Séverine Farnabe, SK 2008, dreamed of Canada... and her dream came true

As a student, working and living in Canada was all Séverine Farnabe (MS2008) dreamed about. After years of “intense” work in the field of auditing, she is now Finance Director at Sofitel in Montreal and living happily in her adopted country.

Is working in Canada a choice on your part or something that happened by chance?

Séverine Farnabe: It’s a choice. As a student, I couldn’t imagine myself having a career anywhere else but in France, at first. But I had to do an internship abroad in an English-speaking country and Australia, for example, was too far away. England was too close! I found an internship in Toronto and I just fell in love with the country. I wanted to live there; it became an obsession!

The rest of my time at SKEMA and the start of my career were marked by this fixation on going to live in Canada.

I was offered a job at Bouygues Telecom but, as I wanted to work in an international context where I would have the possibility of moving abroad, I applied for a job in auditing. I started my working life at Deloitte, a company that is known and renowned in all finance departments around the world. I knew they also had offices in Canada. After 4 years in France, I got my transfer to the Montreal office, so I resigned from the Parisian office and switched to a local Canadian contract.

Working for the same company in France first and then in Quebec, did you notice any big differences between the two sides of the Atlantic?

The processes and systems are the same, but the company culture is completely different. The Canadian head office is in Toronto, so Montreal is comparable to a smaller regional office in France. Francophones and Anglophones rarely work together and people are assigned to projects based on the language spoken by the clients. They have a different work culture, and there was no animosity but there were a few cliques. The organisation wasn’t the same as what I’d experienced in France, which can sometimes be unsettling. Actually, many French transfers have trouble adapting and don’t last long at Deloitte in Montreal.

Compared to France, we find it much easier to talk about careers, financial goals, salaries. In auditing we are all appraised. In France we don’t talk to each other about our appraisals; it’s not as transparent. Whereas here, the pay scale is on display and people openly talk about their ambitions.

Is that a good thing?

It’s just different. In France we’d be called money-hungry sharks. Here it isn’t negative. There’s also a lot of flexibility in the way of working, particularly when it comes to working from home. If there’s a child to pick up or personal matters to take care of, that’s not a problem as long as the work is done. This flexibility is actually an argument many companies put forward to attract talent.

In France, it's something that's somewhat frowned upon.

On the other hand, the working hours in both France and Canada are long, but different. Here people tend to start earlier, break for lunch around 11 am, so by 6 in the evening they’re at home having dinner.

After 6 years of auditing for Deloitte, you wanted a change?
Working in auditing is very demanding and when you combine that with adapting to a new country and a new culture, it’s pretty intense.

I was hired at Guerlain, a French company, with French people and Québécois. It was a great experience. We were selling “French-style luxury”, sometimes with a bit of that arrogance the French are known for. That might be a bit of a strong word, but in some domains like beauty, fashion and cuisine, we think we are better than everyone else…

The North-American market is more mass market and not so much bent on luxury, so we feel like we need to “educate” consumers. Here, the best selling perfumes are those by celebrities. In France that’s unheard of... the best-sellers are from the most prestigious brands. We don’t have the same references.

Is it easy to change jobs in Canada?

The job market here is super dynamic. The unemployment rate in Montreal must be 5% and that’s considered full employment. In Finance there are more job vacancies than there are candidates. I get contacted by head hunters 3 or 4 times a month. At Guerlain, I was a financial controller. I left there to join Nespresso, where I became Senior Financial Analyst, which enabled me to broaden my skill set. Since August 2018 I have been Finance Director at Sofitel, with a team of 5 to manage. I have to say that my experience at Deloitte is what opens doors for me. That company is renowned for its training. I recommend Deloitte or any of the other Big 4 (PwC, KPMG, E&Y) to those wanting to work in Finance, especially if they want to work abroad. I was recruited when I was still a student at SKEMA, like others in my year. When you have a good qualification and you apply in auditing, what sets you apart is the way you present yourself, because you’re going to be in direct contact with clients, but also your motivation, which is crucial for handling the pressure. Personality is a major deciding factor because when we’re finishing our studies we all have practically the same profile. 

Does life in Quebec live up to your dreams as a student?

I’d say so, yes. With a well thought-out plan, you can thrive in Canada, both on a personal level and a professional one. I’ve progressed rapidly in my career. The economy is burgeoning. I like the culture. The city of Montreal is a nice size for someone like me who comes from Paris. It’s very green, with residential areas that aren’t too expensive. It’s very safe. I often leave my door open in summer! It’s like a provincial town with the resources of a big international metropolis. You can feel a European influence here, although Quebec is far from being France in North America. I feel good here. When I return to Paris now, I feel a bit stifled on public transport. Too much concrete and stress! But Paris will always be the most beautiful city in the world!