Interview EN

1. Human resources manager, France, for SPIE Oil & Gas Services, Guillaume Driant, age 41,
joined the Group in 2008, since when he has had a series of interesting positions.
INTERVIEWS
WITHOURSO’SPIEPEOPLE
“SPIE really does
embody its values of local
presence, responsibility
and performance.”
Tell us about your career before you joined SPIE.
Guillaume Driant: After doing business studies, I first worked for a recruitment consultant,
followed by six years spent working for the Loire Department Council as head of staffing,
mobility and skills management. I then decided to broaden my own skills by resuming
my studies in human resources at the Sorbonne university. My aim was to return to
the private sector, because I was missing the business side of things. I then came across
SPIE, a company I didn’t know very well. In 2008, I was appointed human resources
development manager in the south-east of France.
What positions have you held since then?
G.D.: During my induction programme, I got to know the head of human resources
for the Paris region. In the midst of the 2009 financial crisis he invited me to join him,
and I accepted the opportunity. Until 2013, I was head of human resources in HVAC
engineering, in north suburb. I then told my manager I was interested in changing jobs,
and I was asked to join SPIE Oil & Gas Services, at SPIE’s headquarters. My scope of
involvement was much greater and I doubled the number of employees that I support.
There are 700 people, but 400 are working abroad. Remote human resources
management presents quite a challenge!
What would you say about SPIE as an employer?
G.D.: The company doesn’t just talk about its values; it embodies them. SPIE really does
listen to its employees, and I have personally experienced the benefit of local presence.
When the company talks about giving us responsibility, it’s not just empty words. And
the culture of performance is very much in evidence here.