China is the next recruitment growth market, according to the chief executive of the country’s largest foreign-owned recruitment company.

The international headhunter MRI has cashed in on the boom in the Chinese economy and achieved success where few western staffing agencies have ventured.

Tony Dickell, chief executive of MRI’s Greater China Group, founded the firm six years ago.

But there are major challenges to foreign companies setting up in the country and it is extremely difficult to obtain licences to trade as an employment agency. Western agencies must find a trading partner and set up a joint venture, potentially leading to management conflict.

Red tape is not the only hindrance to a recruitment operation. Cultural differences and intense competition mean it is difficult to fill permanent places.

“Many Chinese people like to keep their options open and they don’t like to say no because they want to avoid conflict,” said Dickell. But anyone overcoming these obstacles could reap rewards from the huge opportunities in the world’s most populous country, he added.