In our favoured solvimus tradition we have invited our French co-worker Philippe Bour.
Philippe joined our team on 01 August 2023 and aims to create a distribution network in French-speaking regions as Sales Manager France. He serves France, Belgium, Luxembourg and French-speaking Switzerland.
He was courageous and was willing to respond to our questions on his personality and his tasks at solvimus:
How did you get to know solvimus?
I was looking for a career change where I can exploit my command of German. I thus decided to search open positions offered by German companies aiming to expand to France.
There, I can use my first language French to make this intention become a reality.
I stumbled upon this position of “Sales Manager France” for solvimus on LinkedIn.
Job interviews are the one thing – what prompted your decision?
My first interview was online via Teams. I had a positive impression already during the interview. The interlocutors Sarah and Thomas are very friendly persons.
The second interview was on site. Afterwards, I had the opportunity to inspect the solvimus premises and to get to know the team.
I noticed instantly that the mood is positive. It is a young team addressing each other on a first-name basis, and that is compatible with my direct approach.
This was also the decisive aspect to opt for solvimus. The atmosphere, the employee attitude … solvimus is a young aspiring company whose products live up to sustainability and energy management, and this is a match to my personal philosophy. Many perspectives are revealed here, and I still see them 😉.
Philippe, describe yourself with a film title:
There is no film able to describe me. It would have to be shot first. 😊
I am an open-minded and communicative contemporary.
What is the first thing you do in the morning?
I begin the day with the classical French breakfast of baguette, butter and jam, and then I switch on my notebook and read my e-mails.
Today, I had an introductory LinkedIn-tutorial from the marketing department. So, this will constitute an element of my morning routine.
Work is but half of the lifetime. What is your favourite leisure-time activity?
I like tinkering with old mopeds and cars. That is, I purchase vintage cars, upgrade them – but I preserve their vintage look, e.g. I replace the engine, so that they drive again, and resell them. But I also keep one occasionally.
Other than that, I enjoy riding my e-bike and explore the magnificent landscape of Lorraine.
What is the biggest challenge in your work?
This is an intricate question!
I start from scratch as the French market is still rather unexplored for us, so I have to spread the word in order to make our trademark solvimus known in France.
What is your favourite product and why?
This is definitely the MUC.easyplus data concentrator. This is our all-rounder with a multitude of interfaces, making it so versatile.
I’d love to hand something like that as a cleaner *laughing out loud*
Tell us about your tasks with us! What is a typical workday for you?
As Sales Manager, I am the interlocutor for partners and clients, and those who wish to be that, in France, Belgium, Luxembourg and French-speaking Switzerland. But of course, if someone contacts me from Morocco or another French-speaking country, I tend to that as well.
I perform local analyses for which companies our products could be an asset, contact these, fix appointments, and travel to their site to present our products.
Other than that, I visit industry-specific trade fairs and deepen my network.
I travel to the Thuringian Ilmenau every 4-6 weeks. My German co-workers are looking forward to my arrival as I occasionally bring some French delicacies or good wine. 😉
Dear Philippe, we are glad you are part of solvimus and help us to establish our company in French-speaking countries.
The interviews of our other co-workers can be found on the blog site under the category Team.
If you are interested in paving new ways with us and want to become a member of our team, contact us at duzaehlst@solvimus.de.
Here you find our career page.
