Céline Saada-Benaben has been CEO of eBay France for more than seven years now. She talks about her journey and looks back at a Tech world in full swing. She also talks about her ComEx, which has the particularity of being 100% female and the advantages that this can have on life in business.
Céline Saada-Benaben’s journey, from ESSEC to eBay
Can you go back over your journey?
I followed a fairly standard path. I did an HEC prep course without having a clear idea of what I would do next, but I made this choice because I loved history-geography and maths. I studied at Lycée Château Briand in Rennes before joining ESSEC. My goal at this time? Work in marketing.
At ESSEC, what changed everything was my exchange at the University of Milwaukee, the city of Harley-Davidsons and Miller beers. I discovered an interesting culture, but also the strategy courses and it was a revelation!
In my third year, I looked for an internship in strategy, but I knew little about the firms. If I have this career and if I was able to meet the person I married, it’s because I only have one stamp left. At the last moment, I decided to use it to apply to the Booz Allen firm. I spent three years there and it was an incredible learning experience, because I changed missions every three or four months. I had to adapt to new companies, new industries…
Was it after this experience that you went to Disney?
I was recruited by the Disney group. I worked for the park in Marne-La-Vallée. It was a great experience. I had my best business trip of my life there, since I tried all the Disney parks. I spent three years there in the strategy department.
I then went to England and joined a company that developed mobile internet services for the operator T-Mobile. This is where I made my transition into the world of Tech. I worked on these subjects for five years. I did both application development, change management, etc.
How did you get to head eBay?
When I was in England, I tried to take over a small company. It didn’t work. I joined eBay in the UK office and have been there for 15 years now. I was attracted by the fact that eBay is a very international company with very strong values, a business model focused on creating opportunities for sellers of all sizes and nationalities.
The reason I stayed at eBay for this long is because of its recruiting model. We are looking for highly adaptable people who, if desired, can easily move between countries and functions. I spent two years in England, before going on maternity leave. I then returned to product management positions, then sales functions and, finally, general manager of eBay in France. The objective is to give ever more responsibilities and projects to the group’s employees. We have the advantage of growing young people very quickly.
The daily life of the CEO of eBay France
What is the daily life of the CEO of eBay like?
For me to stay in my role, it is very important that there is no typical day. My main driving force is renewal. It’s about always learning new things. My time will be shared between a more internally oriented activity, the animation of the activity in France and the external dimension, which concerns my role of representing eBay on the French market.
Internally, I take care of everything relating to financial performance, the development of marketing campaigns, data analysis and legal aspects. I focus on team engagement as well. The objective is really to increase the turnover of our sellers and to retain our buyers. I speak 60% of my time in English, with international teams and 40% in French.
What are the topics you are currently working on?
Today, we are working on live by eBay, a new auction system for collectibles. We have sessions every Sunday around Street art, Pokémon cards, watches, etc. Furthermore, we are recruiting, for France, a Pokémon Category Managerthat is to say a category manager solely dedicated to Pokémon products. We are in the middle of a recruitment phase on various subjects.
Is it easy to have a personal life when you are CEO of the French subsidiary of a big company like eBay?
It’s not easy, but it’s doable. You don’t become CEO overnight. We are making progress. So, there are subjects that we can deal with more quickly. At eBay, there is a lot of flexibility in the way we work. If there’s a show at your child’s school, there’s no need to put up a day to go. We are very attentive to the balance between professional and personal life. Twice a year, those who manage teams are evaluated on the commitment of their employees.
Of course, you have to organize yourself with your loved ones, your partner or outside help, but it is totally doable to have a personal life. Of course, when you have to stop after a birth, you can get impatient seeing other people come up faster. But we must keep in mind advice that the CEO of eBay gave me when I arrived, which is that there is a time for everything and you cannot be good everywhere. Above all, you shouldn’t put pressure on yourself and you will inevitably be promoted at some point in your life.
You have equipped yourself with a 100% feminine ComEx. Does this have an impact on eBay management?
I did not discriminate to only have women and this 100% female ComEx was built through recruitment. Does that change anything? I think what’s different is the company culture related to flexibility. We are not in a logic of presenteeism, for example. And it’s easier to evolve and work in a flexible organization. I never had to choose between my family and my job.
A system that works very well is second parent leave, launched two years ago, which is 12 weeks, whether for dads, adoptive parents or parents of the same sex. We also have a four-week sabbatical every five years. These are global initiatives implemented at eBay.
Breaking the glass ceiling
Has gender ever posed a problem in your career? Did you feel like there was a glass ceiling?
I have already had thoughts, mostly from partner companies. There was a comment made to me recently, internally, which I did not appreciate. People talked about me when talking about “ charming lady from France “. So we rebalanced things, talking about our performance and our efficiency.
When it comes to career progression, if I were to talk to the Céline who is coming out of business school, my message would be: let’s dare more, ask more. What slowed my progress were the obstacles I had put in my head, by not daring to ask or talk about my accomplishments. From the moment I did it, it really unlocked something in my career.
Have you put in place internal systems to support women?
When I was in England, we created an internal women’s network called Women at eBay. The objective was to find the blocking points in their career. One thing I’ve learned in this network is that when talking to older men who are thinking, the ability to project what they are saying onto their daughters tends to break the deadlock.
In France, we have set up an anonymous line which allows facts to be reported, especially when this involves direct hierarchy. This allows bad behavior to be reported for investigation and certain remarks have already been sanctioned by disciplinary councils. We have also deployed studies that measure diversity and work climate.
