Headhunter
industry in Lyon
Chemistry Valley, pharma, nuclear, special machinery, plastics processing: Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes is France's leading industrial region and one of its tightest labour markets. Volta Executive, a recruitment and executive search firm, approaches the area's executives and key managers directly: site and plant directors, operations directors, technical and quality directors.
The talent pools we map across the Lyon area and the wider region
Hiring industrial executives in Lyon through 2026
France's densest industrial employment area
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes holds the country's largest industrial base: the Chemistry Valley south of Lyon (specialty chemicals, materials), a major pharmaceutical and biotech cluster around the Gerland district and Lyonbiopôle, Framatome's industrial headquarters for nuclear, the plastics industry of Oyonnax, the mechanical engineering and special machinery of the Saint-Étienne area, and the microelectronics and hydraulics around Grenoble. This density is an opportunity for companies... and a curse for their hiring: every experienced engineer in the area is constantly approached by competitors less than 30 minutes away.
Why do hires in Lyon take so long?
In an area this dense, publishing a job advert amounts to telling your competitors that you are hiring, without reaching the profiles you want: they are in post, satisfied, and do not read job boards. Industrial companies in the region typically take several months to fill a technical manager role through conventional channels. The only method that works is direct search: map comparable sites in the area, identify the target profiles, and approach them discreetly with a well-argued project.
Our real roots in the region
Volta Executive was founded by an engineer from Mines Saint-Étienne: the regional network comes from his school. We speak at ISTP Saint-Étienne and with the Mines on engineers' career guidance, which gives us direct access to the graduating classes that have fed regional industry for twenty years.
"The Lyon and Saint-Étienne area is home turf for me: Mines Saint-Étienne is my school. When I approach an engineer in the Chemistry Valley or a Framatome project manager, I know their environment, their pay scales and often their network. That is what separates an approach that succeeds from a message that gets ignored."
· Florian Beurtey, Founder of Volta Executive, Mines Saint-Étienne engineer
Industrial manager salaries in Lyon and the region
Ranges observed in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes area: allow +15 to 20% in Île-de-France.
| Role | Experience | Median | Senior | Top of market | Shortage | Shortlist |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plant director / industrial site director | 15+ years | 95k€ | 115k€ | 140k€ | ●●●●● | Within 10 days |
| Production manager (chemicals, pharma) | 8+ years | 58k€ | 70k€ | 82k€ | ●●●●● | Within 10 days |
| Chemical process engineer | 5 years+ | 48k€ | 60k€ | 72k€ | ●●●●● | Within 10 days |
| Multi-line maintenance manager | 8+ years | 52k€ | 64k€ | 75k€ | ●●●●● | Within 10 days |
| HSE manager, Seveso site | 6+ years | 50k€ | 62k€ | 74k€ | ●●●●● | Within 10 days |
| Pharma quality engineer (GMP) | 5 years+ | 46k€ | 58k€ | 68k€ | ●●●●● | Within 10 days |
| Industrialisation project manager | 6+ years | 52k€ | 64k€ | 76k€ | ●●●●● | Within 10 days |
| Regional technical / industrial director | 15+ years | 105k€ | 125k€ | 150k€ | ●●●●● | Within 10 days |
Ranges drawn from our assignments and the Volta Executive 2026 salary barometer, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes area.
Our method ofexecutive search
Scoping the role and the labour market
A 1-hour scoping session with the future manager: the role, the scorecard of expected results, the real salary range in the Lyon market. We tell you frankly if your package falls below the local market, before we search, not after three failures.
Mapping the Lyon area
Mapping of the search ecosystem: comparable sites in the region · Chemistry Valley, the pharma cluster, plastics, Saint-Étienne mechanical engineering, and the target profiles working there. No advert: your competitors do not learn that you are hiring.
Direct approach and engineer-led assessment
Discreet, personalised approach to the profiles identified. Technical assessment by an engineer consultant: processes, HSE, quality culture. Shortlist of 3 to 5 well-argued finalists within 10 days, hire within 3 weeks.
90-day integration follow-up
Follow-up from the start date through to day 90, regular check-ins with the executive hired and their manager, a 3-month replacement guarantee, extendable to 6. 96% success rate across 120 assignments analysed between 2023 and 2025, Volta Executive and previous firms.
Why Volta Executive rather than a generalist firm?
| Criterion | Volta Executive | Generalist firm |
|---|---|---|
| Knowledge of the Lyon area | Mines Saint-Étienne, a genuine regional network | National coverage with no local roots |
| Recruitment method | Direct search, exclusive mandate | Adverts + CV database, most often |
| Technical assessment | Founder is a Mines engineer, assessment by someone from the trade | Varies by firm |
| Confidentiality within the local market | No public announcement | An advert tells your local competitors |
| Guarantee after hiring | Replacement 3 to 6 months, 90-day follow-up | Varies by firm |
Our other recruitment areas
Frequently asked questions · Industry search firm, Lyon
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Do you also recruit in Saint-Étienne, Grenoble and the rest of the region?
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A leadership role to fill? Let's talk.
A confidential 30-minute conversation with Florian Beurtey, on the role, the timeline and the package.
Assign us a mandateExclusive mandate · Confidential conversation