Mildred – Management Trainee Belgium

I started working at Sara Lee in 2007, and as a management trainee I've been able to move every six months to another department in another business unit.

I started in the LEAN department at production. I knew the theories and methods of LEAN from school, but at the factory I saw how they were put into practice. My key project was the optimization of a system that lowers stocks, obsoletes, waiting time and other waste. I still benefit from the LEAN methodology: defining the problem, analyzing the situation, generating possible solutions, plan, implement and check. In the end LEAN is not only applicable in a plant, but also in the office.

After six months I switched to marketing in the Household and Body care division. I became co-responsible for Ambi Pur, Vapona (insecticides), Kiwi and Biotex (detergents). One of my favorite projects was the internal campaign I set up for the introduction of Ambi Pur Odour Naturizer Flush, toilet blocks with natural ingredients. There were floor stickers which led to the toilets of the company. All the toilets were decorated with posters and aromatic plants. In the atrium we installed a big tree which hung full of toilet blocks. For me it is very important that all employees know about the introduction of Sara Lee’s new products in the market. Eventually they will be the advocates of Sara Lee brands and products.

In September 2008 I moved to the finance division of Douwe Egberts Coffee Systems. This business supplies coffee systems and accessories to companies. I created a reporting tool for the profit and loss account of every segment and every customer, which clearly identified which segment and customer realized the most benefit.

Recently, I started in my last trainee job: sales at the Coffee & Tea division. I currently work as trade marketeer, which means that I dive in the databases, make analyses and presentations of how our promotions, new product launches and others are doing. In the future, I will also be deployed in the field.

By engaging in so many different experiences I learned to understand the meaning of the different Sara Lee values. In the LEAN department I learned how important it is to be inclusive and work as a team. LEAN asks the cooperation of each single person. During the set up of my internal campaign for Ambi Pur Odour Naturizer Flush I could fully use my imagination. As a finance person you regularly get confidential information in your hands. It was here that I realized the meaning of integrity. And at Sales I already feel the passion to excel. The fierce competition and complex environment we’re in asks deep and detailed analyses. That pressure drives you just that bit further than you ever thought you would come.