Win Your Next Market On The First Hires. Not The Second Attempt.
Boutique advisory for companies expanding into the United States and DACH.
We help leadership teams make the hiring decisions that determine whether expansion succeeds or becomes an expensive lesson.
A Wrong First Hire In a New Market Doesn't Cost a Salary. It Costs a Year.
The visible cost is the comp and the severance. The real cost is the twelve months of momentum you don't get back. The market that watches you stumble, and the budget you burn proving a strategy that was never the problem.
Month 1–6: Ramp, while the market doesn't move. Month 7: You realize it isn't working. Month 8–10: Exit, backfill, re-recruit the candidates you wanted are now placed elsewhere. Month 11–18: The replacement finally ramps. A year and a half gone before the expansion does what the board approved.
We Don't Hand You a Strategy And Leave. We Build The Team And Stay Until it Works.
A clear method, run by people who've entered the US and DACH before. Everything backed by data, so every decision is defensible to your board, not just to us.
WITHOUT A TRANSATLANTIC SYSTEM
- U.S./DACH role open 3–6 months, still unfilled.
- Offer rejected because your salary range is below market rate.
- Contract missing a state-required clause. Fines start at $10k!
- Top candidate signed with a competitor while you deliberated.
- Onboarding built for DACH culture, not U.S. expectations or vice versa.
WITH KVN + HIRESTATES
- Role filled with a market-validated, expansion-ready candidate.
- Offer benchmarked and accepted first round.
- Contract compliant for the hiring state, signed before day one.
- Onboarding that keeps people past month twelve.
- Strategy built on both sides of the Atlantic from day one.
Know Your Expansion IQ Before You Spend Your First Dollar Hiring.
Every successful expansion starts with better decisions, not more hiring.
Most companies don't enter a new market because they're ready. They enter because the opportunity looks attractive.
Then the real questions begin:
- Should you hire a Country Manager first or someone who can actually generate revenue?
- Which city gives you access to the strongest talent?
- Are your salary expectations competitive?
- Do you understand local hiring practices, compliance requirements and candidate expectations?
The reality is simple. International expansion doesn't become expensive because of one bad employee.
It becomes expensive because the first strategic hiring decisions were made without market intelligence.
Our free Expansion IQ Assessment helps you identify those risks before they become costly mistakes.
In International Expansion, There Are Two Paths:
Hiring Based On Assumptions.
Without clear market intelligence, companies often prioritize the wrong roles, misjudge compensation and move too slowly. The result: missed candidates, longer vacancies, mis-hires and delayed market entry.
The result:
- First key role without market validation
- Wrong compensation benchmarks
- Unclear candidate proposition
- Slow decision-making
- Higher risk of mis-hires and lost momentum
The solution? A structured hiring strategy backed by market intelligence, proven processes, and data-driven decision making.
Hiring With Strategy, Data And Execution.
With a clear hiring strategy, you know which role matters first, how the market works, which candidates are realistic and how the process needs to be built.
The result: ess risk, more clarity and a team built to support growth.
- Validated role priority
- Realistic compensation and talent market data
- Clear hiring roadmap
- Stronger outreach to the right candidates
- Faster, more confident decisions
Your advantage? Less risk, more clarity, and a team built to grow your business.
One Strategy. One Platform. One Successful Expansion.
Build the right workforce. Then keep it compliant as you scale.
Expanding internationally requires more than recruiting. It requires the right strategy before hiring starts, and the right infrastructure after people join. That's why KVN-International and HireStates were built to work together.
KVN-International
The Strategic Workforce Partner
- Workforce strategy for U.S. ⇄ DACH expansion
- Expansion readiness & market validation
- First-hire strategy and organizational design
- Executive Search for business-critical roles
- Compensation benchmarking & talent intelligence
- Recruiting processes built for international growth
- Cross-border hiring advisory for founders and HR leaders
HireStates
The Workforce Operating System
- State-specific employment contracts
- Employee handbooks generated in minutes
- Automated compliance monitoring
- HR document management
- Offer letters & onboarding workflows
- Multi-state employment guidance
- Built for European companies hiring in the U.S.
U.S. Hiring Needs More Than Strategy. It Needs Structure, Data And The Right Technology.
The first U.S. hire rarely fails because there is no talent. It often fails because of unclear processes, wrong expectations, missing documentation, slow decisions or compliance-near topics that are addressed too late.
That is why KVN-International combines hands-on cross-border HR and recruiting expertise with HireStates, our own technology and intelligence layer for more structured U.S. hiring.
KVN-International provides the strategy, market understanding, recruiting execution and access to the right people. HireStates supports as a software and bot-enabled layer for talent intelligence, hiring workflows, documents, handbooks, onboarding structures and compliance-near U.S. hiring processes.
Depending on the engagement, HireStates can support our strategic advisory work or be explored separately. It is especially relevant for companies hiring in the U.S. that do not want to base their first hiring decisions on assumptions.
HireStates. Your Compliance Safety Net For U.S. Hiring.
California and New York don't run on one rulebook. 25+ cities, each with its own minimum wage, sick leave rules, and mandatory notices. Miss one clause and the fine starts at $10,000. HireStates eliminates that risk in under 5 minutes.
140+
employment rules tracked & updated
<5 min
from signup to first compliant draft
80%
cost savings vs. traditional legal drafting
Milestones achieved with our clients
recruiting projects completed
candidates placed in new roles
years in international recruiting
60+ clients who chose
KVN-International
What Our Clients Say About Partnering
With KVN-International:
+60 happy clients
16+ Results across talent acquisition, executive search, international recruiting, HR process advisory and market-entry hiring.
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GTM Germany - Management Consulting
A global consulting firm aimed to set up a new software delivery hub in Dresden. The objective was to fill over 30 roles, including leadership, senior, and junior positions all within 9 months, despit...Read full case study... -
International ATS implementation - Public Sector
A public sector client had outdated, fragmented recruitment processes without a centralized system, leading to inefficiencies, unclear responsibilities, and inconsistent candidate experiences. Introdu...Read full case study... -
U.S. Expansion - SaaS Scale-Up
A fast-growing software scale-up headquartered in Hamburg struggled to recruit tech talent internationally due to limited internal resources, inefficient processes, and a lack of structured global hir...Read full case study... -
Cross-Location Hiring - Management Consulting
A top-tier consultancy and project management firm faced increasing complexity in hiring for a growing cross-location business unit. Traditional recruitment models were inefficient, leading to delays ...Read full case study... -
GTM Germany - U.S. Software OEM
A U.S. software OEM sought to build a new Cloud Technology Hub in Berlin amid an intensely competitive IT talent market. Traditional methods fell short due to passive candidate behavior and high talen...Read full case study... -
GTM Germany - Belgium SaaS & AI Start-Up
A Belgian start-up specializing in hydronic system optimization lacked the infrastructure, process, and talent strategy to successfully enter the German market. Assumed end-to-end recruitment leadersh...Read full case study... -
Sebastian Stolz
“I had an exceptionally positive experience with Kevin Bednar. From the very beginning, the communication was professional, warm, and highly supportive. What I found particularly impressive was his ab...Read full case study... -
Aynur Celik
"In einem sehr schnelllebigen Markt, wo die Zeit nie stillsteht und gewisse Werte dabei unter gehen, bin ich über die außergewöhnlich positive Erfahrung sehr angetan, die ich mit dem Personalvermittlu...Read full case study... -
Dominic Zausinger
„Kevin Bednar hat mich erstklassig durch den Recruitment Prozess meiner neuen Stelle geleitet. Stets ein offenes Ohr für meine Fragen und Wünsche, tolle Kommunikation mit mir und meinem neuen Arbeitge...Read full case study... -
Caetie Anticknap
“I had the opportunity to work with Kevin on a large implementation project where Kevin acted as a Test Lead. Kevin coordinated with our business testers to ensure we are moving the testing forward an...Read full case study... -
Alina Musuroaea
“Kevin was entrusted to build our Supply Chain & Logistics teams in a very competitive and niche market. He has been successful in placing some of the most challenging roles in our requisition por...Read full case study... -
Marc Diefenbruch
“I worked with Kevin in several recruiting and hiring activities in OpenText in EMEA and North America. Kevin is an excellent recruiter - he has a track record of successful hiring activities - most o...Read full case study... -
Annika Dahl
„Über ein halbes Jahr konnte ich mit Kevin zusammenarbeiten und schätze sehr, wie flexibel er uns innerhalb dieser Zeit bei der Besetzung unterschiedlicher Rollen im Revenue Bereich unterstützt hatte....Read full case study... -
Jens-Christian Pokolm
„Ich konnte zusammen mit Kevin Bednar sehr erfolgreich mehrere interne Positionen in der IT besetzen. Er hat es auf exzellente Art verstanden, die "richtigen" Fragen quasi beiläufig zu stellen und dam...Read full case study... -
Geert Mortier
“When our company wanted to enter the German market and build a local team, we were lucky to partner with Kevin. Kevin was quickly familiar with our business and managed to identify relevant candidate...Read full case study... -
Samuel Prata
“I am delighted to recommend Kevin for his professional work as a Recruiter at our company. Kevin consistently demonstrates professionalism, knowledge in recruiting methods, and a keen eye for talent....Read full case study...
Our Solutions For International Expansion.
Strategic Workforce Expansion
Before you hire, build the right strategy.
We help companies design the workforce required for successful international expansion—from market intelligence and hiring roadmaps to first-hire strategy and workforce planning.
Our services
- Expansion IQ Assessment: Measure your expansion readiness and identify hiring risks.
- Strategic Workforce Blueprint: Build the right hiring roadmap before entering a new market.
- Market Intelligence: Compensation, talent availability and location analysis.
- First Hire Strategy: Decide who to hire first, and why.
- Expansion Advisory: Ongoing strategic guidance throughout your expansion.Whether you are entering the U.S., expanding into DACH, or hiring business-critical talent across borders, KVN-International helps you make better hiring decisions before they become expensive mistakes.
Critical Talent Acquisition
When the strategy is clear, we find the people.
We identify and hire business-critical leaders and specialists across the U.S. and DACH using executive search, market intelligence and structured assessment.
Our services
- Executive Search: Leadership and expansion-critical roles.
- Specialist Recruitment: GTM, Sales, HR, Engineering and Technology.
- Talent Mapping: Identify the right talent before competitors do.
- Candidate Assessment: Structured evaluation beyond the résumé.
- Interim Talent Acquisition: Additional recruiting capacity when growth accelerates.
Unfiltered Takes on
DACH ↔ U.S. Expansion.
First-hand insights on hiring, compliance, and what actually breaks when European companies enter the U.S. market and vice versa.
More from the channel
Practical content on transatlantic hiring. No fluff, no pitch.
Meet Our Founder: Kevin Bednar
Over the past 14+ years, Kevin has helped 60+ companies hire more than 1,500 professionals across Europe and North America while supporting market entry, growth initiatives, and organizational transformation.
Having worked with start-ups, scale-ups, and global organizations, he understands that successful expansion requires more than recruiting. It requires market intelligence, local expertise, and a hiring strategy aligned with business goals.
Today, Kevin helps European companies expand into the U.S. and supports U.S. businesses entering the DACH region through a combination of advisory services, talent acquisition expertise, and data-driven decision making powered by HireStates.
The Goal: Helping Companies Grow Through People.
P.S. Kevin also supports clients through interim recruiting when hands-on help is needed.
Ready to build your DACH ↔ U.S. team?
Book Your Free Readiness Check
All your questions, cleared in advance:
Do you only support European companies expanding into the U.S.?
No. KVN-International supports companies in both directions.
We help European companies build teams in the U.S. and support U.S. and international companies entering Germany and DACH.
The common challenge is the same: companies need the right people, local market intelligence, and a hiring strategy that fits the market they are entering.
Are you a recruitment agency or an expansion consultancy?
We are both, but not in the traditional sense.
KVN-International combines talent strategy, market intelligence, executive search, specialist recruitment, and hands-on hiring execution.
That means we do not only search for candidates. We help companies understand which roles to hire first, what those roles should cost, how to position the opportunity, and how to avoid costly hiring mistakes in a new market.
Who is KVN-International best suited for?
We are best suited for companies that are entering or scaling in a new market and need business-critical hires.
Typical clients include:
- European companies expanding into the U.S.
- U.S. companies entering Germany or DACH
- B2B SaaS or AI and other technology companies
- Industrial and engineering businesses
- Scale-ups building go-to-market teams
- Companies hiring their first local sales, leadership, HR, tech, or specialist roles
We are not the right fit for companies looking for high-volume transactional recruiting without strategic involvement.
What makes cross-border hiring so different?
Hiring across borders is rarely just a sourcing challenge.
Candidate expectations, compensation structures, employment culture, benefits, decision speed, employer positioning, and legal frameworks differ significantly between markets.
A hiring process that works in Germany may fail in the U.S.
A U.S. hiring approach may feel too aggressive, unclear, or unstable for German candidates.
We help companies adapt their hiring strategy to the market they are entering.
What is the biggest mistake companies make when expanding into a new market?
The most common mistake is hiring based on assumptions.
Companies often assume they know which role to hire first, what compensation is competitive, how fast candidates will move, or which profile fits the local market.
Those assumptions can become expensive.
A wrong first sales hire, country lead, or leadership hire can delay market entry by months and cost hundreds of thousands in lost revenue, productivity, and opportunity.
What services do you offer?
KVN International offers several levels of support:
- Expansion Readiness Assessment
- Market Entry Hiring Blueprint
- First Hire Program
- Expansion Partner Retainer
- Executive Search
- Specialist Recruitment
- Compensation and talent market intelligence
- HireStates-powered hiring insights
The right format depends on where you are in your expansion journey.
What is the First Hire Program?
The First Hire Program is for companies actively hiring their first strategic employee in a new market.
This could be a first U.S. sales hire, first DACH country lead, first GTM hire, first HR leader, or another business-critical role.
We support the full process from role definition and talent mapping to candidate search, qualification, interview support, offer guidance, and onboarding recommendations.
What is HireStates?
HireStates is the intelligence layer behind better expansion decisions.
It helps companies understand compensation benchmarks, talent availability, market differences, employment cost expectations, candidate behavior, and expansion readiness before they hire.
Instead of entering a new market with assumptions, companies can make hiring decisions based on structured market intelligence.
You will find more information here: www.hirestates.com
Do you provide legal, tax, or immigration advice?
No. KVN-International does not replace legal, tax, payroll, or immigration counsel.
We support the hiring, talent strategy, market intelligence, and recruiting side of expansion.
When needed, we can work alongside legal, tax, payroll, EOR, or immigration partners to make sure the people strategy fits the broader expansion setup.
How long does it take to make the first hire?
Timelines depend on the role, market, compensation, decision speed, and candidate availability.
For strategic market-entry roles, a realistic process often takes 60–90 days when the role is clearly defined and decision-making is structured.
One of the biggest success factors is speed: strong candidates in competitive markets rarely wait for slow internal processes.
How do you price your services?
Pricing depends on the level of support required.
Typical engagement models include:
- Fixed-fee assessments
- Project-based hiring blueprints
- Fixed-fee first hire programs
- Monthly expansion retainers
- Retained executive search
- Specialist recruitment mandates
The right model depends on whether you need clarity, strategy, execution, or ongoing market buildout.
What happens after we book a U.S./DACH Readiness Check?
The first call is designed to understand your expansion plans, hiring priorities, current challenges, and timeline.
We will discuss:
- Which market you are entering.
- Which roles matter most.
- What risks may slow you down.
- Whether KVN-International can support you.
- Which next step makes the most sense.
No hard pitch. No generic advice. Just clarity on what your hiring strategy should look like.