Doris Birkhofer (CESEM 97), President of Siemens France, Benelux and Maghreb

Doris Birkhofer is a loyal person. She is loyal to the group that got her started and to her home country. As she says herself, "two things shaped me as a teenager: Siemens and the discovery of French". Leading Siemens France, she wants to make the company a driving force in Franco-German and European cooperation, at the forefront of industry 4.0 and the energy transition.

You started working for Siemens when you were 15 years old, for a summer job in Erlangen (Bavaria)... Did you already imagine that you would have a career there?

No, at 15 you don't imagine that! (laughs) But I knew it was a great opportunity. I knew the group well, which was the biggest employer in the region: a reference. For my grandfather's generation, Siemens was synonymous with trust and stability; my uncle worked there. To give you an idea of its size, the Erlangen site was so large that it was equipped with an underground system several kilometres long, which I walked through all summer to deliver the mail.

At the same time, you discovered France. What did you like about it?

My family is Bavarian, so I am not originally bilingual. But the discovery of French in high school fascinated me. As my town had a partnership with Libourne, I stayed there several times. The French way of life and its conviviality charmed me. I met wonderful people who made me participate in their daily life. I still remember when, at the age of 18, my host family taught me to eat meat “rare” (saignante) - which was not done in Germany at the time - with a dash of red wine. A real lesson in gastronomy!

You thought about being a translator… Why a business school in the end? 

I wanted to learn more about France, to be able to use its language. My older brother, my mentor, encouraged me and advised me to study business in order to earn a decent living. At the time, the ESB Business School in Reutlingen was one of the few schools that offered an integrated international course: two years in Reutligen and two years at NEOMA Business School Reims. I chose it for this reason. There was a numerus clausus to be admitted: you had to have very good results to be admitted.

Your internship in France took place in an embroidery thread company...

Yes, in internal audit at DMC. I had done my first 6-month internship in Germany, at Siemens, in management control and purchasing. For the second one, I wanted to discover something else and be in Paris - but DMC sent me to audit their German subsidiary for 3 months. What a pity!

You started your career with Siemens in 1997...

After graduating, I was very attracted to consulting. But Siemens had just created an internal audit department. A sort of McKinsey internalized within Siemens: for me, it was the best of both worlds! I joined the team: at 23, I was the youngest, the other newcomers were 10 years older than me, and almost all of them were PhD students. I stayed for 7 years, including 3 years in New York to launch the American subsidiary. I discovered the art of adapting to the cultural differences between Europeans and Americans. And I learned to speak English correctly, which I didn't know as well as French! I was then put in charge of corporate strategy: a role of advice and support for developing countries (South-East Asia, Middle East, South Africa, Russia) which took me all over the world. In 2006, Siemens entrusted me with my first operational role: to manage a smart chip business in the health sector, which had 100 employees. I was 30 years old, and again I was the youngest person for this type of position. It was a challenge, especially since I was not an engineer. I learned to surround myself with profiles that complemented mine... and to trust. When my mission ended, my husband was recruited in France: the planets aligned for me to practice French again! I joined Verallia - formerly Saint-Gobain Conditionnement - where I held several positions.

What did you learn from your years at Verallia, Alcoa and Arconic?

At Verallia, I discovered how a large French group works. In Germany, the work is very structured and formalized, whereas in France, this is much less the case. The Germans discuss everything together, find a consensus, and then act accordingly. The French are more attached to hierarchy: as long as the boss doesn't call them back, they wait. But once they're in action, they're incredibly agile. At Alcoa, an American aluminium production company, I led growth and acquisition projects in Europe, before taking over the presidency of its spin-off Arconic, a supplier of technologies for the aerospace and automotive industries. This representative role, very different from my previous experiences, led me to immerse myself in the arcane world of the French economy and politics to understand its articulations. It was a great training experience, but I missed the operational side of things: I like to get my hands dirty!

Hence, your return to Siemens in 2018? 

I had always kept close contact with the group. One of my former colleagues offered me the opportunity to lead the Western Europe business of Siemens Building Technologies, an entity that later merged with the Energy Management entity to become the Smart Infrastructure Division, for which I was responsible for France and Benelux, before combining this role with that of President of Siemens France, Benelux and Maghreb.

Siemens is a huge conglomerate. What are its strategic activities?

Siemens' DNA is to transform the daily lives of people and society through technologies that make sense. Its founder, Werner von Siemens, was a 19th century Bill Gates, the inventor of the index telegraph, which revolutionized telecommunications. The group he created has never stopped innovating to solve the challenges of each era. Today, Siemens has four major business units: healthcare (Siemens Healthineers), transportation (Mobility), smart buildings and networks (Smart Infrastructure) and industry 4.0 (Digital Industries). Each of them offers solutions to major contemporary challenges: demographics, climate, energy transition, digitalization of industry, etc.

What role does Siemens France play in the Group?

In terms of sales, we are the third-largest country in the European Union, after Germany and Austria. Our structure is highly decentralized, present throughout France, close to our customers. Siemens France is the market leader in industrial automation and in solutions for creating digital twins, which allow us to simulate the operation of a factory before it is built, as well as in the fire detection and protection market. We also have strong positions in intelligent buildings, which contribute to the improved energy efficiency that is needed more than ever to combat climate change and secure access to electricity.

Do you have examples of solutions that you are proud to develop today?

Yes, of course, here are three.

The first is our contribution to the decarbonization of the economy by optimizing the energy efficiency of buildings. Data centers consume a lot of energy. In response to the climate emergency, we have developed artificial intelligence solutions that can reduce the energy consumption of a data center by 30%. For example, in the Paris region, we have installed a solution for our client Thésée Datacenter that automatically regulates cooling systems using artificial intelligence.

The second concerns Industry 4.0 / Digital Industry: we develop automation solutions that make industry more competitive and thus help relocate production in France and Europe. We are very proud to be a partner of Chamatex Group in the Advanced Shoe Factory 4.0 project in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (Ardoix, 07). We helped our partner by designing an automated production line able to compete with the Asian competition.

Finally, the third one concerns the development of solutions for better mobility of populations. Siemens France is very pleased to be a partner of the Grand Paris Express: our video surveillance, access control and intrusion solutions will equip lines 15, 16 and 17 of the metro. They will be able to anticipate obstacles as well as detect suspicious movements, thus avoiding waiting times and improving passenger safety.

Does France have anything to gain by drawing inspiration from the German apprenticeship model?

Copying and pasting would not make sense, but cherry-picking would. The French government has done a lot of work to upgrade apprenticeships, but that is not enough. France must ensure that training programs prepare young and old alike for the real needs of companies. To develop this approach, Siemens France is forging partnerships with schools in the regions; we are also discussing it collectively at the level of our professional sectors and federations. In Germany, Siemens takes on 3,700 apprentices every year, 80% of whom are recruited. We have not yet reached this level in France. However, our apprentices are our capital for the future: we must take care of them and retain them - this is one of my priorities. I have also set a goal that half of them should be girls. We have to start getting them interested in industrial jobs from an early age. Our partnership with the association "Elles Bougent" (“They Move”) helps to raise awareness of engineering and technical careers among women from elementary school onwards.

How do France and Germany complement each other?

Cooperation between these two major economies is essential for Europe. Beyond the differences, particularly on energy policy, there are similarities. There is already strong cooperation between the world of R&D, public bodies and economic players. Siemens, for example, works closely with the Technical University of Munich (TUM), itself a partner in the Paris-Saclay science and technology cluster. The Franco-German couple has the power to make Europe more sovereign by developing ambitious industrial projects such as ACC, the future "Airbus of batteries", which is the result of a partnership between Total, Stellantis and Mercedes, and of which we are proud to be a technological partner. Many other strategic sectors have the potential to develop at the European level, and Franco-German leadership will be key to their success.

What memories do you have of your studies at NEOMA?

Those related to cultural differences. The French students partied much more than the Germans, who were more interested in getting good grades, which was a recruitment criterion (much more than the name and reputation of the school). During the strike of 1995, our internship search was epic: the application letters were no longer sent by post, and it took us 5 hours to drive to Paris for our interviews. Another surprise: for my internship at DMC, my handwriting analysis was done. Apparently, they liked my poor left-handed handwriting (laughs).

You like sports, mountains, literature, design... and suspense on Netflix! A good series to recommend?

Blacklist: the story of a repentant criminal who helps the FBI to apprehend dangerous terrorists. An excellent insight into human complexity! Otherwise, in the comedy vein, I love the French series Family Business, which follows the adventures of a family whose butcher shop goes bankrupt and which reconverts into a coffee shop...

Industrie 4.0: Siemens France has designed an automated production line in the new digital factory of the sports shoes producer Chamatex

Interview : Marianne Gérard

Photos : Philippe Bauduin

Translation : André Pitié