The biggest mistake is to think of the capital Moscow as part of Europe. Russia is a staggering 17m sq km, comprising 13 cities with more than 1m official inhabitants. Since setting up Antal Russia in 1994, the country has undergone huge change, and is still characterised by huge opportunities. Many recruitment firms have tried and failed to tackle Russia head on. Those rare animals that really understand recruitment methodology and can scale up a business are usually tied in or run their own show. Buy a company? Be very careful in your due diligence, naivety in tax and other statutory dealings. And over-estimation of value will make this route a hard slog. There are few targets, and anybody selling right now may be a distressed seller. The market is certainly buzzing; not overheating but people are looking at 2010 confidently and this is reflected in their budgets. Investment banks have gaps in talent to fill from international markets - no 50% bonus tax and progressive income tax in Russia; it’s a 13% flat rate. There is a declining birth rate and scarcity in most traditional Western disciplines. A recipe for a good business, but it’s incredibly tricky to get right.