Peaks and Valleys

I'm the international marketing manager in the business and marketing division of Somfy, a French company with operations in 45 countries. It produces automated opening and closing systems for things like blinds and garage doors in homes and commercial buildings. I work in the company headquarters in Cluses, 35 miles from the tallest peak in the Alps.

My team consolidates, structures, and enriches the company's knowledge of markets, competition, and international channels. And since no understanding of the global market can be developed from an office building, I travel all over the world for customer and market visits. In the time I have been with the company (10 months on a project as an MBA student and 10 months full-time), I have traveled to more than a dozen countries across Europe, the U.S., and Asia.

Customer and market visits involve meeting with clients in our different offices and across various levels of our distribution channels and product categories. I also attend relevant exhibitions or walk through stores to gain perspective on the current and future market situation. I find these customer and market visits with people from different nationalities are enriching, because they help remove any kind of preconceptions I might have about a country or its people.

Here is a typical day in my life:

5 a.m. -- Wake up and do meditation for one hour. Spirituality has been a daily part of my life for the last seven years, and meditating in the morning is a refreshing start to my day. Over the last few years, I have seen the positive effects carry over to my work life (see BW Online, 9/20/05, "Teaching the Benefits of Balance").

6 a.m. -- Go for a walk or jog for 20 minutes.

6:30 a.m. -- Come back, take a bath, and have a small breakfast with my wife and 3-year-old daughter. We are expecting our second child in a month.

7:30 a.m. -- Embark on my hour-long drive to the office. I could live closer to work, but I prefer the mountains. We live in Annecy, with a beautiful lake and cosmopolitan feel. When I'm traveling, I appreciate knowing my family is in such a nice place.

8:30 a.m. -- Time to start work. I revisit my calendar for the day. At present, I am involved in five different projects at the same time, within different departments of the company. The deadline of the projects determines the priority...



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