Hélène

As a child in Lorraine, Hélène dreamed of becoming an archaeologist. But she also spent a lot of time borrowing her brother's Legos. Fascinated by science and the TV show "C'est pas sorcier", she joined INSA in Lyon, an engineering school. There, she found her calling: she had a blast making concrete parts on machines, while also being the heavy metal singer in a student band! This mix of hands-on work, creativity, and technique naturally pushed her towards microelectronics.

After a PhD and several years as a manager in the medical industry at Becton Dickinson, the Covid-19 pandemic marked a turning point. Seeing the mountains of waste generated by single-use syringes and packaging, Hélène realized the ecological impact of her sector. She decided to react and asked her management to dedicate part of her time to finding solutions to reduce this pollution.

To transform her company, goodwill is not enough: you have to prove that ecology is economically viable. Hélène went back to train at the London Business School to learn how to "sell" sustainability to her executives. Through tenacity and solid arguments, she managed to convince them. Her initiative became a full-time job, proving that you can shape your own career to align with your convictions.

Throughout her career, Hélène has had to navigate highly masculine environments. Today, as the only woman at her hierarchical level, she still notices that her ideas are sometimes ignored until a male colleague repeats them. Far from being discouraged, she got involved in an internal network to promote women, aware that the female presence is essential to change mentalities.

After climbing the ranks and coming close to burnout by combining the management of a large team and her ecological projects, Hélène made a strong choice: to go part-time. What initially seemed like a step back became a real victory. Today, she fully thrives between her meaningful job, her children, and her local political commitment to the ecological transition.