P&G (Procter & Gamble) is one of the consumer goods giants which attracts many students every year. Benjamin Binot, an Audencia graduate, is today SVP Oral Care Europe. He manages iconic brands like Oral B for the entire continent. For Business Cool, he looks back on his career and reveals his daily life at this international behemoth.
The journey of Benjamin Binot, from Audencia to P&G
What brought you to Audencia?
I have a very classic background. I wanted to open up many opportunities and access a form of academic excellence. So I turned to business school and really enjoyed joining Audencia. I am originally from the Great West and I was happy to stay in this region.
Audencia allowed me to do multiple things during my schooling. I am a sailing fan and have been president of the sailing club. In addition to the academic excellence, the associative activities were fascinating and the school’s openness to foreign countries had an impact on me. I took the opportunity to go to the United States. My exchange at an American university was very rewarding. It was a very intense period of self-construction which allowed me to mature my professional project.
You seem attached to your school.
I was the lucky sponsor of an Audencia promotion three years ago. It is a school that is very close to my heart. These years at Audencia are unique. You have to succeed in these years. You must also play a role within the school, undertake and discover (with internships and options) the outside world. The operational part of a school, through associations and internships, is essential! It’s something we look at a lot when we recruit.
How did you get to Procter & Gamble?
Audencia allowed me to do numerous internships and I was able to refine my professional project. At the time, I was planning on careers in finance, so I specialized in this sector. I tried several jobs, in consulting or banking, and I wanted to work in industry. It’s a world that speaks to me, because I come from a family of entrepreneurs. Finance has an important place within large groups, particularly at Procter & Gamble.
Everything you need to know about Procter & Gamble
Procter & Gamble, what is it?
P&G is a group that positions itself in the daily lives of all French people and even consumers around the world. We are present in more than 180 countries. We reach our consumers at all ages and throughout the day. Our corporate brand is relatively little known, but our brands are. We have Oral B for dental, Ariel for laundry, Gilette or Braun for shaving, but also other brands like Always, Tampax, Swiffer, Mr. Propre, Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Venus, Vicks or Bion3.
Why did you enter the world of mass consumption?
I really like to challenge myself and learn on a daily basis. Mass consumption is an extremely competitive environment and there is very little boredom. The consumer only chooses you if you provide the best. There is little room for approximation. Every day is a new challenge.
I also had several lives in the group, in very different environments. In an industrial group like P&G, you can be in a purely factory environment, in sales, R&D or even marketing and design. I have experienced all of these environments in my professional life. It’s a career that is ultimately quite entrepreneurial. I learned and undertook a lot within the group.
The career and daily life of Benjamin Binot within P&G
As you said, you have evolved a lot within Procter & Gamble. Is this the advantage of large groups?
The advantage of a multinational is that there are a lot of opportunities and you have to seize them! You have to know how to take risks in your career, by questioning yourself. I did 10 years of finance, went to work in the Boston office, and then I felt it was time for me to learn something else. I asked the group to give me a career in sales and I became sales director for one of our large distributors in Europe: Carrefour. I learned a lot and I think I contributed a lot with what I had seen in finance.
I then wanted to move into marketing, I took charge of big brands for important countries. I then felt ready to manage the countries and I was lucky that the group trusted me. I was in charge of one of our largest markets globally: France & Benelux, two areas which are part of the top 10 worldwide in terms of market importance. I asked to develop in one of our big business units, dental, and I was given responsibility for Europe 2 years ago.
You have to be quite determined and clear about your personal development, you have to question yourself regularly. The risk is to enter a form of comfort zone and learn a little less. We live in a world where many things change very quickly. In our industry, digitalization is major, marketing is no longer the same as before. We are also impacted by everything related to sustainable development. This is why we have deployed a policy of neutral impact on the planet, at the production level.
What does your daily life look like?
When you run a business unit, you have several types of activities. We are acting on the strategy, on the execution plans in the major countries in Europe. I also play the role of talent recruiter. On a daily basis, I discuss strategic decisions, the launch of new products, with the R&D department, but also marketing and the production centers. I am in daily contact with our leaders in all countries to best understand our consumers in each area of Europe.
There is also a whole organizational aspect to my job. I need to be able to place the right people in the right positions, at the right time in their professional lives. I therefore focus on developing and motivating teams. It’s a great HR job and it’s a role that is close to my heart.
Any advice for students who want to join the world of mass consumption or a large group?
We enter a business school to learn and clarify our choices. We join a big group because we come from a good school. You have the impression of being drowned in the crowd, but there are a lot of opportunities, autonomy and responsibilities, all reasons to join a large group. This also allows you to develop to become attractive on the job market.
A big group trains a lot. At the house of Procter & Gamblewe have all the scenarios. Some left the group to work in NGOs, some took over a family business. The years with us are rich and have helped them to practice their profession today.
