HIRING GREEK EMPLOYEES IN GREECE - WORTH THE INVESTMENT?


“And now we have 7 employees working in Greece. We are not chasing the local market in Greece. They work for us. If you think, other countries have outsourced labor markets. I want Greece to be that for us.”
— George Stroumboulis

ARTICLE SUMMARY

I reflect on building Ideoli’s team in Athens and why investing in people in Greece matters to our international operations. The office was intended to support our wider business, and I discuss the skills, care and commitment I saw from the people working with us.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • The Athens team supports the wider company, beyond serving the local market.

  • My comments focus on the people and capabilities behind the office’s development.

HIRING GREEK EMPLOYEES IN GREECE IS WORTH THE INVESTMENT ON SO MANY LEVELS

With regards to Greece, now is a good time to open an office and to make it official. We launched 1 year ago with a launch party at the Lalaounis Museum right under the Acropolis. 

And now we have 7 employees working in Greece. We are not chasing the local market in Greece. They work for us. If you think, other countries have outsourced labor markets. I want Greece to be that for us.

We have people here with degrees, they think differently, that European mindset. They have that passion. Whatever they do they want it to be perfect.

Let them say about the Greeks what they say. It's about that. The office we opened in Athens is growing, and we have won projects in Greece like new large hotels.

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ΠΡΟΣΛΗΨΗ ΕΛΛΗΝΩΝ ΕΡΓΑΖΟΜΕΝΩΝ ΣΤΗΝ ΕΛΛΑΔΑ

Όσον αφορά την Ελλάδα, τώρα είναι η κατάλληλη στιγμή για να ανοίξετε ένα γραφείο και να το επισημοποιήσετε. Ξεκινήσαμε πριν από 1 χρόνο με ένα launch party στο Μουσείο Λαλαούνη ακριβώς κάτω από την Ακρόπολη. Και τώρα έχουμε 7 υπαλλήλους που εργάζονται στην Ελλάδα. 

Δεν κυνηγάμε την τοπική αγορά στην Ελλάδα. Δουλεύουν για εμάς. Αν νομίζετε, άλλες χώρες έχουν αναθέσει σε εξωτερικούς συνεργάτες τις αγορές εργασίας. Θέλω η Ελλάδα να είναι αυτή για εμάς. Έχουμε ανθρώπους εδώ με πτυχία, σκέφτονται διαφορετικά, αυτή η ευρωπαϊκή νοοτροπία. Έχουν αυτό το πάθος. Ό,τι και να κάνουν θέλουν να είναι τέλειο. Ας λένε για τους Έλληνες ότι λένε. 

Πρόκειται για αυτό. Το γραφείο που ανοίξαμε στην Αθήνα μεγαλώνει και έχουμε κερδίσει έργα στην Ελλάδα σαν νέα μεγάλα ξενοδοχεία.

Hiring Employees in Greece video graphic with a television interview screenshot.

A television interview graphic introduces my discussion about hiring employees in Greece.


BUILDING A TEAM FOR AN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

Our Athens office was intended to support the wider company. In this conversation, I describe the care, skills and commitment I saw in the people joining us, alongside the local projects that began to develop as the office grew.

For a founder expanding into another country, hiring is part of an operating plan. Consider which responsibilities the team will own, how colleagues in different locations will communicate and what support people need to deliver good work. Those questions connect a new office to the business around it.

Explore my international lighting business and the first anniversary of our Athens office launch for the company context behind this discussion.



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