When was LittleBig Connection founded? LittleBig Connection was founded in 2013. The world of work had been undergoing profound changes for a few years: on one hand, companies increasingly needed to tap into skills outside their internal teams, mainly due to talent shortages in certain sectors and the rapid emergence of new technologies. On the other hand, there was a rise in the number of freelancers, independent workers, and small consulting firms within the workforce. This trend has been accelerating, especially since the pandemic, leading to a doubling of the number of freelancers in the last 10 years, indicating a 100% growth in freelancers.

What was the company doing in its early days?

Our mission was to connect these two parties—companies and all their external partners—so they could work together in a simpler, more direct, and transparent manner.

You joined the company a few years later… Indeed, I am not one of the founders. However, I have been with Mantu, the group that acquired LittleBig Connection, for over 10 years. At the time of the acquisition, I was opening Mantu’s offices in North America. I moved to Canada in early 2014 to launch operations from scratch and establish offices in Montreal, Toronto, and New York. It was a great intrapreneurial adventure this time.

When did you join the company?

I took over the role of CEO of LittleBig Connection almost four years ago, in early 2020. I arrived at a time when we were transitioning from the startup phase to a scale-up phase. There were many exciting projects and challenges to address in order to continue the growth and success story we were experiencing. We had to continue innovating and offering even more audacious solutions to our clients, all while building a leadership team and a corporate structure that would allow us to scale our operations.

Before your arrival, what were the major challenges for the company? LittleBig Connection was founded in 2013 and acquired by Mantu in 2015. It was almost at the beginning, and there wasn’t much activity at that time. It’s crucial to highlight that we did not raise any funds for LittleBig Connection. We had a self-financing model from the start. While this may have been considered a constraint at one point, it ultimately turned out to be a blessing to develop a sustainable model. It forced us to focus on the most relevant investments for the company.

What was the contribution of Mantu?

Mantu’s main contribution was its international DNA, which led us to immediately start conquering new markets worldwide. This included the launch of our activities in Canada, Vietnam, Tunisia, India, and Spain, to name just a few of the 40 countries where we have commercial activities.

What are the main changes since your arrival?

Everything has changed significantly. When I joined the leadership, we had a turnover of around 50 million euros. By the end of 2023, we will reach 450 million, representing exceptional growth. Additionally, we were less than 50 people, and now we are 350. Similarly, we operate in 40 countries compared to about ten at that time. There has been a strong scaling phase over the last four years. A key element was the upskilling of our teams. Currently, our platform is at the heart of the company. We have evolved our offerings, including AI algorithms that we have been working on for four years. We can say that there have been major changes, including the appointment of a Chief Product Officer (CPO).

“New competitors emerge every day! What sets us apart from these players is our international presence and the ability to support our clients in every country. This is quite rare.”

What have been the biggest challenges since your arrival in 2020 until today?

Among the major challenges we faced was the international scaling. We had facilitation from the group that acquired us, especially through their logic of pooling skills. In other words, during the development of a new country, we can rely on the logistical, financial, and human support of offices geographically close. That’s why we kept the same model. Launching activities in a new country involves not only translating our platform and offerings but also establishing a name and a place in the market. We also had to adapt our offerings to local specificities, both legal and operational.

What is the difference today compared to what is available on the market?

Firstly, it’s important to know that we have two offerings. The first is a Vendor Management System (VMS), which allows companies to manage all their external services. In this part, we compete with international players, and our differentiation lies in the “plug-in” aspect of our solution, which integrates directly with the information systems of our clients. Our second offering is a marketplace where we connect our clients with independent experts. There are many international players like Upwork, but also local players. New competitors emerge every day! What sets us apart from these players is our international presence and the ability to support our clients in every country. This is quite rare. The second element is that we had, from the start, an orientation towards large accounts. Today, we work with many international companies. Taking the example of France, we collaborate with 75% of CAC 40 companies. Ultimately, thanks to our platform, we can address very large accounts. We offer our clients external talents regardless of their location in the world and their status: freelancers, but also consulting firms or IT service companies. This makes a difference compared to other marketplaces that focus on freelancers.

What will be the future challenges?

A major and central challenge at LittleBig Connection is sustainability. Over the past two years, we