Anne Denisart-Trémenbert (HR Director France and Belgium) and Yassine Bouazza (HR Business Partner) take part in the UNMA feedback experiment. In 2023, they deployed the "Women leaders" training program for some twenty female employees. A look back at the high stakes involved, supported at the highest level by Euronext France's management.

Hello Anne and Yassine, could you explain the background to the NUMA training course?

Euronext's strategic plan is based on a solid ESG pillar, itself divided into two sub-pillars: social (ethnic, cultural, social, gender, religious diversity, etc.) and environmental. As far as diversity is concerned, we have noted a certain imbalance between men and women in certain areas, such as positions of great responsibility. In fact, women are less likely than men of the same generation and in the same professions to take up new positions. 

So we decided to help them assume their leadership role and make their voice heard through this specific training program. Our choice was the subject of serious debate. We are not in the habit of segmenting, stigmatizing or creating positive discrimination. Nor did we want to develop "female" leadership.

At the end of 2022, we finally launched a "women's network" in all our subsidiaries. The aim: to encourage talented women in different countries to exchange, coopt and network, as men do more naturally. In France, we saw this as an ideal opportunity to roll out the NUMA "Women Leaders" training course. 

What criteria made the difference in choosing NUMA? 

We already work with NUMA on a regular basis. One of your communications came just at the right time. The seven workshops in the "Women Leaders" course (in particular the one entitled "Saying no and developing assertiveness") perfectly targeted the needs and ambitions we were planning to address in 2023. So we naturally opted for NUMA.

What were the highlights of your partnership with NUMA? What did you particularly appreciate?

The operational phase began with a kick-off meeting between HR teams from Euronext France and NUMA. We invited all HR Business Partners to attend, to communicate the objectives of the training, with a clearly defined roadmap. 

A second kick-off, also much appreciated, then brought the participants together face-to-face. Everything was fluid, relevant and meticulously anticipated beforehand: both the NUMA content and the more practical aspects. We felt that the team was listening to us, proactive and available.

The participation score (83%) reveals a high level of commitment. Have you set up specific actions in advance? 

The results have indeed lived up to our expectations. From the outset, our CEO sent out a strong message, highlighting the key challenges of this course specifically designed for our female talent. Her intervention (exceptional since we usually offer à la carte training) triggered real enthusiasm. 

Taking this message to the highest level, in a solemn manner, both mobilized and enhanced the participants. They understood the importance of taking part in this tailor-made program. We wanted to get them on board, to make this first edition a success...and we succeeded!

What did they appreciate in particular?

The exchanges between peers, the very concrete case studies, the creation of a "safe space", and the face-to-face format. The entire course achieved a satisfaction score of 4.8/5.

Finally, they appreciated the 100% women's network aspect of exchange and sharing, and asked for regular follow-ups, mostly face-to-face to multiply the opportunities for exchange, and over a longer period to better integrate what they had learned. 

It's now up to us to animate and grow the community thus created over the long term, by turning them into ambassadors. The long-term aim is to engage future cohorts and encourage meetings under the impetus of the HR team and top management.

In the final analysis, has Euronext France achieved its initial objective? 

Not yet, it will take time. But we're on the right track with this first step! Our ultimate ambition is to make women as visible as men. The NUMA course has already enabled some of our female talents to gain in confidence and legitimacy. 

In addition to the logic of follow-up and development of the existing community, of transmission and commitment that we have just mentioned, we will go one step further in 2024 by integrating into our cohorts more seniority, a greater diversity of professions and hierarchical levels. 

The experiment has already worked very well this year: because of their different approaches to work, performance and life balance, the participants have contributed a great deal to each other. It's up to us to repeat this calibration effort. It means knowing our populations inside out, which is one of our strengths at Euronext. 

The NUMA "Women Leaders" course has also contributed to this success: it can be adapted to all audiences and benefits all profiles.