Can you remember your early Bechtle days?
2 January 2022 was my 20-year Bechtle anniversary.
When I first joined the company, I knew literally nothing about B2B or IT. Back then, Bechtle would still publish its biannual, 800-page physical catalogue, so I took a copy home with me and studied the whole thing page by page.
I first started as an Assistant Key Account Manager. In fact, there was only one account manager for large-scale customers then, and I gave him a hand sorting out requests for quotes or tracking deliveries.
Three years later, I switched to what would eventually become our Advanced Solutions unit. As a Consumables Specialist, it was my job to optimise the sourcing of products like printer cartridges, backup tapes and blank CDs. When Bechtle acquired TomTech in France, this lead to a spell as a Sales Manager there,
before I returned to Bechtle first as an Account Manager, then Team Lead for then seven SME Account Managers, and finally, Quality & Business Developer. During that time, I was also dealing a bit with returns management, and creating onboarding plans for new employees and familiarising them with our internal tools.
That’s quite an impressive trajectory. Where exactly are you today?
Our merger with ARP in early 2022 has made a lot of things easier. By joining forces with our colleagues in Paris, we are able to further optimise our returns service and become more efficient overall.
This fusion was also the spark that propelled me into the role of Internal Training & Integration Manager, which is what I am today. The job is really varied. I work with HR on developing employees, with Corporate Communications to help new employees better understand Bechtle and its values, with Quality Management for our ISO certification, and with Marketing to provide manufacturer-specific training.
My job really touches on everything. You could say I have a finger in every pie.
Bechtle has no intention of stopping our growth in France, so in 2022 alone we’re aiming to hire 30 new colleagues.
How can you explain such a multifarious career?
I have always been curious, eager to learn and looking for new things, new opportunities.
I wanted to develop within my company, and Bechtle opened many different avenues for me to pursue, which I gladly did.
Some people stick with their company for two years tops; I just racked up 20. Six of those I spent in my previous role at Bechtle, but I wasn’t bored once. My work has always been very diverse, and Bechtle has never stopped to evolve to stay ahead of the curve and is now a truly digital-first organisation.
Yes, I may have been with Bechtle for 20 years, so I’m kind of a dinosaur here, but this is all due to Bechtle always motivating me to stay and allowing me to take on different jobs over the years.
The many years are also a sign of loyalty and mutual commitment. I’m very grateful to Bechtle for entrusting me with the many different tasks I was given, and I’ve really grown with them.
Would you say that internal mobility is a real thing at Bechtle?
My superiors are always happy to lend me an open ear, and I can also see this kind of mobility all around me. Many of the colleagues I’ve worked with over the years have moved on to different departments.
Bechtle is always looking to create opportunities for people who want to develop within the organisation, and as Bechtle keeps on growing, there are always plenty of roads to explore.
Which three words would you use to describe Bechtle?
The three words that are the very essence of Bechtle: Stronger together, zukunftsstark.
Enough talk about work! Do you have any hobbies?
One of my biggest passions is the seventh art, as we call it in France. I have an unlimited cinema pass and seen more than 500 films on the big screen, and a collection of over 1,000 Blu-rays to boot.
Before COVID, I had danced for over 15 years—Standard and Latin—and I also did public performances.
And then there’s my other great passion—food! I’m a bit of a picky eater, but I love eating all the same, and cooking for my friends and family. Unfortunately, you can really tell that my dancing shoes are collecting dust nowadays. I’m up 8 kg in 2 years, and at my age they are hard to shake off again.
How would your friends and family describe you?
I would hope as generous, funny, passionate.
What film does everyone need to see?
There are just too many to choose from, and across all genres. So here are just my absolute top cult films by category:
- Romantic comedy (US): Groundhog Day (1993) – I’m a huge fan of Bill Murray and this film has got to be my number one
- Romantic comedy (French): The Dinner Game (1998)
- Tragicomedy: Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967) with the fabulous Sidney Potier
- Sci-Fi/fantasy: The Matrix (1999), V for Vendetta (2006)
- Adventure/fantasy: Jurassic Park (1993), The Fifth Element (1997)
- Thriller: Seven (1995), The Usual Suspects (1995)
- Animation: Wall-E (2008)
- Romantic drama: Forrest Gump (1994) – Tom Hanks is just such an outstanding actor.
- Historical drama: Schindler’s List (1993) – Liam Neeson is fantastic
There are so many more great actors, I can’t actually name them all: Keanu Reeves, Nathalie Portman, Bill Murray, Sidney Poitier, Jacques Villeret, Thierry Lhermitte, Tom Hanks, Brad Pitt, Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, Kevin Spacey, Liam Neeson, Clint Eastwood, Robert de Niro, or Rami Malek who delivered a brilliant performance in the Freddie Mercury biopic, Bohemian Rhapsody.
Your favourite dish?
Among many others, beef mince with rice and courgettes.
For the real gourmets, here’s the ultimate recipe: Beef mince with rice and courgettes (marmiton.org, French).
Though for me you’d have to hold the coriander.
Is there anything else we should know about you? What would you say?
My wardrobe holds about 120 t-shirts, and 80% of them are emblazoned with geek humour.