IESF Member Country:
Vietnam
YBM Partners supports companies in Vietnam and Southeast Asia with executive search and leadership advisory for critical appointments. Its Ho Chi Minh City office combines local presence with more than 25 years of international experience across Europe and Southeast Asia. The firm works across industries and functions, assessing leadership capability, professional experience and fit with the organisation’s culture and future direction.
Yenni Mantwill
Managing Partner at YBM Partners
Executive recruitment in Vietnam – what should you know before entering this market?
Vietnam has become one of Southeast Asia’s most important manufacturing hubs. Foreign investment and export growth are increasing demand for leaders across manufacturing, supply chains, technology and supporting functions. The northern industrial centres around Hanoi and the southern business centres around Ho Chi Minh City offer different sector strengths and talent pools, so the location should be agreed before the search begins.
The shift towards higher-value manufacturing, digitalisation and green transformation is increasing the importance of leaders for manufacturing and high-tech industries. Recruiting senior managers in Vietnam should test the ability to scale operations, develop local teams and implement international standards for quality, safety and compliance. Local leaders with international experience are particularly valuable when the role reports to a regional or global headquarters.
Entering the Vietnamese market requires a clear division of responsibility between headquarters and the local team, with a realistic mandate for the Country Manager or operations director. Senior leadership recruitment in Vietnam should assess both knowledge of the local business environment and the ability to run the organisation in line with group standards. Executive search in Vietnam is more effective when it maps the specific city, industrial cluster and sector.
Investment increases demand for operational leaders
New and expanding facilities need managers who can launch operations, build teams and implement quality and supply-chain standards. The strongest profiles are approached by several international employers, so a clear mandate and efficient decisions matter throughout the search.
International experience narrows the pool
The pool narrows when a role requires local market knowledge, reporting to an overseas headquarters, fluent business English and experience of operating to global standards. These capabilities should be tested through examples of actual decisions and results.
Location changes the search strategy
Northern and southern Vietnam concentrate different industrial clusters, functions and candidate networks. The place of work, travel requirements and willingness to relocate should be agreed before the process begins. A nationwide search without these decisions may create a large but poorly targeted pool.
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