--- title: "Executive search: recruit your next leaders | Actual group" description: "Recruit the leaders who are not looking. We approach candidates with complete discretion, backed by our 35 years of direct approach experience." canonical_url: "https://www.actualgroup.com/en/companies/needs/executive-search" locale: en meta: "og:description": "Recruit the leaders who are not looking. We approach candidates with complete discretion, backed by our 35 years of direct approach experience." "og:title": "Executive search: recruit your next leaders" --- # **Executive search: recruiting leaders differently.** **120 executive recruitments every year, 35 years of direct approach, a network built in France and Europe, and complete confidentiality from the first discussion to the signature.** [**Discuss in complete confidentiality**](https://www.actualgroup.com/entreprises/contact) **+32 000 entreprises font déjà confiance à Actual** ![La Poste](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-la-poste.webp)![Renault](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-renault.png)![Carrefour](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-carrefour.png)![Orange](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-orange.webp)![Intermarché](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&q_75/logointermarche.svg)![Leclerc](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-leclerc.webp)![Valeo](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-valeo.webp)![Id Logistics](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-id-logistics.webp)![All](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/all-logo.png) ![La Poste](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-la-poste.webp)![Renault](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-renault.png)![Carrefour](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-carrefour.png)![Orange](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-orange.webp)![Intermarché](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&q_75/logointermarche.svg)![Leclerc](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-leclerc.webp)![Valeo](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-valeo.webp)![Id Logistics](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-id-logistics.webp)![All](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/all-logo.png) ![La Poste](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-la-poste.webp)![Renault](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-renault.png)![Carrefour](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-carrefour.png)![Orange](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-orange.webp)![Intermarché](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&q_75/logointermarche.svg)![Leclerc](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-leclerc.webp)![Valeo](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-valeo.webp)![Id Logistics](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-id-logistics.webp)![All](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/all-logo.png) ![La Poste](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-la-poste.webp)![Renault](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-renault.png)![Carrefour](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-carrefour.png)![Orange](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-orange.webp)![Intermarché](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&q_75/logointermarche.svg)![Leclerc](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-leclerc.webp)![Valeo](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-valeo.webp)![Id Logistics](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/logo-id-logistics.webp)![All](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/h_32&f_webp&q_75/all-logo.png) ![Structure métallique moderne et incurvée au motif tressé, s'ouvrant sur un ciel clair.](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/w_1280&f_webp&q_75/https://natural-captain-d84c893901.media.strapiapp.com/how_it_works_0f02da2032.avif) ## **This position will shape the trajectory of your company. And the lives of those who make it.** Recruiting a leader means choosing a direction, a vision, and an impact for the organization, and indirectly for hundreds of employees. Few decisions carry such weight for so long. And this is precisely the hardest type of recruitment to conduct: the profiles capable of holding these positions are currently in office, highly discreet, and have no reason to answer an ad. Often, you cannot even say publicly that you are looking. What is needed, then, is the exact opposite of traditional recruitment: identifying those who do not show themselves, approaching them with discretion, convincing them with precision, and evaluating them with standards that match the stakes. This has been our business for 35 years. [Contact us](https://www.actualgroup.com/en/entreprises/contact) **120** executive recruitments carried out each year **35 years** of experience in direct approach **France & Europe** a network built over more than 30 years **100%** confidential, from first contact to signature ## **Four situations where executive search is essential** **Executive management & co-management** ### **This position shapes everything else.** Executive management, co-management, key roles on the executive committee: the choice will determine the strategy, culture, and results for years to come. You do not leave this search to the chance of random applications. **Confidentiality** ### **No one must know we are looking.** An unannounced replacement, a strategic project, a watchful market: discretion is not a comfort, it is a prerequisite. Our direct approach is built for it. **Invisible talent** ### **The profile I want is not on the market.** The leaders you are targeting are currently in office and are no longer listening to the market. To reach them, you need a network nurtured over decades and to know how to talk to them about more than just a salary. **Alignment** ### **They must share our values, not just our objectives.** A competent but misaligned leader costs more than a vacant position. Cultural and strategic fit is evaluated with the same rigour as their track record. ![Une candidate devant son ordinateur portable prend des notes pour organiser le suivi de ses candidatures.](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/w_1280&f_webp&q_75/https://natural-captain-d84c893901.media.strapiapp.com/7_conseils_pour_bien_gerer_ses_candidatures_facb979682.jpg) ## **Direct approach: going after those who are not looking.** Executive search is an exacting and confidential recruitment method, based on targeted research and direct approach: we identify high-level profiles, often in office, rarely visible, and we go and convince them, one by one. It applies to executive management, co-management, and rare specialist roles. It relies on a network built over more than 30 years in France and Europe, continuous talent monitoring even before your positions open, and an advisory stance, both with you and with the candidates. This is not just a job posting done discreetly. It is a completely different profession. [Entrust us with your recruitment](https://www.actualgroup.com/en/entreprises/contact) ## **Five steps, refined over 35 years** ### **Understand** Your business, human, and cultural challenges, because the right leader for one company is not the right one for another. ### **Define and target** The need defined, the relevant profiles mapped out: the search begins with a map, not a pile of CVs. ### **Approach, with discretion.** Direct and confidential contact with identified candidates; your name only appears when you decide. ### **Evaluate, in depth.** Know-how, posture, soft skills: an in-depth evaluation, matching what the role entails. ### **Support, all the way** From negotiation to signature, and beyond: we remain present during integration, which is where executive recruitments are won or lost. [

**Entrust us with your next recruitment**

](https://www.actualgroup.com/en/entreprises/contact) **Our difference** ## **A more straightforward, useful, and committed approach.** We believe that a successful executive recruitment is not measured by the prestige of the agency, but by the difference it makes to the company. Our approach combines the high standards of top-tier consulting with the local anchoring of a group present in all of France's major economic regions: we know your territories, your industries, and your realities. And we take a clear stance: proposing fair, competent, and responsible leaders, in line with the challenges of transformation, inclusion, and sustainability. Because a leader impacts the lives of hundreds of people, and making work an opportunity also means choosing who leads it. [Contact us](https://www.actualgroup.com/en/entreprises/contact) ![Un professionnel à lunettes échange avec un collègue lors d'un entretien de travail.](https://www.actualgroup.com/_ipx/w_1280&f_webp&q_75/https://natural-captain-d84c893901.media.strapiapp.com/image_article_blog_1000_x_600_px_59_51e8852eba_622d2db285.png) **FAQ** ## **The questions you are asking. And our frank answers.** Through the very structure of the assignment: a dedicated consultant, a restricted circle, and candidates approached without your name being circulated until you decide. Confidentiality is not an option in executive search. It is its founding principle. Not with an advertisement, nor a simple package. With a project: your direction, your culture, and the proposed impact, presented by a consultant the candidate often already knows. This is what 35 years of networking and continuous monitoring concretely change. It is during the first six months that an executive recruitment is decided. Our support continues after the signature, precisely for this reason: to prepare the arrival, follow the first milestones, and make early adjustments where needed. ## What executive search secures, concretely. ### **You gain access to the real leaders in your sector** Not just those who are available: the best, including those you would never have identified on your own. ### **You save time on the slowest decision** The proactive approach and the network reduce the search duration, without ever cutting corners on the evaluation. ### **You choose aligned, with complete discretion** Skills, mindset, values: the match is verified on all three levels, and the process remains confidential from start to finish. ## Is your need slightly different? An executive right away, for a critical phase or a last-minute replacement: that is transition management. An executive or manager to recruit with a rigorous assessment: that is executive recruitment. Each solution has its own page. [**Transition management**](https://www.actualgroup.com/en/companies/needs/management-transition) [**Recruit an executive or manager**](https://www.actualgroup.com/en/entreprises/beoins/recruter-cadre-ou-manager") ## We don't recruit an executive. We choose a Course **And a course is not chosen based on a CV.** Behind every executive recruitment, there is a company trajectory and hundreds of career paths that depend on it. That is why we look for more than just skills: fair, competent, responsible leaders, capable of making work an opportunity for those they will lead. This has been our standard for 35 years. It is non-negotiable. [Contact us](https://www.actualgroup.com/en/entreprises/contact) ## Sitemap See the full [sitemap](/sitemap.md) for all pages.