Cyril

“If you want to work on interesting projects, this is the place to be.”

Capgemini Canada invited employees to apply for a team spot in the inaugural Capgemini International Rugby Cup (IRC) in fall 2023. A country-wide vote selected the eight employees who would join nine other teams consisting of 14 nationalities in Paris to compete in a friendly rugby match.

My rugby journey

How I got involved in Capgemini’s International Rugby Cup

I’ve been playing rugby for 25 years. My manager saw the call for applicants for this tournament, and it was a natural fit. Luckily, people voted for me!

My most memorable moment from the trip

Honestly, all of it was superb. I loved hanging out with the team, and all of the events were really well organized. Everyone we met was enthusiastic and happy to be there, and the sense of team spirit permeated the whole weekend. Even though we weren’t a professional team, we worked really hard to get everyone up to speed on the rules and how to play. And we even won a match!

What it meant to represent Canada at this tournament

It was interesting because I’ve been in Canada for less than a year. But even though Canada is my adopted country, I was proud to be captain of our team and, at the same time, to share my country of origin (France) with my teammates.

Canada’s rugby team ready to take the field. L-R: Ryan La Marche, Guillaume Gilliard, Cyril Saint-Amans, Mayand Tiwari, Fady Youwakim, Michelle Nifco, Catherine Audia. Missing from the photo: Sindhu Raj.

My Capgemini journey

My roundtrip with Capgemini

I rejoined Capgemini in 2020, but before that I had also worked with Capgemini for 10 years. Here’s the full story: I was a consultant with another organization for about seven years in France, and then it was bought by Capgemini. I was part of the merger, and that’s when I spent 10 years with Capgemini. Then I went to another organization and spent three years there before Capgemini bought it too! In January 2023, I moved to Montreal to work with Capgemini Canada, and I love it. 

What a typical day looks like for me

As the North America account executive for our client Airbus, I represent all the service lines in Canada, the United States, and Mexico. I coordinate all the commercial development on the account and I spend a lot of time with the client working to understand their operations, their challenges, and where they need our services and advice. I also look for opportunities for transformation through technology and engineering.

What attracted me to Capgemini originally

It was two things: the company’s values, and all the career opportunities available. In terms of values, I appreciate that the company leadership team holds values that are similar to mine: honesty, fun, boldness, freedom, and trust. And secondly, I saw lots of opportunity to develop myself professionally. That’s not the case in many companies. Here though, there are opportunities to transfer to another country if you’d like to go!

Why I love my team

It’s all about our trust in one another. I’m not a micromanager, and the team appreciates that. They trust me to make strategic decisions, and I trust them to decide how best to do their jobs.

My advice to new employees

If you want to work on interesting projects, this is the place to be. It’s like a family here, and everyone shares the values of the whole group.