Tell us about your career path. You graduated from high school in Bayonne, when and why did you settle in Shanghai?
In high school, I specialised in literature and Chinese as a foreign language, which allowed me to make my first trip to Beijing. The experience was eye-opening and led me to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in English and Chinese with a minor in International Marketing in Bordeaux, during which I spent a semester in Xi’An. After that, I took a gap year and spent another six months in Xi’An. Upon my return, I moved to Lyon to do a Master’s degree in English and Chinese with a minor in Management. Here, I spent another semester abroad, this time in North Carolina, specialising in HR. I missed China a lot so decided to return in January 2018 after completing my master’s degree and did an internship. I have been a HR and Recruitment Consultant for INS for almost a year now.
You studied in Bayonne, Bordeaux and Lyon, beautiful gastronomic French regions, don’t you miss that?
In Shanghai it’s pretty easy to fill the void when it comes to non-Chinese food. You can find cuisine from all over the world in the city, not just French! Shanghai is a city where you feel like a foreigner and a local at the same time. As an expat, you can easily find your bearings.
What is your role at INS?
Recruitment. I love to discover talent and work with all sorts of different applicants. The main goal of my work is to ensure that both parties are satisfied, the recruiter and the applicant.
What does a typical day at the office look like?
In the morning, I check my e-mails to see if there are any updates about ongoing visa applications. As I deal mostly with American clients, the time difference means my inbox is quite full when I arrive at the office in the morning. In the afternoon I put on my recruiter hat. That’s when applicants are usually available to chat.
Is working in a company with diverse employees a rarity in China or a trend that is developing?
Thanks to globalisation, it is becoming more and more common. This isn’t just the case in China, but employee diversity in terms of culture is a key driver for most companies who wish to go global in any part of the world.
Would you say that this sense of diversity is a strength for INS?
Of course! We’re an international team, we complement each other. A mix of cultures, personalities and experiences around the office is important and equips us to better deal with our clients’ issues and helps to solve them more effectively thanks to our overlapping fields of expertise.