What DBAO GROUP does

DBAO Group is a French executive search and talent advisory firm headquartered in Saint-Cloud (suburb of Paris), founded in 1997 by Laurence Adda and Isabelle Ouzounoff. The firm specializes in retained executive search — 'Direct Approach' headhunting — for middle and top management positions, targeting candidates not accessible through traditional job postings. Its core service is supplemented by four integrated modules: Retainer partnerships (minimum 6-month subscription plus per-recruitment fee), Leadership Assessment, Integration Coaching (6-month post-hire support), and Benchmark of Organizations.

The firm operates with a deliberately small, dedicated team structure: each search engagement is staffed by a trio of one Partner, one Research Manager, and one Research Associate, supported by the two co-founders. The current team totals four people (two Partners, one Research Manager, one Research Associate). No proprietary technology platform is described; candidate evaluation relies on integration with AssessFirst for personality and behavioral assessment, and the firm is GDPR-compliant with a CNIL registration (declaration n° 1343677).

DBAO Group makes money primarily through professional-services fees on retained search engagements, augmented by recurring retainer subscriptions and fixed per-recruitment fees. Pricing is not publicly disclosed. The firm serves a horizontally diversified enterprise client base across industrial (aeronautics, automotive, packaging, food), luxury and fashion (Dior, Lacoste, Celine, Boucheron, Bollinger), services (Geodis, Eurotunnel, BETC), and tech/startups (Zama, Foodles, Toopi), with primary operations in France and selected international reach across Europe. Distribution is direct enterprise field sales, with brand building through the DBAO News blog and LinkedIn presence.

Name

DBAO GROUP

Legal name

DBAO group

Website

https://dbao-group.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

DBAO Group is a French executive search and talent advisory firm founded in 1997 that recruits middle and top managers for enterprise clients across luxury, industrial, services, and tech sectors, offering retained search, leadership assessment, integration coaching, and organizational benchmarking from a four-person Saint-Cloud team.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint-cloud

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Direct Approach (Retained Search): Headhunting/executive search services for middle and top management positions. Clients are companies and their HR managers seeking senior talent. The firm identifies and approaches ideal candidates by understanding professional motivations, needs, and company culture fit. Services include candidate identification, evaluation, and placement.
2. Retainer Contracts: Partnership agreements with companies enabling the creation of a dedicated database on specific skills to anticipate recurring recruitment needs (sales, marketing, production, profit centre management, etc.). Retainer contracts cover periods of at least 6 months with a monthly subscription and a fixed fee per recruitment.
3. Leadership Assessment: Analysis of candidates' leadership styles for senior executive recruitment. The assessment includes career path review, intrinsic motivation understanding, potential assessment in client environment, and exploration of advancement needs. Results in a confidential report for the client and an in-depth debrief with each candidate.
4. Integration Coaching: Post-recruitment coaching support for newly hired managers. DBAO Group defines clear objectives and success criteria with the recruit and their manager, and supports the coachee over a 6-month period in building their new professional identity.
5. Benchmark of Organizations: Confidential and anonymous study of major trends in a profession in terms of education, salary, profiles, and career development wishes. This strategic information serves as a decision-making tool for managers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

DBAO Group is an executive search firm that identifies, approaches, and evaluates candidates for middle and top management positions in France and internationally on behalf of enterprise clients. Its deliverable is a placed senior hire, supported by retainer partnerships, leadership-style assessments, post-recruitment integration coaching, and strategic organizational benchmarking.

Product overview

DBAO GROUP is an executive search (headhunting) firm founded in 1997, operating as a single-service consultancy rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The company's core offering is the Direct Approach service for identifying and placing executives and senior managers in France and internationally. This is supplemented by five integrated service modules: Retainer (ongoing partnership agreements), Leadership Assessment (leadership style evaluation), Integration Coaching (post-recruitment support), Benchmark of Organizations (market intelligence), and Candidate Services (personality evaluation via ASSESSFIRST, application follow-up, and integration tracking). All services are delivered by a dedicated team of 3 people per recruitment (Partner + Research Manager + Research Associate).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Approche Directe (Direct Approach) — Executive Search Retained executive search (headhunting) for middle and top management positions. DBAO Group identifies, contacts and evaluates senior candidates who are not accessible through traditional job advertising, both in France and internationally, and supports the client through to placement.
• Retainer Partnership Agreement Multi-month retainer (minimum 6 months) under which DBAO Group builds and maintains a dedicated candidate database on specific skills (sales, marketing, production, profit centre management, etc.) to anticipate and reduce search time for recurring recruitment needs. Engagements combine a monthly subscription with a fixed fee per recruitment completed.
• Leadership Assessment Standalone analysis of a senior candidate's leadership style, comprising review of the candidate's career path, understanding of intrinsic motivation, assessment of potential within the client company's environment, and exploration of advancement needs. Output is a confidential report to the client together with an in-depth debrief with each candidate, used in support of senior executive recruitment.
• Coaching d'Intégration (Integration Coaching) Post-recruitment coaching for newly placed managers. DBAO Group defines clear objectives and success criteria with the new hire and their manager, then supports the coachee over a 6-month period in building their new professional identity, and conducts an integration assessment at the midpoint of the trial period.
• Benchmark d'organisations (Benchmark of Organizations) Confidential and anonymous study of the major trends within a given profession — covering education, salary, typical profiles, and career development wishes — delivered as a strategic decision-making tool for managers.

Quantifiable outcome

• DBAO Group offers integration assessment at the midpoint of the trial period for hired candidates, providing quality control on placements.

Named customers51 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• a2Da DigitalminorOthersa2Da Digital provides design, hosting, and SEO services for DBAO Group's website (dbao-group.com). Contact: [email protected].
• Association "A compétences égales"minorOthersThe entire DBAO Group team has been trained in non-discrimination by the Association 'A compétences égales' (Equal Skills Association), a French organization dedicated to promoting non-discrimination in employment and recruitment.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Michael Page: Specialist recruitment group operating in France across multiple disciplines, including senior management recruitment. Adjacent rather than direct competitor, but competes for the same mid-to-senior management mandates.
• Egon Zehnder: Global executive search and leadership advisory firm, founded in Switzerland and with a deep European presence in France. Comparable retained-search and leadership assessment model aimed at senior executives.
• Robert Half: Global staffing and recruitment firm with a dedicated executive search practice and broad French operations. Overlaps with DBAO in senior-level placements, though with a much wider service portfolio.
• Russell Reynolds Associates: Global executive search firm focused on senior leadership and board appointments, with a meaningful European and industrial/luxury practice that competes for the same client mandates as DBAO.
• Korn Ferry: Large global organizational consulting firm with an executive search division that competes for senior mandates in France and Europe, alongside broader talent advisory and RPO services.
• Spencer Stuart: One of the leading global executive search firms, with a strong board and CEO practice across consumer, industrial, and financial services in Europe. Overlaps with DBAO's senior management and board-level search mandate.
• Heidrick & Struggles: Global executive search and leadership advisory firm with deep presence across Europe and a strong luxury/consumer practice. Directly comparable service offering (retained search, leadership assessment) but at significantly larger scale and broader geographic reach than DBAO.
• Hays: Global recruitment and workforce solutions provider with significant French operations across professional disciplines, including senior appointments. Comparable candidate-sourcing capability at greater scale.

Direct peers

• Amrop: Global partnership of executive search firms with strong European and particularly French footprint; closely comparable retained-search boutique model serving industrial, consumer, and tech sectors.

Emerging players

• LHH (LHH Recruitment Solutions): Talent and career transition firm (part of The Adecco Group) offering executive search and leadership development; competes with DBAO's Leadership Assessment and Integration Coaching practices.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dbao-group

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about DBAO GROUP