Emmanuelle Bautista begun her career as a parliamentary assistant in the German Parliament, before being recruited by the Treasury Directorate of the French Ministry for Economy and Finance in 2007. Since then, Emmanuelle has progressed her career rapidly, holding three different posts abroad (Berlin, Geneva, Brussels) before joining Citeo, an environmental organisation in July of last year to become Head of European and International affairs. She is well prepared for such an expansive role having worked in both the public and private sector and during the French Presidency of the Council of the EU, and she is equipped with her secret weapon: a law degree.
The public sector vs the private sector
Despite only joining Citeo in July 2023, Emmanuelle enjoys “the opportunities that come with working in the private sector. More opportunities arise compared to working in the public sector and we are encouraged to use our initiative and innovate”, says Emmanuelle. “We receive more recognition of our work and achievements, and I feel this helps to keep us motivated”. While the private sector has its plusses, Emmanuelle was quick to remind those seeking a career change that the private sector has its drawbacks, with the more freedom bringing “added pressure” to the role.
Networking and building relationships
Emmanuelle cannot stress enough “the importance of a good network in today’s workplace” and suggests “investing time and effort to create interesting and reliable relationships you can trust”.
The need to obtain reliable and legitimate political information is a constant struggle for public affairs professionals, Emmanuelle says having “reliable contacts in your network to obtain information is a big advantage. A lot of news is often fake or bias”. She therefore encourages her team to acquire information from multiple sources, especially from “official sites like Eurostat” before drawing assumptions. “It’s good practice to not just take sources from NGOs or from an enterprise, but to start with official sources before comparing all the data”.
Cultural differences. France vs Germany
Having grown up in France but then worked in Germany for a large part of her career, before recently returning to France, Emmanuelle is well placed to compare the cultural differences between the two environments.
“I found it strange”, says Emmanuelle, returning to France in 2022 after fifteen years away. “I had to rediscover my own country and culture. France has a more informal way to work and engage with people. French professionals love to debate and confront opinion, but it can be difficult to navigate and come to a solution. Germany, in comparison, is more structured in the sense that you have an agenda for a meeting. The agenda is agreed on perhaps a week before the meeting and you stick to it. It is more constructed, but there is less flexibility”.
Advice for aspiring public affairs professionals
“Take your time and do not rush”, says Emmanuelle. It isn’t uncommon for young professionals to do so as a sign of their enthusiasm. Instead, “take a step back and reflect” before deciding your career path.
Emmanuelle also suggests “being open to advice. Take your time to discover what you enjoy and least enjoy, set boundaries and find the balance between your personal and professional life”.
Key skills in public affairs
“Soft skills are more important than hard skills”, says Emmanuelle. “Soft skills demonstrate who you really are, whereas hard skills can sometimes be learnt on the job. What’s important is the willingness to always learn by listening to others and to trust yourself”.
With regards to hard skills, she says “be open to all kinds of information, given the amount in politics and be clear when creating a strategy, setting out how to achieve each step”. Emmanuelle also advises professionals to be cautious when dealing with “facts and figures”, ensuring they stem from “reputable sources”.
Progressing into a leadership role
“Seek a mentor”, says Emmanuelle. “Either from your organisation or your bubble”. The support and advice of a like-minded professional with perhaps greater experience can be a “useful and worthwhile exercise”.
Recognised as an emerging talent in her field, Emmanuelle was part of the Women Talent Pool programme of the Women in Leadership European Network in 2009-2010, is a current Fellow of the programme and more recently enrolled upon a female leadership programme for European professionals in 2019. She is a big advocate for female leadership and recommends professionals of both genders “to not hesitate to participate in leadership programmes should the opportunity arise”.
Lastly, Emmanuelle says “trust yourself and build your network by investing time and energy into creating real and strong relationships, through your professional and personal life”.
Key themes for public affairs teams in 2024
Unsurprisingly, Emmanuelle believes “the EU elections will be a big theme this year”, having witnessed the “effect of previous EU elections on European, industry and trade policy. Internally we are working on this issue by preparing for our position on the different important files for the next parliament. We are already a bit worried about the future political orientation of the parliament and their priorities and on a national level, we are interested in the situation for French MEPs”.
“The environment and future of green deal” is another key theme for the upcoming year and Emmanuelle believes it will be “interesting to see how that progresses and what will be decided with the next parliament and Commission”.
Passions outside the boardroom
Just like everyone, Emmanuelle has her interests outside of work. These include “a huge capacity to binge-watch movies and series”. She also enjoys keeping active with a love for running: “I run to burn energy and switch off from work. It’s one of the only times I can totally disconnect from what else I have going on and just listen to some music or a podcast. It is also one of the best example of the connection between mind and body”.
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