I Would Particularly Like to Thank Sébastien CLERY, My Tutor. He Gave Me a Lot of Helpful

THANKS

I would particularly like to thank Sébastien CLERY, my tutor. He gave me a lot of helpful advices while he let me work free. Moreover, at the beginning of my placement he devoted a large part of his precious time to solve my administrative problems.

My department gave me a warm welcome. Work inside it was very pleasant. I’ve got all the SQC technicians: Françoise, Damien, Jean and Jean-Bernard to thank for that.

I would like to thank also Claude, the concierge of my building. He has a passion for mountain and climbing. He made me discover great places to enjoy my free time.

CAUCHI Benjamin i September 2005 IFI 2007 CONTENTS

THANKS______i

CONTENTS______ii

INTRODUCTION______2

MY PLACEMENT-HUNTING______2 A target company______2 Need to enlarge my target______2 One month to find: relational network______2 Not a foreign country but a good compromise______2 The administrative obstacle course______2 How to perform my future placement seeking______2

MY RELATIONSHIP WITH SOMFY______2 My job______2 A welcoming department______2 Discover the company______2 Work schedule______2 My visits in subsidiaries______2 SIMU : One day in XXXXXXXXXX______2 SOMFY UK : Two days in England______2

SOMFY ORGANIZATION______2 Lack of reactivity: the mammoth's handicap______2 The hierarchic lever______2 Departments' conflicts______2

Internal reorganization: O2______2 Adaptation to the portfolio of products______2 A cool reception______2

LIFE IN HAUTE SAVOIE______2 Mountain discovery______2 Capitale du reblochon et de la tommeSummer music festivals______2 Summer music festivals______2

CONCLUSION______2

CAUCHI Benjamin ii September 2005 IFI 2007 CAUCHI Benjamin iii September 2005 IFI 2007 INTRODUCTION

CAUCHI Benjamin 1 September 2005 IFI 2007 MY PLACEMENT-HUNTING

A target company

I began my placement seeking in October 2004 and, I wanted to work abroad, in an English-speaking country. However, I was very inefficient. In fact, I say that I began in October but in reality, I was just looking for one company. It was Marshall Amplification, located in United Kingdom, about 80 kilometres from London. I turned one's attention on this company for different reasons. First, it is a famous guitar amplifier builder. I am a guitarist and, consequently, it would be very interesting for me. I have worked only in small or in medium companies and Marshall has about 2000 employees. I could discover the work in a big organization. Moreover, electronic and electricity were both of my favourite subjects in school last year and Marshall should permit me to work on it. With my English teacher's help I wrote up a CV and a cover letter that were focused on this application. I described my passion for music, my self-learning in sound amplification and my school knowledge in electronic. I sent my application to Marshall Amplification by mail before the Christmas holidays. After 2 month I asked some news by e-mail but I did not get an answer. From his moment, each month I sent in vain e-mail to Marshall Amplification. In the same time I began to examine other possibilities. Need to enlarge my target

I was still looking for a placement in an English-speaking country. I sent applications to English, Irish and Dutch companies. On this moment, I made the mistake of sending only unsolicited applications. I adapted my CV and my cover letter to the companies’ activities but it remains me to be seen if these companies wanted a trainee. I was inefficient. The majority of my applications was left unanswered and the few answers I received were negative. I need to find a placement and time flied. I decided to begin to search in France. One month to find: relational network

I contacted companies located in Normandy, my native region. I was interested in all industrial sectors. I sent my application to automobiles manufacturers, to a foundry and even to a slate quarry. Finally I called the tutor of my operator placement. I knew that he has a high opinion of me because he has called me back to work on a quality problem during the holidays. After a week, the human resources department of his company offered me 3 placements in 3 different production sites, to work on stock organisation. This subject was in keeping with my professional project and my 4th year option in industrial engineering. I was just about to accept one of these offers. But, fate is a great provider and a better possibility emerged by chance.

CAUCHI Benjamin 2 September 2005 IFI 2007 Not a foreign country but a good compromise

One month before the placement beginning, e-mail was sent to all my class. It came from SOMFY, an electric tubular motor producer. It informed me that SOMFY was looking for a student to draw up, in English, an analysis guide for his products. Work in SOMFY could make me discover the work inside a big company. This e-mail explained that the student should work in the SQC, the department that is responsible for the SOMFY's business units' claims. These business units are located all over the world and in this department; a large proportion of the work is done in English. Furthermore, the analysis guide drafting required having a gift for the communication. Immediately, I sent my application. It was the end of the year, and, I was having a beer at a table outside a café when Sébastien CLERY, the SQC manager, called me back. We had a short discussion. He explained in greater details the work that he expected from me. He offered me 350 euros per month and a free accommodation. I accepted the job. However, I had still boring things to do before the final signing of the covenant.

The administrative obstacle course

I shouldn't count one's chickens before they're hatched. A placement become is official only when the covenant is signed. Before, I had to do a big paperwork. I obtain quickly necessary information about the company from Sébastien CLERY who was very cooperative. The most difficult was to get certificates from my insurance and from the Sécurité Sociale. In fact, school didn't have the updated documents and I had noting in Albi. I had to call my parents for help. They went to the different offices to get the documents and they sent it to me. I am lucky enough to have helpful parents but it took a long time. Then, I signed the covenant and I have to wait for the SOMFY's signature. I eventually managed to reach a signature. Nevertheless, I lost 3 weeks between the phone agreement and the end of the procedure.

How to perform my future placement seeking

Now, I know some errors to avoid in my future placement seeking and of course in my job-hunting at the end of my studies. From the outset of my seeking I will apply for different companies, even if I have a favourite. I will not hesitate to call my relational network. It’s not sufficient but it could be a good help. Above all if I know that some of my ex-superiors were satisfied of my work. Finally, I will keep my entire official document with me to make paperwork become easier.

CAUCHI Benjamin 3 September 2005 IFI 2007 MY RELATIONSHIP WITH SOMFY My job

A welcoming department

Discover the company

My placement lasted three and an half months. It was not too long to finish my job but my tutor advised me to devote the two first weeks in reading literature about the products and the company and in observing the work of my colleagues. I worked during 2 days inside the repairing department. It is this department that repairs the defective products when it is possible. They have to detect quickly the defective part because they must spend less than 10 minutes on each product. I spent also 2 days inside the Call centre where phone operators help customers, explaining how use the products. It was very helpful because the final repairing guide that I had to write up is intended to train people doing the same jobs but in foreign countries. It showed me their needs and their competence level.

Work schedule

After two weeks, my tutor and me conferred with each other in order to establish a work method and a schedule of work. He provided me with the keys of the laboratory, a camera and a camcorder. I could work as I want but with constraints of time. I had two weeks to shape the documents that already existed. Each Friday morning we took stock of my work advancement. I had to write repair guides for different products and I had a deadline to respect for each product because we want to use some of this guides to train new technicians during July, among others in England. Our meetings were shorts; generally it was during a coffee break. It was more to give me advices and to permit me ask questions than to control me. To establish the repair guide of a motor, I read the instructions, I consulted the blueprints and the electric diagrams, I dismantled defective products and finally, I wrote a document in English with intuitive links between the parts. At the end I showed the result to my colleagues to listen their remarks. Sometimes I took a day to apply their recommendations.

CAUCHI Benjamin 4 September 2005 IFI 2007 My visits in subsidiaries

SIMU: One day in XXXXXXXXXX

SOMFY UK: Two days in England

CAUCHI Benjamin 5 September 2005 IFI 2007 SOMFY ORGANIZATION

Lack of reactivity: the mammoth's handicap

The hierarchic lever

At the beginning of my work experience, my tutor asked me for a slip giving official details of my bank account. Each month, I should receive my salary automatically. However, after half past a month, I didn’t have a euro from SOMFY on my bank account. I’ve come in the responsible office, in a site located in an other place of the town, to see what happened. The secretary in charge of my salary said to me that she has forgotten a paper and that it should be done very quickly. I waited for a week without news and during a morning, I sent her an e-mail but it was left unanswered. I decided to go back in his office. The bank transfer was already done. I thought that my complaint was heard. In fact I was overestimating my power. During a fortuitous discussion with my tutor, I learnt that he talked about my salary to the manager of my irritating secretary. It was only the hierarchic lever that resolved this problem. In management class, I learnt that the better way to resolve conflicts inside a company is communicate and understand the other people. I think it’s right, my tutor and my department are a good example of a successful consultative management. However, sometimes it’s a waste of time and the best course is to contact a superior.

Departments' conflicts

In SOMFY, tasks are precisely shared between the departments. However, for some problems, the boundaries between the departments are woolly. At regular intervals, people and department are assessed in relation to their respective objectives, particularly in matter of budget. Consequently, when it’s difficult to identify the responsible of a problem, departments keep passing the buck. For example, SOMFY handles big money nevertheless I saw 3 departments' managers who exchanged dozens of e-mails for a hundred of euros. In reality, individual evaluations could motivate to work harder but there is no rose without a thorn. People want to achieve their objectives but, even, they don’t consider the company in its entirety. X X X X X X

CAUCHI Benjamin 6 September 2005 IFI 2007 Internal reorganization: O2

Adaptation to the portfolio of products

Huge quantities of energy are wasted in communication inside the group, through hierarchic channel and in conflicts between departments. To improve the reactivity, management decided to review the staff organization. This reorganization is called O2 (Oxygen). The details were announced to the employees in mid-July and it will take effect in September. The organization will be divided in three different fields named Business Groups (BG). Each BG will be in charge of a specific products group:

 BG1: Motors for roller shutters and external blinds  BG2: Products for interior  BG3: GO/GDO (Gate Openers / Garage Door Openers)

It would permit to have a big structure for the big volume products, as the tubular motors and smaller structures for the less sold in launch products, as GO/GDO and motors for Venetian blind.

A cool reception

Before the announcement of the details there was a lot of rumour about the future organization chart but there was nothing to confirm it. I learnt a lot about way of life inside the company because it was the opportunity to talk with older people of my department about their previous experiences inside. Generally, they were not delighted at the thought that the organization would be turned upside down. Particularly in my department where people were bind together and where all the team was pleased to work with a manager like Sébastien CLERY. Moreover, for the senior members it was not the first reorganization and they are blasé about it. They think that it could be a good idea but that the high managers don-t know the real value of each employee. In their opinion, a lot of efficient people are not appreciated fully because they don’t show enough the results of their work.

To me, this reorganization is a good thing because it will permit to make SOMFY become more reactive to the market evolutions. Nevertheless, I regret that the allocation of position is so much a question of policy as a question of skill. To climb the hierarchic ladder, be competent is not sufficient; you have also to set up a relational network and to put your work to advantage.

CAUCHI Benjamin 7 September 2005 IFI 2007 LIFE IN HAUTE SAVOIE

Mountain discovery

Somfy is located in Cluses. Mountains surround this town. I come from a little village and I already love walking in the heart of the countryside. However, it was my first experience in a mountainous country. I had a lot of things to discover.

The first place I visited was the summit of Chevran because the path that leads this peak started near my residence. This first walking was very pleasant in the beginning but I took the wrong way to go back. I spent two hours looking for the good direction but finally I managed to go back home. It was a little boring but I was delighted at the show, on this summit that overhang the town. The large SOMFY site seems very little, seen from this place.

During discussions with my colleagues, they recommended numerous places to me. One example among many is Sixte. It's a hamlet, 30 kilometres away from Cluses where I walked along a river born in springtime from the snow thawing. After an hour of walk, I discover a splendid waterfall. It's not a Tahitian rainfall, I think that you will be frozen if you take a wash under it, but it’s impressive. The waterfall is not far from the road but there is no one to disturb you here, like it was a remote land. The only human sign I saw was a disused chalet. It's probably used only during the winter. During discussions with my colleagues, they recommended numerous places to me. One example among many is Sixte. It's a hamlet, 30 kilometres away from Cluses where I walked along a river born in springtime from the snow thawing. After an hour of walk, I discover a splendid waterfall. It's not a Tahitian rainfall, I think that you will be frozen if you take a wash under it, but it’s a impressive. During discussions with my colleagues, they recommended numerous places to me. One example among many is Sixte. It's a hamlet, 30 kilometres away from Cluses where I walked along a river born in springtime from the snow thawing. After an hour of walk, I discover a splendid waterfall. It's not a Tahitian rainfall, I think that you will be frozen if you take a wash under it, but it’s a impressive.

Sixte: river, waterfall

Concierge Lac de Peyre, pic du Jalouvre, boucquetins, marmottes

CAUCHI Benjamin 8 September 2005 IFI 2007 Summer music festivals Reignier: Rockailles

Cluses: Musiques en Stock

Capitale du reblochon et de la tomme

Annecy

Geneve

CAUCHI Benjamin 9 September 2005 IFI 2007 CONCLUSION

CAUCHI Benjamin 10 September 2005 IFI 2007