'I'm very curious about people and new cultures and new challenges'

With a Canadian team that has surged from 500 to 1,450 in the last five years, Flavie Motte has her hands full as CHRO at BNP Paribas Canada.

The HR veteran has worked for the international bank — which has a global workforce of 184,600 — for nearly 20 years, in several different countries.

But originally, the journey into HR was more organic than calculated.

"It was not really a clear decision. It was mainly because I was already, as a child, very into interaction, into people discussions, to know more about them, their stories, listening to them, trying to find a way to solve their issues, so it led me, really, to a natural pathway to study HR," she says.

“The journey started a long time ago but I feel like it's like yesterday. And I didn't have time to get bored because I had this linear progression, having the ability to work in four different countries. And so that's... what led me and retained me into HR.”

Leading HR: From France to Ireland to Canada

After starting off in recruitment at BNP Paribas in Paris, Motte transitioned to become VP of HR and eventually took on the role of head of HR for Ireland in 2017, where she stayed for five years.

“As head of HR, you are really designing the strategy, you're launching a lot of things and it's a very enriching job,” she says, citing the appeal of dealing with a new culture.

"I thought that after that, I needed to go into a bigger country to see other activities, to discover another culture, so that’s really the pathway that I designed for myself,” says Motte, who moved to the bigger country of Canada in July 2022, settling in Montreal as CHRO of BNP Paribas Canada.

“This is the beauty [of it]. You never know where you will land, at what time, when you work in a big company.”

Motte also credits her husband for giving her the freedom to make such drastic moves.

“When we got married, we said the first one who has the opportunity to lead the family out of France, we're going to follow — and I was the  winner. So he did follow me to Ireland.”

Diversity of culture in different locations

The decision to explore diverse locations like Ireland and Canada comes naturally, says Motte.

"I'm very curious about people and new cultures and new challenges. So it's really part of my DNA.”

And BNP Paribas allows for that exploration, as a matrix organization with independent regions, she says.

“Of course, we have the group level who design the strategy for talent, for example, or mandatory training or things like that. But then each region really has its own strategy.”

And after arriving in Canada, Motte says the diversity of the country was obvious.

“You feel it, you see it, you speak it, it's really part of the culture. And this is what was really different from Europe, and even from America. I feel Canada is well in advance on all of the DE&I topics, to be honest with you.”

Tackling different challenges in different regions has been one of the highlights of Motte’s career — but she approaches the HR strategy carefully.

“Each time that I arrive in a new country, I'm very cautious about the first impression that I will give to the people… I'm not really vocal, I'm really in an observation mode, trying to see how the relationships are happening.

“And then once I'm quite comfortable about what I've seen, I will be at a starting point of delivering things… it's very important, if you want to deliver the right HR strategy; if you don't take the time to do your HR audit, you won't [do well] and to meet with all of the people of the team, understand what they expect from you.”

Taking an employee-centric approach

As BNP Paribas gears up for 2024, the focus for the Canadian arm lies in being employee-centric, says Motte.

"We have to offer the right program, the right policy, the right equipment to our people," she says.

For example, the company recently launched 'Let's talk' sessions with managers, dedicating one hour each month to talk with people about key topics such as compensation and benefits, the promotion process or immigration.

“That helped us because Canada has grown so much in the last five years; we tripled the number of people. So we had a lot of recent hires, and a lot of new managers. So for me, it was really important to talk to them about the culture of BNP Paribas, the key topics, and equip them with the right words when they were talking to their team.

“So we will continue that, that was a huge success,” says Motte.

HR leader: Focused on DEI

Also important? Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), an area where BNP Paribas has received awards for its initiatives.

“There [are] definitely some key topics that we will continue to focus on and make sure that we continue to have a very inclusive environment and then continue to attract the right talent,” she says.

That includes widening the talent pipeline through campus recruitment and partnering with local groups, such as Ready, Willing & Able to hire more people who are disabled.

“The second thing that I'm very proud of is the neurodiversity program that we launched last year. We have also an ERG called Disability who help us in that. And we are fostering a neuroinclusion culture. We are doing some trainings to prepare the environment for those people when they arrive, because it's not just finding them a job, it's also [providing] a secure a safe environment for them,” says Motte.

“We were able to welcome eight people with that program since last year. It's really something that we will continue.”

And as it has before — moving from an administrative to strategic role — HR will continue to evolve, she says, citing newer challenges such as artificial intelligence (AI) and environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives.

“If you want to be a good HR partner, you have to be well aware of what's happening outside in the society, not only with the competitors, but what's happening outside in the real world.”