Christelle Fernandez
Center Director at Norauto
Entry created on: 15/09/2026
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Short summary
Center Director at Norauto
Role
Center Director
Skills and topics
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Date / version
Entry created on: 15/09/2026
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From tinkering to running a center
In April 2026, Christelle Fernandez became director of a Norauto center in Belley. A few years earlier, she had started out as a tire fitter, with no training in mechanics. From industrial maintenance to horses, workshop work and management, she moved forward by trying things, learning and changing direction when necessary. Her guiding thread: finding a line of work that suits her, then helping others progress.
Timeline
Chronological journey
A taste for hands-on work
A taste for hands-on work
Christelle was born in Lyon and grew up around Bourgoin and L’Isle-d’Abeau. Academic studies appealed to her less than understanding, tinkering and repairing. She therefore chose practical training, earning a CAP and then a vocational baccalaureate in industrial maintenance. The choice suited her: she liked finding a solution on her own whenever something did not work. She also wanted to enter the workforce quickly.
Trying until she found her path
Trying until she found her path
Her first experience at Toyota, working with forklift trucks, lasted only three or four months as a temporary worker. The assembly-line work and highly structured environment did not suit her. She then tried another path: for a year, she managed the stables of a professional show-jumping rider in the Orléans region. Being far from her family brought her back to the region. She then applied broadly and chose Norauto over Lidl in order to learn a hands-on trade. She joined Norauto on December 1, 2016, as a tire fitter.
Learning on the job
Learning on the job
At Norauto, Christelle started without any prior training in automotive mechanics. Julien Genin, her workshop manager, took her under his wing and guided her through her first lessons. She completed every training course available, then became a mechanic. When her workshop manager left the company in 2018, she became his deputy; in January 2019, she completed the diploma program to become a workshop manager, equivalent to three years of higher education. She then managed the workshop at the same center until March 2025, developing both her technical and management skills.
Changing to keep moving forward
Changing to keep moving forward
After almost eight years in the workshop, Christelle felt the physical strain of intense periods and the difficulty of managing teams that changed frequently. She was particularly concerned about no longer learning. Alexandre Camorf, her director, helped her take a step back and consider a change. In March 2025, she became sales manager at the same center, then joined the Belley center in April 2026 as director. She arrived at a center that had been struggling for several years and set herself a clear objective: focus first on the people, then on the results.
Her job
In Belley, Christelle runs a center with around ten employees. She identifies two priorities: helping the team grow and improving results. Her workshop experience gives her practical insight into technical realities and helps her support colleagues. At the same time, she is a trainer for Norauto's workshop onboarding program (PIA): over three days, she teaches new hires the basics of tires, brakes and servicing, with a theoretical component followed by practical training.
Her commitments and values
Often the only woman on the team, Christelle says she has not experienced discrimination. For her, career progression is based on competence, not gender. Horses taught her to observe and understand what goes unsaid; she brings this attentiveness into her management. She moves forward with instinct and commitment, and enjoys passing on what she knows because she knows what it means to learn a trade without knowing its basics.
Her advice: find a path that reflects who you are, try things to find out, and stay attuned to your own aspirations. To parents and teachers, she recommends listening to young people's interests and strengths, then helping them think for themselves.
What Christelle Fernandez shares:
« I preferred tinkering, whatever the field, really. »
« I applied to lots of companies because I'm the kind of person who tries things: if you don't try, you'll never know. »
« The more I learned, the more I liked it, actually. »
Resources
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