Since first of July, Atos Origin and Siemens IT Solutions & Services will continue together as Atos.....

As a the main buyer for consultancy left on maternity leave, I was requested, due to my experience in procurement, to replace this colleague during her absence. As she took a new challenging opportunity within Siemens, I took the opportunity to take the lead on the IT contracting procurment. Our main objective is to support the business in whatever need for IT contracting they might have. This can be as well on a Time & Means basis as on a fixed price basis. As such I'm responsable for establishing the necessary contractual frames for a correct legal collaboration in line with Siemens & external requirements as for instance LIMOSA. As we are mainly a sales and business support department, the objective is to source the correct candidates in order to guarantee smooth and continuous business within the projects. As this commodity is so specific in Belgium (and most other countries) due to legal, social, ... requirements, it is particularly challenging to find the correct mix in your supplier base to be able to offer the business the best candidate at the correct TCO. This function enables me to be in contact with virtually all departments of an organisation, sales, ressource management, delivery, human resources management, accounting and finance and last, but certainly not least, the legal department.

Ever since my final paper (The use of E-recruiting), I was interested in combining the business needs with IT. As my first job experience as an SAP consultant for Arthur Andersen took an abrupt end and with my experience as being somehow the key user of the department in my later experience, I always remained curious about the job as SAP consultant. As M-real sold all it's non core activities, I decided to to take the challenge and opportunity to become an SAP consultant. Siemens IT Solutions & Services provided me with that opportunity and allowed us to followed the SAP Academy 6 week training from mid Frebruary till end of March 2008. Following this course, I could obtain a project as masterdata consultant for 8 months, but shortly after, it was very clear that the economic situation was not facilitating new large investments in a ERP package. I continued assisting Siemens in preparing some template and demo environments, but as there where no new ERP projects in the pipe, I replaced a colleague at the purchase department on maternity leave.

We were part of M-real's strategy to become a one stop shop for their clients, starting with ecological foresting and ending with finished boxes for cosmetics and pharmaceutical industry along with the necessary POS materials. However due to the economic difficulties in the paper industry, M-real was forced to sell all non core activities. Meulemans was solf to Atajon which used it's own corporate purchasing department in France. As member of a team of 4 purchasers, each of us was responsable for the assigned product categories. My categories where packaging, corrugated papers, waste products, energy and safety and health products. We collaborated with the responsable departments as being their main support and reliable partner for obtaining there goals. When working in packaging and corrugated papers, I was involved since the development phase untill the production and delivery phase of the printing or POS materials.

As supply & demand planner, the main task was to optimise product availability at the lowest TCO through continuous contacts between the other departments in Univar and our suppliers. I was mainly dealing with all commodity chemicals that could be sourced from the Far East via our agencies in Rotterdam & Shanghai. The sourcing for this product group was centralised within the excisting team in France.

What is there to say... the difference between men and boys is the price of their toys... If you can't afford the toys...why not work in the toy store....As being passionate about cars, I enjoyed the opportunity to work part time in car sales and see all the different cars and models Cardoen sells. The moment to store was being sold to become a Mini Store, the collaboration was ended.

Within TPG, I started at a small printing and direct marketing company, Denis Bodden, as team leader purchasing & administration. The main target was to build up, structure and organised the administrative and purchase activities. As purchasing was so far done by the production managers, it allowed to start from a green field and develop a cost efficient purchasing by grouping quantities, structuring the supplier base and creating more transparency within the organisation.Later I worked for the Belgische Distributie part of the group, where on behalf of the Dutch mother company, where I was involved in projects regarding GIS and a feasability study for a new postal service in Belgium, by expanding the Dutch Royal Post's activies to the Belux.