Agricultural executive search firm
Leaderia recruits qualified executives, managers and experts for the agricultural sector: agricultural equipment (farm and livestock equipment), agricultural supplies (seeds, phytosanitary products, etc.), plant and animal production, animal nutrition and health, environment and energy, new technologies, winegrowing supplies and equipment.
What agricultural companies do we hunt for?
We recruit on a permanent or interim basis for companies of all shapes and sizes:
- Agricultural cooperatives: generalist, cereal, dairy, wine, fruit, vegetable, sugar, livestock, horticultural, forestry cooperatives
- Agricultural machinery: manufacturers (tractors, equipment, milking equipment), dealers (agricultural, green spaces)
- Agri-businesses: cereals, plant protection products, seeds, inputs (fertilisers and pesticides), animal feed, wine products, oils and oilseeds, fruit and vegetables, wood and forestry products, organic products, bioenergy, etc.
- Agribusiness: seed companies, fertiliser manufacturers, crop protection product manufacturers
- Crop protection: biocontrol, biostimulants
What agricultural professions are we recruiting for?
The agricultural world is short of labour at all levels and needs to work on its attractiveness to attract the talent who will be able to commit, invest themselves and see the interest and richness of the companies and professions in this sector.
To support this ambition, Leaderia has adapted its recruitment approach to attract more experienced candidates. Here are the professions in which we have been looking for talent in this sector:
- Managing Director of a farming cooperative
- Chief Executive Officer
- Agricultural concession manager
- Agricultural Director
- Head of Agricultural Division
- Branch Director
- Industry Director
- Country Manager
- Farm Manager
- Agricultural Product Processing Director
- Sales Director
- Marketing Director
- Operations Director
- Business Unit Manager
- Quality Director
- Human Resources Director
- Chief Financial Officer
- Sales Director
- Marketing Director
- Site Manager
- Area Manager
- Regional Manager
- Business Manager
- Head of sales
- Export sales manager
- Logistics Director
- Information Systems Director
- Head of Human Resources
- Administrative & Financial Manager
- Payroll manager
- Personnel manager
- Production planning manager
- Robotics centre manager
- Management control manager
- IS Manager
- Industrial management controller
- Indirect buyer
- Technical Director
- Dairy site manager
- Operations Manager
- QHSE Director
- Application engineer
- Livestock advisory engineer
- Technical inspector
- Maintenance & new works manager
- Continuous improvement manager
- Supply manager
- Upstream centre manager
- After-sales service manager
We chase heads with our hearts
Our team of recruiters specialising in the agricultural sector
The full range of Leaderia services
In addition to recruitment, Leaderia can also help you with :
Interim management
If you need specific, immediate expertise for a specific period of time
Professional training
If you want to strengthen the recruitment expertise of your HR teams
More about us
Where do we operate in the world of agriculture?
We operate and recruit throughout France from our offices in Paris and Nantes.
We can also handle your executive search assignments in Europe directly from France, with a particular focus on German and Central European companies. Our team of headhunters speaks French, English, German, Greek and Polish. To guarantee the success of our mandates, we are also supported by our partners in the IARA network.
The IARA (International Agribusiness Recruitment Alliance) network brings together recruitment agencies specialising in agricultural jobs in France, the UK and Germany.
Upcoming trade fairs where you can meet us
Shows in France: Sival, CFIA, SITL, Salon de l’herbe et des fourrages, Innovagri, Potato Europe, SPACE, Salonvert, Sommet Elevage, Agrimax, Pollutec, Salon de l’agriculture, SIA Pro, les culturales, Sitevi, Agrisima, etc.
International trade fairs: Fruit Logistica, Anuga Food Tech, ABIM, Eurotier, Agritechnica
Why choose Leaderia to hunt for your farming talent?
An experienced team at your service:
- Stéphane Loiseau has been recruiting in the agricultural sector for over 20 years
- Philippe Carastamatis has been recruiting in the sector for nearly 10 years
We see ourselves as genuine partners of the clients we work with and advise every year.
Our deliberately small number of clients enables us to adopt a tailor-made approach and respond in a way that is adapted to their corporate culture and territory. Our aim is to maintain a close relationship with our clients over the long term.
Our methodology is based on in-depth knowledge of the agricultural sector, its players and challenges, and on an effective direct approach using an extensive and regularly updated candidate database.
We advise you throughout the recruitment process: discussing your needs, choosing the right sourcing methodology, evaluating candidates using psychometric tests and reference checks, deciding between the finalist candidates, and making managerial recommendations to ensure a smooth integration into your company.
We guarantee the desired degree of confidentiality during the assignment (so not all posts are always posted online).
Our clients include well-known companies in the machinismo sector
How do we recruit in the agricultural sector?
We operate according to the following terms of engagement:
- Exclusivity of the assignment
- 3-stage retainer system: at the start of the assignment, on presentation of a short-list and on recruitment of the successful candidate
- Flat-rate fees of at least €12k
The challenges facing the agricultural sector
With 390,000 farms (including 145,000 devoted to livestock farming) and 49% of its territory covered by agricultural land, France is Europe’s leading agricultural nation, accounting for 18% of European production (or €77 billion)*.
A few other key figures: France is Europe’s leading producer of wheat and maize, the 4th largest producer of fruit and vegetables, and the world’s 6th largest exporter of agri-food products. Beverages, wines and spirits are France’s biggest sellers, accounting for 25% of exports.
The farming world has to deal with numerous constraints: economic, environmental and regulatory, with the number of farms constantly falling.
Farmers are in it for the long haul, with the difficulty of reconciling performance and the living.
Some figures and challenges :
- The profitability of the sector (agri-agro) is in line with the average for French industry.
- Food prices have risen by 17% in 2 years
- Food waste: we throw away around 30% (from soil to plate)
- The food/agriculture/distribution value chain is changing: for example, cooperatives are investing in the retail sector, and millers are buying up all the bakers.
40% of what we eat comes from cooperatives, to which 80% of farmers belong. - Cooperatives have a bright future ahead of them.
The subject of the moment is decarbonisation (scope 1,2,3) – with the reduction of CO2 on transport av
