Success tips when working in Europe in 2024
Listed below are a few pointers which Healy Consultants believes will assist our Clients when setting up a business in Europe. While most of these tips are largely applicable to all the European countries, our Clients will still find it useful to refer to our success tips’ page for the individual countries.
- In Europe, businesses will face excessive government regulation. So, we recommend our Clients hire local experts who will assist them with compliance of the national laws. Healy Consultants will pleased to provide this service to our Clients;
- Business meetings in Europe are likely to be very formal and so, our Client will be expected to behave extremely professionally. Please note that tardiness and poor dressing sense can easily scuttle a good business deal;
- Do not assume that all business individuals you meet will be proficient in conversational English. We recommend that our Client inquires about the English language proficiency of the individual beforehand and arranges for a translator to avoid problems during the meeting;
- There is a reluctance to take risks in European corporate culture, which has been greatly exacerbated as the countries struggle to emerge from the recession of 2008. So, be prepared to do massive amounts of research and analysis before every business meeting;
- In Europe, it is cumbersome and expensive to hire non-resident employees. So, we suggest that our Clients focus only on hiring local talent, in order to minimize their compliance obligations and expenses;
- Healy Consultants recommends that our Client maintains a separate fund for litigation purposes because legal recourse by disgruntled employees or former Clients is very likely in case of disputes;
- Labour Unions wield a lot of power in Europe. So, our Clients should expect to dedicate a lot of their time and energy towards negotiations with the unions, in order to avoid disrupting the day-to-day activities of the company;
- The economic slowdown has made it harder for resident companies to secure business finance as banks and other financial institutions are now demanding more extensive due diligence from their potential Clients. Healy Consultants will be pleased to offer due diligence services to our Clients;
- Our Clients must have a website in the local language of the country where they are incorporated. This will serve as an excellent marketing tool;
- Business networking is crucial to working in Europe. Our Clients must make efficient use of social media tools including LinkedIn and Twitter to connect with their business partners and potential customers.
