As part of our ‘Getting to Know’ series of blog posts, we’re talking to central members of the LEO Learning family so you can get to know them a bit better. Today we’re talking to Cecilia Desgrippes, an Account Manager who specialises in LEO Learning’s automotive and airline sectors.
Describe your role at LEO Learning.
My role is to connect the LEO Learning and client teams, putting ideas together to make concepts into reality. I am responsible for identifying our clients’ requirements, scoping potential learning solutions and sharing industry insights. I regularly meet with my clients to ensure projects are delivered on time and on budget.
Which part of working at LEO Learning do you love most?
What I love the most is working with people who are so passionate about what they do. Everyone at LEO Learning wants to go the extra mile for our customers. They’re also not afraid to challenge the norm to make every learning solution or strategy we create, the best possible.
What is your proudest accomplishment?
There are little wins everyday, but one of my proudest accomplishments is to be able to interact with our customers in different languages. It’s still odd to me how the brain can switch from one language to another – just like that! I can work in French and English, and will hopefully be able to do so in Spanish one day too. Working with clients from different parts of the world often gives me the chance to learn something new about their culture. I feel lucky to be able to meet so many people through my role.
What’s the biggest challenge you’ve overcome?
Getting out of your comfort zone is never easy. Right now, one of the biggest professional challenges I think I have overcome was to change industries to start working at LEO Learning. I had mainly worked in marketing but I wanted to work for a company with a purpose – so I’m very glad I found LEO Learning. The company cares about what they do and has supported me in joining this new industry, which is more complex than I thought it would be! There is so much more to well-designed learning solutions than you think.
On a personal note, I think there is no bigger challenge I have faced than moving to another country. I come from France (which is not far, I know) and I have been in the UK for almost seven years now. Looking back, this was never something I thought I would ever have the guts to do when I was younger. It’s been an amazing learning curve for me and I would recommend going to live in another country for a while. It’s one of the best ways to get to know yourself a little better – and others too.
What are the three things you can’t work without?
- My colleagues – their knowledge and passion are priceless and it’s just more fun with them
- A reliable laptop with Internet connection
- Dark chocolate (at least 85%) – I need my daily square for my chocolate ‘fix’!
As a kid what did you want to be when you grew up?
As a kid I wanted to create TV adverts. I loved how creative they were (I’m talking ads from the 80s and 90s and up to around 2003). I was just amazed by how a 30-second video clip could make me laugh so much and by the effect it had on me. Not that I wanted to buy everything I saw in the ads, but I wanted to create TV adverts that people would enjoy watching and remember.
If you found this blog interesting, you might also want to check out our insight ‘Thriving in times of uncertainty: driving automotive industry learning forward’.