GUY MARCILLAT
PRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
AXA NON-LIFE INSURANCE CO., LTD.  Could you explain to what extent ETP has been a determining factor in the development of your career? I spent all these years within two companies. I started with Sanofi, at that time in '85 a concern active in the pharmaceutical field. Then progressively entering the field of bio-industries, cosmetics and medical diagnostic products. Apart from my long fascination for Japan, it is clear that ETP gave me the means and the tools to succeed in this country. And although I think the Japanese system is changing, I believe that ETP has been really a key element in the evolution of my career. When you started within Sanofi, you told me you were the 12th person. Could you explain how you managed to let this company grow and what was the role of ETP in that evolution? In 1985, when I arrived in Japan, I joined Sanofi Japan as the 12th employee. I have fantastic memories of this time and it was exactly at that moment that all the European companies tried to establish a long-term position in this country. So in fact with the language training, the cultural training, the industrial networks and seminars, ETP gave me all the means to understand what was happening around me. And once you understand the culture of people through their language, you are able to better understand their reaction. It is fair to say that the Japanese people are very difficult to understand from time to time and if you do not speak Japanese, it is often impossible. ETP gave me all these tools to grow and to develop the business of Sanofi. And the structure of the business developed accordingly, growing to other fields and today, 20 years later, it became a big concern with a major position in the pharmaceutical business. Read More (PDF) |
