Arval Women in Action
Arval announces the launch of the “Arval Women in Action” international programme
Driven by the strong conviction that the women of today will pave the way for those tomorrow, Arval deployed a new career programme in 2020, “Women in Action”, named after the “Arval, a place for people in action” employee value proposition. Its purpose is to develop women’s talents, with a wider objective of promoting a culture of gender diversity within Arval. One of the expected outcomes of “Women in Action” is to increase the number of women in senior leadership positions, providing them with the tools to develop their skills and competencies.
The first edition of the “Women in Action” programme began in December 2020 with 17 women, selected from 13 different countries with the training programme running for 7 months.
Natacha Delcourt, HR director of Arval Belgium, is one of these 17 women. “The leasing sector, which is perceived as a very masculine world, has evolved a lot. At Arval Belgium, we have an equal ratio of 50 percent men and 50 percent women. Nevertheless, the feminization of the management and executive functions is going at a slower pace. It is important that at Arval Belgium the teams are a representation of the clients”, says Natacha Delcourt.
The "Women in Action" program aims to provide tools to some of our female talents, on the one hand, but on the other hand it also aims to continue to change mentalities and processes, particularly in recruitment and promotion.
During these seven months, the 17 nominees will follow a development path. It will include individual and collective coaching, and interactive sessions. These will be digital and themed. The objective will be that the participants get to know each other better, to evaluate their strengths and develop new skills.
"At Arval, we are convinced that a leadership team comprising more women is a lever to accelerate performance. Supporting them in their professional ambitions, bringing more gender diversity to the teams, at all levels of the organisation, will help to generate new ideas and to bring new perspectives. In an industry where C-Level positions are predominantly occupied by men, I am very proud to be able to announce the launch of this new programme and 5 new appointments to key leadership positions within Arval. These appointments follow the other recent announcements about three additional women joining the Arval Executive Committee. The dynamic is the same within our new strategy, Arval Beyond, where the vast majority of key projects are led by women. So are the two major topics of the plan: Mobility and Corporate Social Responsibility", said Alain Van Groenendael, Arval Chairman and CEO.
Five new senior management appointments
Véronique Bourgois was appointed General Manager of Arval Luxembourg on January 1st, 2021. She joined Arval Luxembourg in 1998, and was previously its Sales & Marketing Director. Véronique Bourgois will replace Gerry Wagner, who will be appointed to a newly created position at the Arval Head Offices in France.
Agnès Dutot was appointed Arval Head of Compliance on October 31st, 2020. She replaces Jean-Luc Lapon following his retirement. In her career of more than 30 years at BNP Paribas, she has held various positions in Finance. Previously, she was Global Head of Compliance at Leasing Solutions. In the 30 countries where Arval operates, Agnès Dutot is now responsible for ensuring, with her team, the financial security of the company, professional ethics and the protection of client interests.
Guergana Koleva was appointed Arval Head of Robotization, on December 1st, 2020. Currently Head of Centre of Expertise Robotics & Smart Automation of BNP Paribas Fortis in Belgium, she entered the Group in 2011 after a career within the Solvay Group. In her newly created position at Arval, Guergana Koleva will define the Robot Process Automation’s vision, governance and strategy for Arval – a key project to improve efficiency and increase activity at Arval, simultaneously.
Roxana Lupescu was appointed General Manager of Arval Romania on January 1st, 2021, replacing Dan Boiangiu, who will take over an international position at the Arval Head Offices. She spent 12 years within Arval. Roxana Lupescu joined Arval Romania in February 2008 as Technical Risk Manager and became the company’s Chief Financial Officer on July 1st, 2011.
Ariel Steinmann became Arval Head of Digital in October 2020. After a career in Marketing and Communications in advertising agencies, at Bouygues Telecom and then ING, she joined the BNP Paribas Group in 2011. In the French Retail Bank BDDF, she was appointed Online Bank Marketing Director on both BNP Paribas and Hello bank!. As Head of Digital at Arval, a newly created position, Ariel Steinmann will build and make live the Arval digital transformation in the company’s 30 geographies.
