Pierre-André de Chalendar: The Sure Path

Not everyone can take the selected and proven path to success in the French corporate world. The selection process begins in the school you qualify in. Then there is employment in the government sector followed by good posts in the private sector.

This is the path that Pierre-André de Chalendar took. He was born on April 12, 1958 in Vichy, France. He graduated from ESSEC business school in 1979 and École Nationale d’Administration (ENA) in 1983.

Pierre then worked for the government at the General Inspection of Finance (IGF) from 1983 to 1987.While in government he went on to take a number of increasingly important roles. Pierre became Financial Inspector in 1984, Project Manager from 1987 to 1988 and Deputy Director from 1988 to 1989 in the General Directorate for Energy and raw material of the Ministry of Industry and Energy.

Then the shift to the private sector; he joined Saint-Gobain as Vice President for Corporate Planning in October 1, 1989. Pierre moved up the ladder assuming a number of senior management position. He became the CEO in 2007. Pierre became the Chairman and CEO in June 3, 2010; the proven but highly selective path to success.

Saint-Gobain is in the habitat and construction markets with net sales of 43.2 billion euros in 2012.