Portrait of Jennyfer, HR Change Management Consultant

Jennyfer supports companies in the evolution of their HR strategy in order to implement the practices and methodologies best suited to their challenges. Currently change management consultant HR, Jennyfer's mission is to strengthen a company's teams through twenty recruitments, as well as to help the development of employees through personalized HR programs. Discover the portrait of an independent woman ready to shake up the lines.

Can you present your background in a few words?

I very quickly developed an entrepreneurial mindset during my career. At the end of my studies in marketing and business, for example, I went abroad because I wanted to discover working practices abroad. I worked for various companies in the retail and financial sector in several regions of Europe, in particular in Moscow, Spain and then in particular in England for 4 years. There, I really appreciated the Anglo-Saxon functioning, “results” oriented: see projects emerge from the ground and contribute to the achievement of objectives, rather than integrating already established environments that value performance less.

I then understood that my added value lies in projects that value performance and require movement. In fact, this is what prompted me to leave England to discover the factories of this same company, located in Asia. I wanted to know the behind the scenes of product production, but above all I felt that it was possible to change internal practices to optimize sales.

When I came back to France, I carried out a few experiments without finding the right fit. But in 2017, I found a great professional opportunity in Germany where my mission was to harmonize the Group's HR practices internationally, especially in the 12 countries where it was present. I was in charge of implementing the telework policy, long before its democratization after Covid 19. I liked being included in an organization that wants to change its internal functioning. As a result of this experience, I naturally decided to specialize. as an HR change management consultant.

Why did you choose to become independent?

In general, a company's plans are often thought out over 3 to 5 years, which does not correspond to my pace and my job. I think that my natural functioning is more that of project mode, that is to say to intervene from time to time with a company that needs this speed of transformation. Much more compatible with the status of self-employed.

I also think that This status offers a varied choice of missions, greater freedom of decisions as well as a different position on operations. For example, employees open up more easily to freelancers because we don't have a line manager or a political role to play within the organization. We are neutral. To exercise my expertise, it is particularly valuable to have their trust, which is a very good lever for involving teams in transformation challenges.

As a freelancer, we don't have the same relationship with failure either. Of course we are evaluated on the results but our role is precisely to try a new approach and to implement practices that have not yet been tested in the field.. It is therefore a great opportunity to develop skills, allow yourself to take risks and learn within a collective of individuals.

Are you having trouble balancing your freelance business and your personal life?

To begin with, I am completely clear about my ability to manage administrative matters: this is my big black spot. So I quickly called in an accountant. At times, a personal assistant accompanies me. Regrettably, You can very quickly be overwhelmed by the administrative. As I consider it to be a poorly invested time, I delegate. I prefer to focus on my missions and my customers.

That doesn't mean everyone understands my pace of work. I like my activity so it seems normal to me to devote myself to it from Monday to Saturday, with a decompression day at the end of the week. I am fully developing at my pace today because I work on very cool projects that give me the feeling of being useful. But it is sometimes difficult to make it heard by those around me.

In your opinion, why is it useful to call on partners like Beager ?

Sometimes it is necessary to capitalize on the presence of a third party. For example, the customer may want to skip steps, speed up a project, or on the contrary, focus on only part of their need without solving the issues that will cause problems in the long term. This is not surprising during a change management mission. So when certain messages are difficult to get across, an intermediary like Beager can streamline the information and ensure the balance of the relationship. In fact, the customer must first understand that I am there in their best interests. but it's not always easy to get him to understand it.

*Sometimes all it takes is one opportunity. With Beager, it was a fluke: I did not know Beager, and I had never had the opportunity to collaborate with this client, but I enjoyed the project. Among my deliverables, I had to manage the training of more than 1,000 employees within the framework of the new IS common to more than 8 business areas: training engineering, revalidation of the needs study, specifications by training course, macroplanning, macroplanning, training internal trainers, etc. The mission was a success, I felt fulfilled and the client was delighted with my support, as he himself says: “*I keep as a memory of our collaboration, his smile, his expertise, his gentleness as well as his firmness and adaptability in any situation.”

What advice would you give to other freelancers? Or to businesses?

I would recommend freelancers to be open and stay curious. By reaching out to those who don't always make a lot of noise but are in action, you get out of your frame of reference. More solutions are being found. I would also add that you have to surround yourself because you can quickly feel alone. It is important to maintain relationships and to meet others, independent or professional.

For companies, I think it's a shame that they don't dare anymore to play the game of transparency or flexibility. However, there are a lot of interesting things to put in place: Get support from freelancers, reflect on work methodologies, focus on achieving OKRs, involve the employee in a logic of creating value, etc. Think of a way to work collectively, combining the strength of all the individualities in a team. But to do this, you have to choose the right actors around the table (employees, managers and managers). It is in response to these observations that I wanted to create the podcast, Unfiltered coffee... with your RH, in order to share all these practices and experiences that we don't hear enough about.

This article was produced in collaboration with Jennyfer Montantin, HR change management consultant.