A role with no room for approximation
The profile sought by this Geneva-based real estate investment and asset management firm was specific. An experienced general accountant, capable of managing several entities simultaneously, comfortable in an international environment with counterparts from different cultures and languages - and with genuine knowledge of the real estate sector, whose accounting specificities are not something one picks up overnight.
This type of profile is rare in Geneva. The local market produces strong accountants, but the combination of real estate experience, multi-entity management and international ease significantly narrows the pool of available candidates. This was the context in which Tudor, Fed Finance specialized consultant, was brought in.
Two expected profiles, one unexpected one
The natural approach would have been for Tudor to focus on the two candidates with the most linear backgrounds - those whose files read effortlessly, where each career step flows naturally from the last and no box is left unchecked. He presented them both. But he also presented a third.
This candidate had a less conventional track record. Career moves that raised questions, experiences across varied contexts that did not follow the well-marked trajectory one might expect of a senior accounting profile. On paper, the risk seemed real. In practice, it was not.
Tudor had taken the time to meet him, to explore these transitions in depth, and to understand what had driven them. What he found was an exceptional capacity for adaptation, a clear sense of professional purpose, and a personality solid enough to thrive in a demanding, multicultural environment. Precisely what this client needed - even if they had not articulated it that way.
Contextualising to convince: Tudor's decisive contribution
Putting forward an atypical profile to a client is a calculated risk. Letting that profile speak for itself through a CV alone is to risk it being dismissed before it ever gets a hearing. Tudor did not let that happen.
He took the time to walk the client through each career choice the candidate had made - not to smooth over concerns, but to address them directly, with concrete context. Why that move at that point in time? What had that particular experience in that specific environment actually brought? How did a track record that appeared unstable on the surface in fact demonstrate the kind of professional agility that is genuinely valuable in a fast-moving asset management environment?
This work of translation - between what a CV shows and what a candidate is truly worth - dismantled the client's reservations one by one. The connection could then do its work.
The outcome: signed in 3 weeks, both sides won over
From briefing to signed contract: three weeks. The candidate has taken up the role. Both client and candidate are satisfied - a dual signal that the decision, however unexpected it may have seemed at the outset, was the right one.
This assignment reflects something essential in the Fed Finance Switzerland approach: a specialist consultant does not simply pass CVs along. They commit to their conviction, they make the argument, they translate - and sometimes, they go to bat for a profile the market would have overlooked.
Hiring in finance or accounting in Geneva?
Fed Finance Switzerland supports real estate, asset management and investment finance firms in their accounting and finance recruitment across Geneva and French-speaking Switzerland: general accountants, chief accountants, management controllers, CFOs and multi-entity profiles for international environments. Our consultants know how to identify - and defend - the profiles that make a real difference.
Frequently asked questions about real estate accounting recruitment in Geneva
What are the specificities of real estate accounting in Switzerland?
Real estate accounting in Switzerland requires familiarity with the standards applicable to asset management companies, an understanding of the multi-entity structures common to real estate funds and holding companies, and the ability to produce reporting that meets the expectations of international investors. These specificities make this one of the most sought-after - and scarcest - profiles on the Geneva market.
Why work with a specialist firm to recruit a general accountant in the real estate sector in Geneva?
The pool of accountants with genuine real estate and asset management experience in Geneva is limited. A specialist firm such as Fed Finance Switzerland maintains a network of active and passive candidates in this sector, and has the expertise to identify atypical profiles whose true value goes beyond what their CV conveys at first glance.
How does Fed Finance Switzerland assess a candidate with a non-linear career path?
Our consultants conduct an in-depth interview with every candidate before any presentation to a client. This allows them to go beyond the CV, understand the real motivations behind each career transition, and assess the behavioural competencies - adaptability, vision, interpersonal ease - that never appear on a dossier but often make all the difference in practice.
Does Fed Finance Switzerland recruit accounting profiles for multi-entity structures in Geneva?
Yes. Fed Finance Switzerland regularly supports investment groups and funds based in Geneva in recruiting general accountants capable of managing several entities simultaneously, within multilingual and multicultural environments.
Who told us this story?
Tudor Caloianu, recruitment consultant specialized in finance and accounting in Switzerland. You make take a look at his LinkedIn profile here.
