Managing Director Placement: Finding Leadership for Austria’s Paper Industry

>The Background  
A Promotion Creates an Opening 

A paper manufacturing company in Austria needed to appoint a new Managing Director after the previous incumbent, who had been primarily focused on operations, was promoted to Group CFO. The role involved leading an Austrian operation with several hundred employees.

The company also had new Asian investors. They needed a leader who could run operations well while managing relationships with both local stakeholders and international ownership. 

>The Challenge  
Understanding What Mattered Most 

The new Managing Director would need sector knowledge from either paper or packaging, proven leadership capability, and fluency in both German and English. Lean manufacturing experience was necessary, as was the ability to represent company interests in discussions with local political figures. 

We developed a longlist of about 100 candidates, conducted preliminary interviews, and presented four finalists to the client. 

None of those four moved forward. The feedback revealed something the initial brief had not captured: the company, and especially its Asian investors, wanted someone with many years of senior leadership behind them, not a young executive on the rise. They needed a candidate who could relate to the Group Managing Director as a peer, both professionally and personally. This changed our approach. 

>The Solution  
Turning to Personal Networks 

Instead of continuing with similar profiles, we turned to our networks built through years of actual relationships rather than database searches. 

We found a candidate who had everything the situation required: senior leadership experience, paper sector knowledge, a background in lean manufacturing, and the personal presence to connect with the Group Managing Director. His bilingual fluency and understanding of both European and Asian business cultures suited the ownership structure well. 

He was overqualified for the role and above the initial salary range. But he was exploring new opportunities and was open to the right situation. 

We met with him to assess not just his qualifications but his interest and cultural fit. Then, we presented him to the client. 

The feedback was immediate: he was the right person. 

>The Results  
The Right Leader in 45 Days 

The placement was completed within 45 days. The new Managing Director brought the credibility and experience that both the company and its international investors needed. 

This search reinforced two truths about executive placement at the highest levels: 

• What a client does not explicitly say is often as important as the stated requirements. 
• When new investors come in or ownership structures change, experience and peer relationships can matter more than technical qualifications. 

A genuine network of senior professionals, built through years of direct engagement rather than database access, makes the difference when requirements change midway through a search.