For this second employee portrait, we interviewed Maxime POLIGNE, Head of Treasury & Credit Management. This portrait is part of the series #MeetTheTeam.
What’s your background within Kersia?
I started at Kersia in November 2016 when Hypred was bought by Ardian from Groupe Roullier. I worked in Holding Roullier’s cash flow department and so for Hypred and its subsidiaries to a degree. That meant I was already familiar with the Hypred environment, but the change of shareholder and financial environment fundamentally changed everyday life and the responsibilities involved in cash flow and credit management.
I’ve therefore been with the Finance Department for six years now, at the heart of the growth the Group has experienced.
How would you describe your role in 3 words?
Anticipation, adaptability and projects.
Talk us through a day in the life of a Head of Treasury & Credit Management at Kersia.
I must say, no two days are ever the same for me! My projects and tasks are extremely varied and really depend on what’s happening throughout the Group and, in particular, our growth strategies. Obviously, as the backdrop to that, my role is to standardise the processes involved in cash flow and credit management across the Group and, in particular, to align the ways our subsidiaries operate. That involves integrating all the new companies joining us through acquisitions into our tools.
Banking relations are obviously part of my day-to-day life. Not a day goes by that I don’t speak to one of our bankers. In my view, a healthy and balanced everyday relationship between Kersia and our banks is essential to calmly ensuring the Group’s continued growth. My role is also about giving our subsidiaries the keys they need to understand the best ways of using their cash. Putting on my credit manager’s cap allows me to ensure recovery is optimised thanks to our Sidetrade tool, and that customer risk is being managed.
What would you say to someone thinking of becoming a Head of Treasury & Credit Management at Kersia?
Since 2016, the management team has constantly advocated the importance of a ‘cash culture’ among all our subsidiaries. Cash is a central component of the financial model in which we operate (LBO) and it’s our responsibility to ensure the proper circulation of cash between Group companies via daily interactions with subsidiary finance teams. As a credit manager, I’m in contact with subsidiaries on a weekly basis and there are plenty of ongoing cash generation optimisation projects, in particular, with the rollout of Sidetrade at Group level.
Projects related to the roles of cash flow manager and credit manager create value and are rewarding every single day!
Why join Kersia?
For its dynamism, of course!
Working in such an environment of growth is exciting. Year after year, the Group is building on itself and developing. My role is constantly evolving because the tasks needed today may not even be around tomorrow. I’ve seen that in the past six years alone. Kersia has a significant outlook for growth over the coming years, and there are plenty of sources of cash and credit optimisation.
There’s still lots of work to be done!
We would like to thank Maxime for this interview!
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