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Neumann Partners, one of Europe's leading executive search agencies announced today (March 21) the opening of its Hong Kong office, its first in Asia.
The office will be the regional headquarters for the Austrian firm, serving all industries and specialising in the banking sector. It will supervise the opening of subsidiaries in key Asia-Pacific cities over the coming years, starting with Shanghai hopefully before the end of 2007, explained Managing Partner Asia Pacific, Ms Helene Krieff.
"I am thrilled by this new challenge and confident in our company's prospect given the utmost quality of service we deliver to clients . Our motto says 'we are where our clients need us' - now we are here to serve international clients, and more particularly European companies, who need our help to bridge the cultural gap and who need solutions," said Ms Krieff.
Prior to the move, Neumann Partners covered the Asia region for more than 20 years from its 'Asia Competence Desk' based in Germany. The opening of the Hong Kong office is in line with the company's strategy to become a leading human resource partner to clients across the Asia region.
"Hong Kong - likewise Asia in general - remains the location of choice for entrepreneurs. In response to the ever changing and growing economy of this market place, a workforce with highly professional, talented and responsible candidates is a crucial component to the success of a company," said Ms Krieff.
CEO and partner of the group, Mr Hans Jorda, added, "I've seen a lot of markets around the world, and this is definitely one of the most fascinating. The positive energy, the soul, the culture - you feel so much substance here which sadly is lacking too often in the rest of the world."
"As the market leader in Central and Eastern Europe we see a lot of similarity in Asia where the challenges to hire, develop, and retain people require a specific know-how. Our aim is to become a truly international executive search boutique, recognised as experts in expanding markets. In that respect, Asia will most likely become the region with the largest growth for our group," said Mr Jorda.
Associate Director-General of Investment Promotion at Invest Hong Kong, Mr Simon Galpin, said, "With the growing number of multinational companies in Asia, the demand for high-level professionals has never been more intense. International executive search agencies are well-positioned to bridge the cultural gap for multinational companies - particularly those from Europe - and assist in identifying talent in the local human resource market."
Neumann Leadership Group was founded by Helmut Neumann, considered a pioneer in executive search. Under Hans Jorda, the current group CEO, the company was the first executive search agency to open in the former "Eastern Block" countries in 1989. Neumann Partners now have 22 offices worldwide with over 100 employees. For more information: www.neumannpartners.com.
Invest Hong Kong is the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government department charged with encouraging and facilitating inward investment into the city by providing the support needed to establish or expand a business presence here. For more information: www.investhk.gov.hk.
Ends/Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Issued at HKT 18:31
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