Interview with Blandine CORDIER-PALASSE, Le magazine du MEDEF Paris N°55, p.68.
Specialists in recruitment for "strategic protection" functions - legal, risk, management, compliance, finance, BCP Executive Search supports its customers in strengthening their human capital. These legal and extra-financial risk management functions have become strategic for companies and their executives.
BCP Executive Search is one of the leading recruitment consultancies for legal and compliance functions and a specialist in "strategic protection". Can you tell us a little more about yourself?
The firm's DNA is based on our desire to ensure the long-term growth of companies, in particular by positioning the functions that ensure their strategic protection. We identify talent that is compatible with the company's strategy, organisation and culture, both in France and internationally.
Before setting up BCP Executive Search in 2010, I worked as a lawyer in an Anglo-Saxon law firm and then as a legal director and company secretary in listed international groups and an investment fund. My partner was also a lawyer. This gave us an insight into different business sectors and enabled us to work with a wide range of managers, particularly on a variety of governance issues.
This rich operational experience has nourished our approach to headhunting and our DNA.
Over the years, our firm has developed visibility and legitimacy in the legal functions. At the same time, I co-founded the Cercle de la Compliance in 2011, because there was an urgent need to raise awareness among senior managers of compliance issues, which I sensed were on the rise in France.
Today, our team helps groups to structure their strategic functions.
What is "strategic protection" and what can you offer companies in practical terms?
"Strategic Protection" reflects our conviction that the real purpose of the legal, risk, compliance, finance and governance functions is to protect - not restrict - the company's strategy. Properly integrated, they provide creativity and protection, and are a real competitive lever for the company in relation to its ecosystem. As one CEO told me: "Our legal creativity is our margin".
Our mission is to advise managers - by providing tailor-made solutions for each individual - and to recruit the specialised profiles who will provide this 'strategic protection'.
Can you illustrate your process?
We analyse the company's environment in terms of positioning, culture, risks, geographical exposure, history and management to identify the real need. Our aim is to select the most suitable candidates, who are able to address the company's issues and risks, create added value through their skills and know-how and integrate culturally.
In addition to an operational vision, you also have a highly differentiating "Think or the box" approach. What does this entail?
Some recruit to replace existing staff, without taking the time to analyse the changing environment and therefore without (re)defining the profile that will best support the group's strategy.
We can identify the customer's real needs and validate the candidates' skills, their deep-rooted motivations and their inspirations to find the best fit.
Another strength is our focus on the real issues facing our customers and prospects, thanks to our involvement in think tanks and our involvement in training courses for directors, compliance officers and legal directors at leading schools and universities. This puts us right at the heart of developments in functions, and even business lines and risks, both regulatory and cultural, so that we can anticipate trends.
By combining the ability to anticipate changes in organisations and business lines with an understanding of the challenges facing the company and how it operates, we become a highly valued partner when it comes to implementing human resources strategies.
What is your outlook for the coming years?
It is clear that the strategic protection of the company is a topical issue, and one that concerns an ever-increasing number of functions. For example, the duties of a CFO include an increasingly strategic component. Given our experience, companies are asking us to help them recruit, which has led us to develop expertise in finance and general management.
At the same time, in partnership with Stratelio, we are creating a new offering for assessing Codir/Comex and Boards of Directors/Supervisory Boards. Since a company's long-term survival depends on robust governance and bodies, we help managers and board members to identify their professional strengths so that they can align their work with their driving forces. This is an increasingly pressing requirement, not only for the benefit of shareholders and the sustainable success of the company, but also for stakeholders such as investors, who use it as an element in their preliminary analysis of performance in order to contribute to the development of these companies.
As well as assessing Codir/Comex and Boards of Directors/Supervisory Boards, we recruit more experienced managers and directors.
Finally, we are developing a third area in response to the growing demand for senior CSR experts and managers. In our interviews, we found that senior managers are realising that social and environmental responsibility go beyond communication issues to become strategic. Here again, being a pioneer in strategic corporate protection helps us to support them in meeting these new challenges.
And to conclude?
For BCP Executive Search, recruitment is first and foremost a dialogue based on listening and trust, which enables us to create a human strategy that sets us apart. It's also a great opportunity to recruit the right candidate who will be able to adapt to a changing environment, protect the company's strategy and support its growth over the next 5 or 10 years.
Our prospects for expansion, with the strengthening of our teams and the development of our Comex/Codir and Board of Directors/Supervisory Board assessment services, will enable us to respond ever more effectively to companies' needs. And that's exciting!
See also:
BCP EXECUTIVE SEARCH IN BRIEF
Founded in 2010 and headed by Blandine Cordier-Palasse, BCP Executive Search is a niche consultancy specialising in organisational consulting and recruitment in the legal, compliance, risk management, finance and governance functions for French and international groups, investment funds, law firms and consultancies.
