Our client is a French MedTech company developing ALPS (Autonomous Leadless Pacing System), an innovative self-sustaining leadless pacemaker designed to convert the heart's kinetic energy into electrical power.
As they progressed the development of this Class III active implantable medical device, access to highly specialised quality and regulatory expertise became critical.
Aspire Life Sciences' Taylor Lyons has worked with our client to build this capability, completing two highly specialised regulatory searches and establishing an ongoing recruitment partnership as the company continues to expand.
The challenge: an exceptionally small talent pool
Both searches presented the same fundamental challenge.
Candidates needed experience writing full FDA submissions for Class III medical devices and needed to be able to work onsite at headquarters in Paris, France.
There are only approximately four companies in the Paris area developing Class III active implantable devices, creating an exceptionally small local talent pool.
Advertising alone demonstrated the scale of the challenge.
Across the two searches,we received 129 applications for the first role and 220 for the second. Not one applicant met the requirements.
Finding the right people would require proactive market mapping, specialist headhunting and, where necessary, looking well beyond France.
Search one: Senior Manager, Quality & Regulatory Affairs
The first priority was a senior Quality and Regulatory Affairs appointment capable of bringing significant FDA and Class III device expertise into the business.
An initial search of the Paris market identified only around 12–20 potentially relevant professionals. For such a critical senior appointment, that simply wasn't a large enough talent pool.
Taylor therefore expanded the search internationally.
Close to 100 potentially relevant professionals were identified globally, with Taylor looking for the rare combination of technical regulatory expertise, seniority and willingness to relocate to France.
One exceptional candidate emerged.
Having lived and worked across the USA, Australia and Singapore, and residing in South Korea at the time of the search, she brought extensive international regulatory experience.
Most importantly, her US regulatory expertise was exceptional. She had personally visited the FDA on numerous occasions and had written dozens of submissions across PMAs, 510(k)s and other regulatory pathways.
She also happened to be planning a move to Paris, creating an unusual alignment between our clients highly specific requirements and the candidate's own plans.
Going beyond the search
Identifying the right person was only part of the challenge. Turning an international appointment into a successful relocation required further support.
Taylor worked with both our clients' HR team and the candidate to research the French Talent Passport route and support the relocation process.
Aspire Life Sciences also helped provide evidence that the French talent market had been thoroughly searched before our client would expand its search internationally.
The candidate successfully relocated to France and is now living and working full-time in Paris as Senior Manager, Quality & Regulatory Affairs.
The appointment has proved highly successful, with the expectation that she could progress to Director level as the organisation and regulatory function continue to develop.
Search two: Senior Regulatory Affairs Specialist
Just two months after joining our client, the Senior Manager was given the opportunity to expand her team.
Having experienced the first search as a candidate herself, she immediately returned to Taylor and Aspire Life Sciences for support with the next appointment.
The second role was slightly more junior, but the fundamental search challenge remained: our client needed Class III active implantable device experience, substantial FDA submission expertise and onsite presence in Paris.
Again, the available local talent pool was extremely limited.
Rather than focusing solely on current job titles, Taylor looked deeper into candidates' previous experience.
This led to the identification of a professional currently working as a QARA Leader within a lower-risk medical device environment. On paper, her current position wasn't necessarily the obvious match.
Her previous experience told a different story.
She had spent five years working specifically with Class III active implantable devices, including pacemakers for the US market, giving her highly relevant experience for our clients technology and regulatory requirements.
There was another significant advantage: she lived approximately a 10-minute walk from the office.
In a search combining such narrow technical requirements with a highly specific location, the fit was exceptional.
From search to signed contract in three weeks
The second recruitment process moved quickly.
Taylor coordinated the search, candidate engagement and interview process closely with our client, resulting in a signed employment contract within three weeks.
The Senior Regulatory Affairs Specialist is due to join the business in September, further strengthening their regulatory capability as its technology progresses.
The results
The partnership demonstrated the difference between generating applicants and identifying genuinely specialist talent.
Across the two searches:
- 349 online applications – zero relevant candidates
- Approximately 12–20 potentially relevant senior candidates identified locally during the first search
- Close to 100 potential candidates mapped internationally for the first appointment
- 50+ candidate interviews conducted by Taylor Lyons
- One international relocation successfully supported from South Korea to Paris
- Two specialist regulatory appointments completed
- Second search progressed to a signed employment contract within three weeks
Both successful hires ultimately came through proactive specialist search.
An ongoing partnership
The relationship has developed beyond two individual placements.
Taylor initially worked with our client to identify a senior regulatory leader internationally. After successfully relocating and joining the organisation, that same individual returned to Aspire Life Sciences when given the opportunity to build her own team.
As our client continues to expand, the partnership is expected to develop further, with another two clinical appointments anticipated before the end of the year.
For highly specialised MedTech recruitment, access to hundreds of applicants does not necessarily mean access to the right talent.
Sometimes the person a business needs isn't applying. They have to be found.