Jose Ramon's Blog

Pre-Final

Summarizing…

 

This is going to be the last post of the WE ALL CAN program. It’s sad :'( but everything reaches its end. In this last post I’m going to summarize who is my coach and I will tell you my impressions of the whole experience.

 

My coach

Mathilde has had patient to answer my questions and to guide me through this adventure that has lasted two months.

She works in the Business Planning (Strategy) department for Alcan Engineering Products, one of the four Business Units of Alcan Inc.

Her role is...planning??? In fact it is but this term is really vague. Being a bit more precise, she:

 

-Assists with the 5-year plan of the company.

-Studies of the different projects proposed by the different subsidiaries of Alcan Engineered Products

-Studies acquisitions projects, like new factories, new companies

-Studies the possible sale of one or several parts of Alcan Engineered Products

 

This may (or may not) seems exciting, but from my point of view the best of her job is that she works with a small team “deciding the future” of Alcan Engineering. This is not an easy job and a lot of data has to be collected. This means to grasp information from the Business Units to understand better what their needs are and what they do. At the end she has a very good overview of the whole company.

Another thing that has impressed me is that Mathilde worked during one year with the CEO of Alcan Inc., Mr. Engen. Alcan gave her this opportunity and also helped her to combine her professional life with her personal life (even though she had to travel to Canada or other places almost once per week). 

She has showed me the international environment in which she works, talking with employees from all over the world and travelling across Europe and

Canada.

Thanks to my coach I had the opportunity to talk with the vice-president of the Business Planning department, Béatrice Charon, with a financial responsible, Clotilde Delbos and moreover, she showed me from inside what her job is about.

 

My experience

 

Great!!!!!!!

 

On day I was bored in my room and I checked my e-mail looking for something interesting. I saw a mail saying “We all can” and I though that maybe it was from somebody proposing me something.

It was Alc...what? Yes, Alcan. I didn’t have any idea of what it was, so I researched a bit in Internet and I discovered that it was one of the biggest aluminium companies and that it was proposing to spend one day with a young professional. 

“Ummmm…it’s a good opportunity to meet people and to learn from a first hand experience” So I applied and everything began… 

First an interview, then a briefing and then the ALCAN DAY. It was a really intensive day and I have a little piece of Mathilde’s life. 

However it was not all, I had to “transmit” this knowledge in this “blog”, what has not been easy, I promise. 

I have learnt a “lot” about Alcan; I have met really nice people, like Sandrine (the responsible of Human Resources in contact with Universities) that helped me with a presentation I had to do for my “Ecole”, Béatrice, Clotilde and of course the bloggers of the program (other students that are involved in this program). I have learnt a lot with them. Ummm…I think I have forgotten my coach…I have met my Mathilde. 

I strongly recommend visiting their sites if you are interested in one of the jobs presented in Alcan, you will have another point of view.

 

In my case it has helped me to know better one of the jobs in finance and to decide, more or less, what I want to do in life. I say more or less because it’s not just me at 100% who decides this and maybe I discover I like more something else.

From this space I will like to thank all those who have made this program possible and a special mention to Mathilde.    

…and see you (boggers) in the end party that will be held in Paris (je,je,je)…

…and the rest of audience…do not hesitate to contact with me if you have any question about this job, myself or just want to have a talk about bikes!!!!

 

Thanks!!!!

Challenge, Performance & Contribution

Each job in the company is essential to its growth. How key is your coach’s job?

My coach is “absolutely essential” for Alcan…Alcan wouldn’t exist without Mathilde…I can’t imagine Alcan without her…

And no, she hasn’t paid me to say this…even though she has invited me to have lunch.

Seriously, as I have said many times, Strategy is an essential part of Alcan. It’s like a piece of an engine. The engine can work without a piece, but not for so long. The same happens with Mathilde. Actually, she is in a maternity leave, and Béatrice doesn’t have anybody else to help her…I bet she is going to suffer until Mathilde will be back, and I hope she won’t break out till then. 

Now, even more serious, Mathilde is working head with head with the vice-president of Business Planning in Alcan Engineering products. She has been there for no longer than one year, but I guess her job has been well appreciated. Even more, with her global vision of the company (she spent one year working with Mr Travis Engen, the CEO of Alcan Inc., travelling and representing the company) she must be really valuable at her job. She must have an idea of what the CEO and her bosses want the company to be.

So in a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 is “she is not key in her job, even less, she could be fired” and 10 is “She should be the next CEO, Alcan can not live without her”, Mathilde will be a 7. What do you thing, Mathilde?

How does your coach assess his/her contribution?

Well, according to Alcan Human Resources Department, there is a system designed to measure the employee contribution. It is called Individual Performance and Career Management (IPCM). This system is not to asses the employee contribution but also to provide her/him with training & development.

In the next graph it’s more or less explained:

A brief explanation; first of all there is a meeting with your direct manager with whom you fix the objectives. After one year you meet again with your manager to review how well you have done, and you and your boss arrange training, development and possible promotions.

As I have said just a few lines above, Mathilde has not even spent one year, so she hasn’t done this.

However, when I talked with her manager, Béatrice Charon she was really happy with the work Mathilde was doing…so I guess there won’t be any problem to in the next meeting of the IPCM.

Where do the corporate values & strategic directives of the Group (EHS, Maximising Value, Continuous Improvement) impact?

Ok…Strategy = Maximizing Value, Continuous Improvement, EHS…(by the way, EHS is for Environment, Health and Safety)

If you have to decide the future of Alcan, and the maximum directives of Alcan are these, you have to decide it according to this directives.

Each time I have spoken with Mathilde, she has named “Maximizing Value” like tens of times. However it’s true. Each time Mathilde has to study a project or an “acquisition/ sold” she is thinking about maximizing the value to the shareholders and consequently to Alcan employees. Of course that she has always in mind “Continuous Improvement and EHS”. “Continuous improvement” because when she and Beatrice study the viability of a project they have to decide if it is going to contribute to the improvement of Alcan.

What challenges does your coach face? How can your coach remain motivated and productive? …

Ummm….interesting…but I think it’s an easy question.

If you like your job and there is always something to do, you are motivated. And imagine that in a company like Alcan (huge!!!!), there is always something to improve, there is always a project in study to be approved or many acquisitions that have to be considered…or suddenly your main competitor, globally, acquire your main local competitor in Europe…you have to be fast to counterattack.

Mathilde has always talked with passion about what she is doing, she likes it and this motivates her.

Her next challenge??? A baby…;)))

Her next challenge in Alcan?? After her maternity leave, will be to review the next 5 year plan for Alcan and to update.

Innovation in Strategy

What is it innovation?

According to the dictionary, innovation is the “art” of including something new. If we think about R&D, it is very easy to describe innovation…because R&D is all innovation!!!

However, what about innovation in Strategy?

At first it is not easy to think about it. When I met Mathilde, she was a bit “shocked” when she heard the word innovation. However after an hour talking we had some ideas.

Furthermore, I will put a war example to illustrate innovation in strategy.

This war happened a "few" years ago. It was between the Romans and Hannibal, the leader of the troops from Cartago. The Romans had about 80,000 soldiers while Hannibal just had about 50,000, of which a few thousands were mercenary forces. These mercenary forces were just loyal because of money.

Ok, let’s place the battle. Cannas, the Hannibal soldiers were surrounded, first by a river, and then by the Romans forces, two armies of soldiers and two units of cavalry. These units were going to be used as a mean of cutting the run away through the sides.

Hannibal had two possibilities, one was running away through the river and the other was fighting the Romans. If he run away, the episode most probable was that during the disorders the Romans would attack and kill most of his men. The other possibility was fighting in the disadvantage of having fewer men and a bad placement. However, this man was clever, and this is why his name remains written in history.

His strategy was:

-         First, concentrate all the mercenary forces in front, having more soldiers in the middle of the formation.

-         The Romans would attack this “chunk” of soldiers, because it was were the soldiers of Hannibal were located.

-         As the Romans were attacking, the mercenary forces would go in retreat. Why? They were fighting because of money, and in a disadvantageous situation, they were going to be the first in running away.

-         This would lead the Romans to the centre of the Hannibal forces. Meanwhile more Hannibal forces would surround the Romans.

As it is obvious, this is what happened. The Romans lost about 80% of the soldiers, while Hannibal just lost about 3,000. The innovation was to introduce the idea of placing the mercenary forces in front forecasting that they would run away. Meanwhile Hannibal would surround the Romans and defeat them.

However, what is the relation of a battle with Alcan and what Mathilde does?

We can extrapolate this battle to many situations in Alcan’s strategy. For example let’s think about the acquisition of a new company.

It’s essential to think about the strategy. First Mathilde and her bosses have to think about how they are going to approach the owners or shareholders. They have to think as well what is the added value of the new company, how it is going to help Alcan to reach its objectives, how this new factory is going to affect the competence.  It’s, as well, essential the location of the new factory.

And each time is different. There are problems or situations that arise and different solutions have to be designed. Moreover, these solutions often involve more department and people. In the example of the acquisition the M&A team, the banks, the sales force, Alcan employees of the area where the company acquired is located and so on.

It’s true there are many protocols of how to deal with acquisitions, sales, etc… but in a division that is responsible for deciding the “future” of Alcan Engineered Products, there is, as well, a lot of free room to innovate, to introduce new ideas, new ways of doing things.

More International

The other day I met my coach for lunch and we were speaking about this issue.

She gave me another point of view that I couldn’t appoint. This is that in Alcan every day is an international day.

For me it was, more or less, normal, since I’m living abroad and surrounded by international students. The fact of speaking in a language that it’s not my mother tongue and mix my culture with other cultures it’s something that enrich me, and this is what it is happening in Alcan.

In a company that operates all over the world, with more that 70,000 employees from more than 56 countries it is “normal” to speak or communicate, at least, once per day with somebody from other country and other culture.

Mathilde is in direct contact with business units mainly present in Europe, Canada and US so, even though Alcan is a Canadian company, in a French speaking region with about 40% of the employees speaking French, she speaks and writes in English. From time to time is usual to find e-mails written in two languages, from somebody that begins writing in English and ends writing in French. In fact, this is what I do when I speak French. I usually start speaking in French and suddenly I change to English (it’s easier for me to speak in English ;))

Probably this is one the “competitive advantages” of Alcan, the diversity, the open minded people ready to discover, share and learn from other people.

News & Strategy

Recently I have read in several financial newspapers (FT, Bloomberg,..) that Alcan Inc. is selling some factories in Europe and South Africa. Furthermore, Alcan plans that 20% of its smelting capacity will be affected in Europe. This affects directly to decide about the viability of the smelter. Most of the smelters are located in France and Germany, and the reasons are high prices energy and outdated installations. However, up to what point is this piece of news a way of putting pressure on local governments to drop energy prices? Why not invest in new installations?

From my point of view, is a warning signal of delocalisation to lower costs countries, like China, where new installations are cheaper (apart, of course, that the workforce is as well cheaper than in Europe)

However, just in case somebody does not know the story, two years ago Alcan bought Pechiney, an aluminium and packaging French company, for 6 billion euros. Now, it seems that Alcan is going backwards, selling and closing factories across Europe but, is it really going backwards?

There is something called “core competences” and is the “best thing a company can do”. This theory speaks about that the company should focus its efforts in what it is a specialist. This is, in the case of Alcan, producing Aluminium and transforming it. According to the theory Alcan is keeping its core business.

What it is going on is that Alcan is “cleaning” the “new house”. When any of us buy a house (or will buy a house, that it’s my case) there are things that have to be changed and sometimes we get rid of some walls and build some others.

This is the case of the “new” Alcan. It has acquired many companies and has many synergies that it has to be reorganised. Many acquisitions were “packages”. It’s like when we have to buy an assortment of cookies just to have those round cookies cover in chocolate that are impossible to buy in another format. With companies it’s the same. Many times you have to buy the whole package just to have the part that interests you. And what then? Well, as it usually happens, you look for other people that like those lemon cookies that you don’t like very much. And those that nobody wants…well, it’s sad to say, but we’ll throw them away. So, this is more or less, as far as I understand, what Alcan is doing.

So, if someone of you have read the news and did not understand what it’s going on, I hope that this text has helped a bit.

Around the world in 80 days...

A hundred years ago Jules Verne wrote this marvellous book about travelling, where a wealthy gentleman in London bet half of his fortune in a challenge, go around the world in 80 days.

This has reminded me Alcan and the people that work over there. Every employee I’ve met has travelled because of his/her job.

Mathilde, my coach, wishes she had travelled around the world, and she was close to do it. She has been, so far, in Greece, France, Germany and Canada. It was a pity that she couldn’t go to Australia, because she was in close contact with one of the factories over there.

Last year she was in close contact with Mr. Engen, the CEO of Alcan Inc, because she worked as a “Special Assistant”. Due to this work, she travelled from Paris to Montreal at least once per week.

However, now she is in a more “quite” period of her life. She doesn’t have to travel to other countries to visit factories or to represent the company in a meeting of stakeholders, but she is going to have to travel a lot to the shop to buy nappies and a lot of baby food ;))) even more amazing than going around the world in 80 days.

The coffee machine (Clients & Suppliers)

Why this issue? Alcan, the company that is supporting this blog, is going to suggest several subjects to talk about, and this is the first one.

Let’s explain with an example what clients and suppliers are. The players of the example:

• Myself: the “product”
• My parents: suppliers
• Companies: clients

According to the theory, my parents supply me with “financial resources” (let’s call it money, to understand us better) so I have the best education as possible (and travels, parties, a car, a bike…) and I have to sell myself to the companies as a high-potential manager. These companies are the clients; they have to “buy” me. I think it's quite clear, isn't it?

In the case of Mathilde, my coach, the client and the supplier is the same. How can it be?

Let’s imagine that the different business units (BU) need a “coffee machine”. Everybody knows that coffee is essential for the productivity of a company…well at least it’s essential for my productivity.

The Automotive BU needs the latest model, an italian coffee machine in stainless steal, shinning and that just pushing one button we obtain a coffee that will keep awake a Spaniard during the “siesta”. It’s rather expensive so they have to ask Business Planning to approve the project to obtain an extraordinary budget to buy it. However, is it good for Alcan Automotive to have employees running from one side to another, full of energy and stressing out everybody, even the cleaning service? Is it good so much caffeine?

Here is where Mathilde and her bosses have to see if it’s profitable. Mathilde will make a study of how good is this “coffee machine”, how long will it last and how good is the coffee. Also she will test how much “caffeine” does it have, and if the productivity of Alcan employees will be affected positively or negatively. After this study, she will trasfer a report to her bosses, who will decide about it.

Who are the clients and the suppliers in this example?

From my point of view, the clients are the different business units that ask for the viability of a project. Mathilde works for them in order to give them a solution. But also they are the suppliers of all the information required by Mathilde and they would have to act according to what it’s decided by her bosses.

At the same time the clients of Mathilde are her bosses (as for everybody, we always have someone to respond for our actions, parents, partners, friends, bosses). However, I have read, and I share this idea, that bosses are at the service of the employees. It like an inverted pyramid, the most important are the clients that should be supported by employees and then their managers should support employees. According to this theory Mathilde’s bosses are her suppliers.

This is why I think that the suppliers and clients of Mathilde are the same. It just depend on the moment things occur.

What is Alcan Engineered Products?

Alcan Engineered Products is the part of Alcan that is specialized in “added value” products.

Alcan is a leader in aluminium production but also in products derived from it.

Ok, let’s be a bit more specific.
I love cars and bikes, so I’m going to put an example. Does any body likes BMW, AUDI or JAGUAR??
Those are clients from Alcan Engineered Products. Alcan helps in the design of the frames, alloys, security, etc…

Another good example is about windmills.

I’m pretty sure that almost everybody knows Don Quixote. Nowadays it would be impossible for him to fight against these windmills…whose material is produced by Alcan Engineered Products, specifically the Composites division.

Alcan Engineered Products is divided in different businesses,

• Aerospace Transport & Industry

• Composites

• Extruded Products

• Cable

• Alcan International Network

• Automotive

• Ventures

 

I'm Back

Yes!!!

I know, I have been away for almost two weeks, but I have a good excuse. Or at least I think it's good.
I have had exams during the last week and I have been studying and not sleeping a lot and then, well, I have gone out to celebrate that exams were over. Furthermore, the weather has been so great during the last week in Paris, so after exams I have gone out to enjoy the sun ;)))

However, now I'm back and soon I will write about my coach.
What is a coach? Well, many of you already now what is the role of a coach but for those who doesn't know, my coach is my contact with Alcan and the person I have been "following" during my Alcan day(one day at her job, observing what she did and asking many questions).

So came back soon and you will discover who is my coach...

About me

 

It would be easier to say that I’m 23, Spanish and a Business and Engineering student but this is just a fact, something that can be found in my CV. According to my mum(she is quite objective) I'm handsome, clever and she wonder why I don't have girlfriend (girls, my phone number is *********)

About my studies:

I started engineering in Madrid 5 years ago (how fast time goes by…) because it was one of the most challenging degrees. Moreover, I didn’t know what to study and back in 1999 the telecom industry was going up like foam and it was interesting observing those dot.com going up. I felt attracted by it so I began to study telecom engineering.

The thing is that in my first class of computer programming I didn’t know what it was about (for those who doesn’t know what it is, it is “just” like “educating” a computer, telling what it does have to do). This gives us an idea of my passion for it: none

So the time went by and I wasn’t doing so badly. However I was more interested in companies, in stock markets and a way to improve my country. Yes, a way to improve my country. How? First I thought it would be good if I could earn enough money so I could use if for good things but later I thought that it would be better if you can build “lives”. So I thought that it would be a good idea to have my own company and to do it I had the opportunity to study a double degree in business in Paris.

Now I’m really happy about what I’m studying, I’m enjoying a lot…all these numbers, the “bulls” and the “bears”(sometimes I think this is the closest to a zoo…), the people and the languages…

About my hobbies:

When I was 14 I thought I could be engineer in the Formula 1. Yes!!! I love everything that it’s related with mechanics, engines, cars and moreover motorbikes.I used to spend many hours in my “scooter” trying to guess how it worked, trying to improve it, trying to make it run faster. In fact we did it several times. Oh!! Yes I forgot. I say “we” because I have a twin brother and I have lived with him, shoulder to shoulder, during 22 years. I have done almost everything with him (no, we haven’t shared girlfriend or at least if my brother shared any of my girlfriends I didn’t know).

We modified a scooter and we made it run up to 100km/h…when they were limited to run up to 45km/h. One myth about a biker is that it’s not true that the bike comes with a blond-awesome girl; I wish it would be like this because it would be easier. Now I have a beautiful, lovely, amazing, awesome Ducati 998. If it is possible to fall in love with a machine I fell in love with it.

But it’s not just about bikes. I have been surrounded by computers during five years so I like them. I decided that if I have to live with them it would be better if I liked them…am I a freak??? I hope not.

Photography is another passion I have. I have more than 3GB of photos in just one year and a half I have my digital camera. My “official sponsors” ( my parents) must love this digital era, it has saved them so much money…

Siesta!!!!! After a good meal or exercise is the healthiest thing you can do  ;))

About myself, myself:

“I am an ambitious, creative and good-team-player person that succeed on challenges”

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But of course let’s understand ambitious in the good sense. Is there a good sense for ambitious?? I think there are. From my point of view “good ambition” is when we fight for our objectives without harming anybody else, when we fight for what we believe in.

Good-team-player…ummmm the other day I was speaking with my ex-girlfriend and she told me that I loved to work alone (maybe she meant it in another way, hope not). It’s half true. I really enjoy working in team but there are times that it’s more efficient to work on your own and the put everything in common (and I don’t think my ex-girlfriend liked to “work” in team).

Oh!!! Yes, creative….ummmm am I creative? I hope so, because that is what I write in my cover letter and it usually works…

Succeed on challenges…most of the times. There is still one challenge I haven’t succeeded and I think I won’t succeed. Many tell me that it’s really easy; I just have to listen…but what? The meaning underlying on the speech? Yes, I mean women. I think they are marvellous; in fact I feel complete when I am with my girlfriend (that’s why now I feel that something is missing) but I haven’t succeeded to understand them.

 

Well, I don’t want to make to long and if you want to know more about me COME AGAIN a let me(&you) win a trip to CANADA…I’m not kidding.

By the way, has anybody understood women? And men?
                    Are you ambitious? In the good way or bad way?
Anybody that want to hang around with the bikes?