Hightech Partners Adds Technology, Digital Executive

July 1, 2020 – Digital-focused executive search firm Hightech Partners (HTP) has expanded with the addition of Jean-Christophe Legrand, a senior executive in technology and digital, to help develop the firm’s international business. His appointment strengthens HTP’s strategy as a global leader in the field of digital executive-level recruitment, but also as advisor to clients on the talent aspects of digital transformation in all aspects of their businesses.

“After the first wave of digital transformation in industries such as banking, telecom and consumer goods, the worldwide corona-crisis has again demonstrated the power of new technologies to support business growth and even basic business continuity,” said Raffaele Jacovelli and Bert Vermeiren, managing directors of HTP. “Many companies in many industries have now discovered the power of the virtual way of working, replacing traditional models of client interaction, team and project progress monitoring, candidate interviews, worldwide supply chain management, etc. Jean-Christophe’s network and involvement in different markets and his ability to advise business leaders on strategic level, is an important asset for the future strategy of our firm.”

“Our clients come to us to help them find and develop the talent to support these massive changes in their way of working and Jean-Christophe with his strong background in digital transformation will perfectly understands their needs and can help them find the right solution,” said Messrs. Jacovelli and Vermeiren.

Deep Experience

Before joining Hightech Partners, Mr. Legrand worked for 25 years for Accenture, where he helped clients across large international technology and digital transformation programs. He covered various industries including retail, consumer goods, pharma, automotive, manufacturing, construction, travel, transportation, oil and telecoms. He also managed large international teams and P&Ls at France, Benelux and European level. Mr. Legrand holds an engineering degree from the Ecole Centrale Nantes. He is fluent in French and English and lives with his family in the Paris region, France.

“Hightech Partners is delighted about the arrival of Jean-Christophe,” said HTP. “He has a deep background in technology and consulting, is a true believer that the best talent is the most important asset in any business organization, and is convinced that executives should be more conscious about their next career step, building on their experience but also embracing the new economic and business challenges. This is even more true in the digital world where things are changing faster and faster, which makes it more important to continuously develop your skills.”

 “I am really proud and excited to join Hightech Partners,” said Mr. Legrand. “In its 35 years of existence, the company has developed an impressive set of methodology, tools and network, leading them to become one of the prominent European leaders in digital and technology executive search.”

Digital Transformation

“I am impressed to see that, following the digitization, HTP in the last few years started proposing a comprehensive set of digital talent services to its clients, such as executive education workshops, management assessment, tailored middle management recruitment solutions and even AI initiatives to help discover digital talent and funding to finance digital talent start-ups and initiatives,” said Mr. Legrand.

Hightech Partners specializes in digital transformation. The firm leverages forward-looking methods such as big data analysis and artificial intelligence into the executive search process to help companies embrace new ways of working. HTP has offices in Brussels and Geneva, Switzerland with local partners across the major regions of Europe. The firm also founded ITP Worldwide, an alliance of specialized search and consulting firms in the technology industry in the U.S. and Asia.

Not so long ago, the executive search firm itself underwent a transformation that involved engaging the newest technologies in executive-level recruitment and broadening the scope of its activity to reskilling services. The idea was to help companies embrace digitization and innovation through the discovery and development of new talents. Because digital transformation is at the strategic heart of many businesses and no longer limited to ICT-functions.

“While the fintech industry has embraced digital transformation since a few years, we now see that also many other large and small companies are investing in digital technologies such as data analytics, artificial intelligence, blockchain, IoT, cloud and mobile applications, cybersecurity etc. and that the need for talent leading those changes is growing exponentially,” said Mr. Jacovelli.

“We are in a very good position to help our clients in these areas as we have been developing and recruiting digital talent for 34 years, and we have been closely observing such technologies since the early stage of their development,” he said. “In fact our clients come to us especially when it becomes more difficult to locate and motivate to change the rare talents that fully understand and master the transformation leveraging such technologies.”

Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; and Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media

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