Evolving from consultant to Coach Business Manager at the Life Sciences division
Charlotte, from France, tells us about her successful career at ALTEN Belgium.
What is your background?
After graduating as a chemical engineer in Lyon, I oriented myself towards the pharmaceutical industry. During my studies I took a gap year and went to Germany, so I did not hesitate to extend my job search to an international level. One day, a friend who had found a consulting job at ALTEN Belgium, forwarded my CV. Result: one month later I signed my first contract at ALTEN Belgium!
Integrated in a production unit for a large pharmaceutical industry, I was trained in deviations allowing me to discover quality in aseptic environment. I then had the opportunity to carry out a project coordination mission following an inspection of the Food and Drug Administration. The objective being to respond to their observations by implementing new outfits or reviewing material flows in two manufacturing buildings, etc. After 1.5 year, the quality manager offered me a place in her team allowing me to evolve towards an operational QA position for 8 months. Finally, wanting to discover more and more horizons, I accepted a new position within an operational excellenceteam where I trained the technicians in Green and Yellow Belt certifications, which I had followed and obtained thanks to ALTEN.
From Consultant to staff member
After almost four years spent as a consultant, ALTEN Belgium offered me the opportunity to evolve internally within the Technical Department. I then took the role of Technical Unit Manager dedicated to the client for whom I was a consultant. I worked in tandem with a Business Manager from the Life Sciences division and I was responsible for the consultants monitoring and coaching. I was also in charge of setting up service contracts and providing technical support during prospecting. This position was ideal, since it allowed me to learn the business world while keeping the technical environment.
Even though I didn’t know the teams, I quickly felt comfortable and well-integrated into the service. Seeing ‘the other side’ made the transition from a technical to a business point of view a smooth one. And it worked! A few months later, I chose to become Business Manager.
The funny thing was that starting with 15 consultants in my scope, I became the manager of some of my former colleagues with whom I had developed friendly relationships. It went perfectly well, as the rules were clear from the beginning: the professional/personal boarders have to be respected. Moreover, as a former consultant, I knew how I could perform optimally as a Business Manager. In my opinion, the most important thing is to take care of your consultants by being human and listening.
From Business Manager to Coach
My career evolved very quickly: a year as an Experienced Business Manager, before becoming a Coach Business Manager with a junior Business Manager to accompany. Having a person that I follow, coach and train gives a whole new dimension to my job which makes it even more enjoyable!
Six years after putting down my suitcases in Brussels, I have no regrets. ALTEN Belgium and the consultancy has allowed me to experience a lot and to discover different jobs. ALTEN has opened me up to new opportunities allowing me to evolve!
Charlotte
Are you also interested in a career at ALTEN? Connect with our recruiters at recruitment@alten.be. Or check our vacancies.
