Interview: Antoine, a Kedge graduate living in Manila, Philippines.

• PROMOTION : 2012
• POSTE : General Manager
• ENTREPRISE : ZI-ARGUS
• DURÉE D'EXPATRIATION : 4 ans

INTERVIEW 💬

1️⃣ Please say a few words about yourself.

My name is Antoine Thomachot. I’m 31 years old and have been in the Philippines for almost four years.  Before that, I lived in Cannes, where I grew up.  I began working in Lyon in 2011.

2️⃣ Tell us about your years at KEDGE? Why did you choose to do the MSc in Business Engineering, Business Development?

I have a rather particular background. I have a bachelor in electrical engineering followed by a technology degree in industrial engineering. I started with that because I have a technical and technological background, then looked for a way to go into business. Students from the Toulon school, which at the time was Euromed Management, gave us a presentation, and that's when I realised that going to business school could be a great stepping stone and an opportunity. This was something I hadn’t pictured at the beginning. So, I did the Business Engineering MSc programme. Having one is a real plus on the market in the technical field, particularly with manufacturers, whether they are on the CAC40 or are an SME.

Degrees such as the one I got are highly sought-after, because it is known that the school offers an additional month abroad in an English-speaking country during the first year to improve the person’s level of English. To make a long story short, it has been a very good school and was one of my best investments in myself. It really makes it possible to set yourself out from someone who stops after getting the technology degree and, as our economics teacher at the time would say, "a business school is an accelerator of maturity". I encourage anyone who has a technical background, who has a business disposition or would like to do something other than technical work, to continue in their education.

Anyway, we must keep in mind that it is not our diploma that follows us our entire career, it’s our very first job and professional experiences (work-study, internships). Personally, this master was in line with what I was looking for given my background.

3️⃣ You were with Schneider Electric in France for around five years before you moved to the Philippines. Would you tell us how it went?  Did you receive a job offer or was it a personal choice?

During the last year of my master, I did a one-year work-study programme under a professional development contract at a factory Schneider Electric. It was between 2011 and 2012, (after the crisis of 2008 which had repercussions right up to the year we graduated) and it was very difficult for most students to find work after school. At the end of my work-study contract, a new operations manager was appointed. I could choose to pursue my career at a service company (such as Altran, Akka, or Davidson) or stay with Schneider Electric. I had a very good rapport with this new director and he offered me a job on a very interesting project, which is what I decided to take.

Just so you know, I started off in a services entity, which was a booming sector in France at the time. What’s more, I was lucky enough to be in that position when they created a department dedicated to renewable energies (such as wind, photovoltaic, etc...). All the same, I was keeping an eye out for a job abroad because, ever since I had been in the United States for my master, I had discovered myself and I knew I was made to go. First of all, I looked at the internal mobility jobs that were on offer, but although they weren’t really interesting, I finally applied, but unfortunately, I never heard anything. In 2015, I came across a vacancy notice for a job located in the Philippines and I decided to try my luck. After two weeks without receiving a response, I decided to directly contact the country president who sent me to HR. I was then sent to the manager who hadn’t select me, so I had failed again. But I didn't want to give up. Six months later, in April 2016, I realised that the position in the Philippines was open again and I decided to try again. HR remembered my profile. I passed the interviews, got the job, and moved here. In sum, it was indeed a personal choice, but I did everything I could to make it happen. 

4️⃣ You are now a General Manager at ZI-ARGUS.  Would you tell us what your duties are? Why did you go work for this new company?

ZI-ARGUS is a company that does "process automation". To make it simple, we have customers who use recipes or fabrication methods for everyday products (soap, milk, coffee...). They give us the process written with instructions on their machines, and our engineers translate it so that the machine does it automatically. My role is to supervise operations, the sales team, and the finances. Because the company is part of a large multinational group present in Thailand, Indonesia, and Australia, I am 100% responsible for the legal entity of ZI-ARGUS in the Philippines.

In order to explain why I joined ZI-ARGUS, I will tell you about my beginnings in the Philippines. When I was at Schneider Electric in France, I took a three-year sabbatical, which was coming to an end at the end of 2019. Internally, I had several options, including returning to France or keeping my current position but losing some benefits. Because I love the Philippines, I decided to draw up a benchmark to see what I could find outside the company because we tend to minimise external opportunities. A month later, I received a call from a head-hunter who offered me a job in the Philippines but was vague about what it was. I went through the interviews, researched the company, and was eventually selected. That’s why I left Schneider Electric for ZI-ARGUS. Now, was it the right choice? I think only time will tell because after a year it’s too soon to know, but anyway it's been a very nice experience so.

5️⃣ Did you encounter any problems when you arrived in the Philippines? How was your integration?

When I came to the Philippines, I didn't have a job in top management, but I was going to end up as a manager. I knew from the name that our local manager and country boss was French. This created internal tensions because the employees don't really like this kind of system because it allows hierarchical short-cuts. I wasn’t even welcome from before I arrived because I had never been to the Philippines, and no one understood why I had got the job.  But I had the support of my French boss who helped me a lot.

When changing companies, three important things have to be taken into account: the company, the country/city, and the position/hierarchical level. For an internal move to be successful, it's necessary to take a step-by-step approach: i.e. you should not, for example, change your country and your hierarchical level. Also, you need to be aware that when you move abroad, you’re on your own for the first few months.  It’s a unique experience but the beginning will be "alone". On the professional side, that fact that I already knew my job and the company when I arrived helped me a lot to settle in.

Then, when you arrive in a new country, you have to take into account at least three points: language, religion, and culture. The easy thing about the Philippines is that English is an official language and Filipinos are Catholic. On the other hand, the Philippines were colonized by the Spaniards for 300 years, then the Americans, and the Japanese (invaded during the 2nd world war, then liberated by the Americans). However, they have a Latin and Western culture. When you get here, fitting in is really not very difficult because it is a multicultural country. As far as safety, in June 2016, a new president was elected who has proven to be very strict and has been able to make several positive changes. It’s important to know that before he became president, he was the mayor of a city that was a victim of drugs and trafficking, as well as in a region that was under strong Islamic pressure. He had brought a lot of changes to that city and which is what allowed him to be elected president. Manila was not a very safe city before his arrival because there were a lot of problems with drugs, theft, and all the trafficking related to those activities. Because of these drastic measures, admittedly sometimes controversial, the police have regained their authority and there are far fewer problems than before, according to those who lived through the transition. I can even say that I feel safer in Manila than anywhere else in France. One problem I’ve found here is that almost no one takes initiatives and decisions because you can lose your job very quickly. So, I have learned to be very patient. Patience is a keyword when you are an expatriate.

6️⃣ In the future, do you think you will stay in the Philippines or in Asia?  Do you see yourself going back to France?

As I said, I quit my job at Schneider Electric so I could stay in the Philippines longer. Given the current context (Covid-19) it's a bit difficult to predict the future. Personally, I would like to stay in the Philippines because I’ve managed to build a good network over time. If not in the Philippines, at least in Asia, especially in my current company. If not, I’m also thinking about North America - with Canada, which is looking for a lot of French-speaking expatriates, or Latin America if that part of the continent gets politically stabilised.

7️⃣ Do you have any advice for graduates or future graduates who would like to move to the Philippines?

On the professional side, you should try to find a job that fits your profile as much as possible and narrow your search field. Your career will be built through your first professional experiences (internships, work-study programmes, etc.) and your network. Those first experiences will be the hardest ones. In fact, in the beginning, you have to know how to put yourself in your place before you can grow, and you must show real motivation in order to advance.

Secondly, if you want to move abroad, you must do some personal travelling first. Visit the countries where you want to work. Don’t forget that Asia is a continent; each country has its own set of characteristics and they are each very different from the other. For example, if you want to live in Singapore, it’s better to go there and also visit other developed countries like Japan or South Korea, but not Cambodia because it’s still a developing country. You have to remain consistent with your preferred destination and try to meet locals or graduates on site. You’ll hear this repeatedly, but the network is very important.

You have to keep in mind that moving out of the country is complicated. It’s feasible, but it's difficult. The keyword is your motivation. You have to target a country and target an industry, and you will see that living abroad is an incredible experience. 

Interview conducted in Singapore by Clémence, Stivell, Estelle, and Adel, students of the KEDGE Alumni Travel Pro-act of Asia

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