FRANCE – International consultant Buck Heissmann has recruited Joel Royers from rival Hewitt to head its new office in Paris.

Heissmann said Royers joined on April 1 from Hewitt, where he was a senior consultant responsible for the benefits unit as well as global actuarial coordination for multinational firms in France.

“Joel’s priority is to build Buck Heissmann’s French consulting practice and work closely with our existing co-operation partners to provide a wide range of services from actuarial and compensation consulting to communication services,” said Alf Gohdes, managing director of Buck Heissmann.

“Joel’s experience and industry profile will be a great asset to us in expanding our services to our clients not only in France but also across Europe,” Gohdes said, adding that a co-operation with a local French consultant was not affected by the new office.

Prior to working for Hewitt, the 49-year-old Royers was a senior consultant for Towers Perrin. He began his career with Buck Consultants in Brussels in 1982.

Buck Heissmann also said Royers was currently seeking to hire another four consultants for its Paris office. It added that beyond pension administration and actuarial services, the office would provide investment consulting. All these services are provided by Heissmann in Germany through its Wiesbaden office.

Elsewhere, Hewitt Associates in Dublin said it has hired Darren Prosser, previously manager of European employee benefits at energy industry services firm Schlumberg. He joins as an investment consultant.

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