Gilles’ story
"As an expert in risk and compliance, Gilles launched his career in interim management with a challenging cross-border assignment in both France and Algeria."
My first interim assignment in a demanding international environment
Based in France, I had the opportunity to join Robert Walters' pool of international interim managers for a 14-month assignment. In my role, I was responsible for ensuring compliance, risk management and liaison between the head office and the Algerian subsidiary of a large car rental company.
The assignment involved working in both France and Algeria. This entailed spending one week in Algeria each month, maintaining close contact with local teams, facilitating their collaboration, and providing them with support and training. With international work experience in Cameroon and Italy and having spent 4 years in Algeria in a previous role, I had the necessary cultural understanding for the assignment, as well as a good knowledge of the economic environment.
As the liaison between the head office and the subsidiary, my role as interim manager was critical in facilitating communication and management between the two entities. I started by setting up a steering committee to ensure the reliability and standardization of the reporting tools between the two entities, as well as to provide visibility on risks and controls.
From an operational standpoint, there were several challenges. These included responding to audit requests from the parent company; ensuring that recommendations were followed up, implemented, and closed within deadlines; overseeing the production of deliverables; and compensating for the lack of skills and resources by acting as temporary management.
This international assignment marked my first experience in interim management. I particularly appreciate the opportunity to take a global view while remaining involved in the operations. This represents a significant advantage over the consulting sector, where the framework for intervention is often inflexible and there is limited scope for exploring new perspectives.
“I quickly identified the benefits of an interim management role, which include a high degree of autonomy, the ability to reflect and implement as well as manage.”
The assignment was initiated with impressive speed, and I was kept informed with regular updates Working closely with Robert Walters helped me to advance and develop my skills while navigating the challenges of an international setting. An invaluable addition to my career.
