Anne-Sophie Panseri, National President of French Women Entrepreneurs Association

Anne-Sophie Panseri, National President of French Women Entrepreneurs Association

Anne-Sophie Panseri, National President of French Women Entrepreneurs Association.

Anne-Sophie Panseri is a company manager in the Industry. She manages the company MAVIFLEX. She is also administrator of KEOLIS LYON, as well as of VISIATIVIn 2006, she joined the Lyon’s Chapter of the Association of French Women Entrepreneurs, she will become its President in 2009. In 2016, she becomes National President of FCE France. At the same time, she also joined the Medef (First French employers' organization) and is an elected member of the LYON MÉTROPOLE Chamber of Commerce, as well as the Regional Chamber of Commerce. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Aderly (Lyon Region Economic Development Agency). From 2013 to 2019, Anne-Sophie was President of Immobilière Rhône-Alpes (3F company / Action Logement group).

Anne-Sophie Panseri has a passion for increasing the skills of company managers.


Question : Why did you choose a career in the industry?

Answer : I arrived in the industry through a succession of opportunities that I seized.After my DUT Tech de CO, I wanted to pursue a master's degree in INFOCOM but while working. I had the chance to work on the Trocathlon project at Décathlon and I stayed for 2 more years. My father managed the family group MAVIL, and when I swore I never wanted to live his daily life, I wrote a letter of application to his CEO to create the Marketing department. I started to touch the daily life of production. I was passionate about it from the beginning; then in 1996, my father separated from his production manager of the doors business, I dared to apply ... and I never left the industry again.

Question: What path did you follow to get there and what memories do you have of it?

Answer: I followed a classic commercial marketing path; I didn't have an easy life as a student because I had made choices that required me to be financially independent. I worked a lot in parallel to my classes and I didn't go out. My best memories are at Decathlon student employee, I kept very good contacts; Even though we don't see each other much anymore, we are there for each other.

Question: How do you reconcile your life as a company manager, your involvement in association and family life?

Answer: The word reconciliation, in itself, creates constraints. I listen and act to be in phase with who I am. I have been rather absent for my 3 children but still there for them in another way. My energy necessarily forged them and my absence made them autonomous. We are extremely close, a real Tribe!

Question: Do you encounter or have you encountered particular difficulties as a woman?

Answer: I feel rather privileged on my journey. Being "daughter of" has allowed me to advance step by step and to learn alongside my father. When I took over the family business, my father was able to leave me my place and take on a non-operational role.

Later on, I experienced embarrassing situations, a furious customer who on hearing my voice just said "I didn't ask for the secretary", or being only asked to serve coffee; or for a mandate hearing me say that it was going to be difficult with 3 children ... I learned to answer, not to feel disconcerted and to turn the situation into a mirror image of the interlocutor! It's funny to see how we destabilize in our turn without any aggressiveness.

Question: Has the position of women in the industry changed since you started?

Answer : I think that in the industry, the place of women is a little different. We are very often at the head of our companies by transmission, which gives us a slightly different legitimacy. However, it's difficult for us to take our place. We are no longer very "paternalistic" in our management and we have to make a name for ourselves. Development often accelerates after a few years with a different vision and governance. The FCE Association (Femmes Chefs d'Entreprises) really pushes women to buy companies, we rely on a history and know-how. It's really a wonderful challenge!

Question: If you hadn't chosen this career, what would you have wanted to do?

Answer: My childhood dream: to be police superintendent or a judge... it was the investigation and justice side that motivated me. But in the end, we do investigations in the company to understand dysfunctions and improve.

Question: You are National President of The French Women Entrepreneurs Association (FCE - Femmes Chefs d'Entreprises France) since 2016. Can you tell us about this commitment and your experience during this mandate?

Answer: I joined the FCE in 2006, when I was in the process of putting my company under a safeguard procedure. A moment of very strong emotion, fear of losing the family business, loss of bearings in the face of injustice, death of my father one month later ... And I was called by the president of the FCE delegation in Lyon. This meeting with incredible women enlightened my daily life. I gave myself the right to cry and to laugh... The group carried me for months. I never left the network again to become its National President in 2016. I needed to give back to these women this impalpable but essential energy to carry a daily questioning.

The FCE allowed me to open up to the economy of the territories. I am involved in the national commissions of the Medef, a remarkable work done by the teams! But my passion remains industry and today I want to give time to my professional branch. I wanted a unique mandate as National President of the FCE to act rather than seeking re-election. I am a firm believer in unique mandates for Presidents of economic organizations. My mandate ends this year, which will allow me to bring my contribution to the building of a magnificent French Industry so necessary to the balance of professions and know-how.

 

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