-step approach

Reviewed · Source: goaheadhire.com

Which languages can Go Ahead HiRe assess candidates in?

Operationally we work in English. Candidate assessment is comfortable in Dutch, German, French, Spanish, Italian and the Nordic languages through our network of native-speaking partners. For roles requiring rare language combinations (for example Polish + Czech for a CEE regional role, or Portuguese for an Iberian leadership role), we plan the sourcing approach with you up front so language fit is verified before the shortlist stage.

Related: See our cross-border services

Reviewed · Source: goaheadhire.com

Can you handle relocation, work permits and contracts for an international hire?

We do not act as a relocation agency or employer of record, but we coordinate closely with the specialists who do. We brief candidates on what to expect (Dutch 30% ruling, German Blue Card, UK Skilled Worker visa, French talent passport, Spanish digital nomad visa and so on) so there are no surprises during offer stage. We can also recommend trusted partners for global mobility, EOR and immigration counsel.

Related: Discuss a cross-border move

Reviewed · Source: goaheadhire.com

Do you handle truly pan-European or EMEA-wide leadership roles?

Yes - regional and pan-European leadership roles such as VP EMEA, Country Director Europe, Head of EU Sales and CEO Europe are a regular part of our work. For these mandates we map the candidate pool across the relevant countries, advise on the optimal home-base location for the role (often Amsterdam, London, Munich or Paris), and run the same calibrated assessment process in every market.

Related: See who we work with, Start an EMEA search

Reviewed · Source: goaheadhire.com