“I came to Grenoble to ski 15 years ago and I never left. I love the sporty atmosphere in this city. I cycle into work and the 26 kilometre round-trip helps to clarify my thoughts. Grenoble is also very cosmopolitan and at the ESRF more than 35 nationalities work together. You learn quickly that there is not just one way of doing or saying things. There is a culture of freedom and I get a certain amount of autonomy to do my job in the way that I see best. It’s motivating to be able to add your touch or make changes to processes that may have been in place for a while. I’ve been lucky in my career here in that I arrived at a time when a new division was being created. I was able to build up my job and create something new, evolve and grow in confidence. On top of the admin work that involves organising and following-up the budgets and staffing for the division, I became a member of the Careers Committee. I’ve learned a lot about company rules and human behaviour. I love the fact that I get to interact with many different people at all levels and we cover a huge variety of issues. It makes for busy days but I like to think I can help people outside the stricter sphere of my paid job.”
