u/AboveAverageSavage

Citizenship: Canada

Current residence: France, where I've lived for 4 years. I currently hold a Talent Passport valid through December 2028.

Target countries: Belgium (especially Brussels), the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, Denmark and Sweden. I'm also open to other countries if the role and overall fit make sense.

Languages: English (C2) and French (C2, although I speak French with an accent). I don't currently speak Dutch, German or a Scandinavian language, but I'm very motivated to learn one if I move.

Education: MSc from ESSEC, with a focus on strategy and management. Bachelors in finance and international business.

Experience: About 5 years total. I spent 3 years in consulting and analytics, working across strategy, operations and data/BI, followed by 2 years in international B2B, working with clients across several countries.

Skills: Go-to-market strategy, market analysis, forecasting, SQL, Tableau, Power BI, client delivery and tender responses.

Job search status: I'm actively applying in several countries and trying to understand which markets are realistically open to non-EU candidates with my profile.

Why I'm leaving France: I've lived in France for four years and, after a difficult last year that included two poor professional experiences, I've decided that France isn't where I want to build my long-term life. I'm looking for a fresh start in a country with a more international work environment and am trying to approach the decision based on where my profile is actually in demand.

What I'm hoping to find out:

1. Which countries and sectors are most likely to hire non-EU professionals and sponsor work permits? I'm considering consulting, banking, tech, EU affairs and associations, but I'd particularly like to hear from people who have seen how this works in practice.
2. Do employers in these countries ever provide paid language lessons or language training on the job, particularly for Dutch, German or a Nordic language, or is this normally something you arrange yourself? I'd like to become trilingual and I'm happy to put in the work.
3. For non-EU candidates, which job boards, recruiters or professional networks have actually been useful for finding employers willing to sponsor?
4. For anyone who has made a similar move, what do you wish you'd known beforehand, particularly regarding bureaucracy, timelines, salary thresholds for work permits and day-to-day life?

I'd rather choose a country based on where my profile is actually wanted than commit to one in advance. Any advice, even from someone who has experience in just one of these countries, sectors or types of employer, would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

My 3 weeks at Camping-Car Park (pornic)

I joined Camping-Car Park expecting to contribute to a serious project environment. Instead, my three weeks at the company were an extremely disorganized and ultimately very disappointing experience. For context I was in Canada before as I was helping my mom renovate her house. I flew from Vancouver to Nantes on less than a weeks notice

Week 1:

My first week was primarily onboarding and initiation. During one of the meetings our CTO mentioned that the operations team needed to show

It's value as the team had been active for 6 months without much results.

Week 2:

On Tuesday, I was told that I would be the project lead responsible for implementing PandaDoc into the ERP system that the company was simultaneously implementing. During our first meeting, I was shocked to discover that I was expected to lead the meeting, despite only learning about the project the day before. Nobody had previously told me that I would be leading this meeting. The company had bought the software in June and had not yet started the analysis or implementation process. I actually have no idea why they bought it in the first place or waited three months

Later that week, I delivered a meeting that the CTO felt was too academic and not technical enough. This was despite the fact that I had reviewed my presentation with the Operations team and the Head of Operations beforehand.

Week 3:

I presented again and demonstrated two software solutions, as requested by the CTO. During the meeting, I was asked a large number of questions, including questions that I had not been given the information or preparation to anticipate. The CTO became increasingly frustrated and yelled at me, saying that the company was too far behind and that I was too incompetent to lead the project.

I subsequently had a panic attack in the office next door.

Approximately 30 minutes later, the Head of Operations and CTO informed me that I was being fired. The reasons given were that they "needed someone to go the extra mile" and someone "more senior." This was confirmed by the Head of Operations, who, during my time there, spent a significant amount of his time vaping and using the company computer to make AI music.

What makes this experience particularly difficult is that I had missed my grandmother's funeral and flown across the world to take this position.

The biggest issue for me was not simply being let go. It was the lack of communication and expectations throughout the process.

TL;DR: I missed my grandmother's funeral and flew across the world for a company that ultimately treated me as disposable. I would strongly discourage anyone from applying there. If anyone has any uplifting or similar stories and how they got back on their feet feel free to share as I'm quite demoralized.

Hi everyone. I’m honestly at the end of my rope and looking for any kind of help or advice. Is there any possibile solution other than jumping into a river?

My former landlord recently sent me a government bill stating that I owe 240 euros for an ambulance ride in France, and that I could risk being blacklisted if it remains unpaid. Unfortunately, this is legitimate.

Right now, I’m back in Canada sleeping on a friend’s couch with about 200 CAD left to my name. My official residency is still in France, but I returned to Canada after securing a job offer there that was later canceled after I arrived back.

I’ve been struggling with homelessness and instability for the past three years, and I’m exhausted. I’m getting interviews in France but no offers, while in Canada I’m barely getting responses at all. If I were able to secure a job in France, I could likely borrow the money needed to return, but at this point no company seems willing to take a chance on me.

I really don’t know what to do anymore. If anyone has advice, resources, job leads, or any kind of assistance, I would be deeply grateful.