Talk us through an average day in your role.
I start the day with some me time. I need to get into my day with a good attitude and energised mind and body. Then I open my laptop and there it goes, emails first and day planning with a good coffee in hand. As regional sales director at Ross Video, I am responsible for supporting our corporate customers across the region, directly or through a selected network of partners in each country. I develop the EMEA strategy for a specific market vertical in the region, with the help of an incredibly talented team on the sales, technical and marketing side.
My days are all different and that is one of the things I love the most about my role! From internal meetings, to catch up calls with my customers and partners, I have very full days. On top of this, I travel extensively to regularly connect with Ross partners and customers. I also attend key trade shows and regional events like ISE in Barcelona, NAB in Las Vegas and IBC in Amsterdam on top of all the partner events happening in each market.
How did you get started in the media industry?
I started in the industry by luck. At that time I was a young graduate living in Singapore with some experience in the Telco industry on the sales side. I happened to apply for a regional account manager position in a French company manufacturing A/V and Broadcast solutions and voila! I had to rapidly learn as much as possible about the broadcast industry and Asian cultures. I oversaw key accounts in Japan, Australia and India at that time, and quickly proving myself, my role expanded to cover the entire APAC region with one objective: defining a clear network of partners across all countries to launch a new range of products. From there I moved to a managing director’s position in APAC, and became director of sales, marketing and communications for the company worldwide. I became involved in some really cool initiatives with Rise, an organisation for gender diversity in the broadcast and A/V industry, who I still support today, as well as my business school’s mentorship programmes. I then moved to Europe and decided it was time for a new challenge, and I am now very excited to be a part of the EMEA Ross team.
What training did you have before entering the industry?
I have a master’s degree in business administration focused on international trade, business relations and multicultural negotiation from a top-class business school in France. My mindset and key strength is very much on the relationship building aspect of my work. I really enjoy communicating with a variety of different people every day. I also gained an entrepreneurial mindset from my previous position where I had to readjust the strategy through challenging yet interesting times before and after the pandemic. On top of this, I decided to pursue a certification as a professional coach that I validated through hundreds of coaching and mentoring sessions in Asia and Europe with a special interest in multicultural team dynamics coaching. I am an avid learner, and I need to keep growing as a person and as an individual each day.
Why do you enjoy working in the industry?
There are many things I love about it, like it is always evolving and changing and I feel I am growing and learning as a person at the same time every single day. My life is never boring as I get to participate in many different activities and help find the right solutions to the right problems. I like how we collaborate with partners and customers, trying to make their vision happen: so many skills are put to use from listening, to anticipation, problem solving, negotiation, debating, and celebrations too! I enjoy meeting new people every week and staying in touch with them across different continents and different time zones.
What advice would you offer someone exploring a similar role?
To always be alert to opportunities and pursue them! Be authentic, be yourself and do not hesitate to reach out and get support from your peers. Having a mentor is often a great way to learn more and get support and it helps with creating a network of genuine connections. At the end of the day this is a small industry and everybody knows everybody, making it more like a family!
