While it isn\u2019t particularly unusual for a foreign national to head a major company in another country, what is surprising is the number of French C-suite players outside of French borders.<\/p>\n
Le Monde<\/a> recently highlighted that a disproportionate number of French national CEOs lead companies outside their home country, more than in any other European country.<\/p>\n Whether it\u2019s Marguerite B\u00e9rard at ABN Amro, Ariane Gorin at Expedia, Christophe Fouquet at ASML, or Fidji Simo at Instacart, there are many major French players at a very high level. Laurent Freixe at Nestl\u00e9 would have been on this list too before being recently ousted<\/a> for having concealed an affair with a more junior colleague.<\/p>\n In fact, French nationals head about 30 major foreign companies with a total valuation of $2 trillion, comparable to the entire market cap of France\u2019s CAC 40 index, according to Le Monde<\/a>.<\/p>\n So, what\u2019s the secret to French success overseas?<\/strong><\/p>\n Well, it starts early. Napoleon<\/a> laid the foundation for the French school system, creating secondary schools that could produce a political class capable of effectively running the military and the country, as well as a middle class that wouldn\u2019t want to cause another revolution. Many functioned in a regimented manner, similar to military schools.<\/p>\n Today, the French school system still separates the elite, continuously encouraging children\u2014even at an elementary level\u2014to consider how their grades today will help them secure the finest jobs after attending the best higher education institutions.<\/p>\n These are the grandes \u00e9coles, where admission is fierce, and follow two years of intensive training in classes pr\u00e9paratoires, which are akin to university. The grandes \u00e9coles include elite business schools, such as \u00c9cole Polytechnique, HEC Paris, Institut d\u2019\u00c9tudes Politiques de Paris, ESSEC, and Sciences Po, whose graduates have a reputation for strong business acumen, strategy, and analytical skills. And it is these skills that the business world highly values, wherever they may be located. Strong English skills are expected.<\/p>\n Many of these graduates become French politicians or part of the French elite, effectively creating a management class in every part of French society. In 1980, an American study<\/a> revealed that 80% of the top executives in the most prominent French companies came from just five grandes \u00e9coles.<\/p>\n Some of these French executives relocate overseas through a posting with a French firm and then transition to a different company; some of these CEOs have been outside of France for decades.<\/p>\n Matthieu Courtecuisse, founder of consulting firm Sia Partners, told Le Monde that he believes it\u2019s part of a brain drain. U.S. companies are filled with French PhD holders at all levels, many working in U.S. biology or artificial intelligence organizations, which he sees as a symptom of France\u2019s de-industrialization.<\/p>\n Others might say that non-French companies are attractive to French executives because the French working world can be notoriously rigid. Strict hierarchical structures and highly bureaucratic labor laws discourage risk-taking. <\/p>\n In addition, French employers expect candidates to possess specific qualifications and experience. However, work cultures differ, and companies outside of France can allow for more flexibility.<\/p>\n An interesting conundrum arises from the fact that it may be the very nature of elite schools and a rigid corporate culture that encourages some French leaders to move away.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n