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I try to make sure that I have people around me who are more talented than I am.
This brings you strength. You may be the boss, but others have more expertise
and knowledge in their domains.
The second principle is to empower people and make them accountable.
That is easy to say. It’s definitely not easy to do, because it’s not the most natural
thing. When you empower people, but don’t make them accountable, you can
start drifting and lose control. I think respect for people, and paying attention to
the way they are treated, is essential. I also value respect for facts.
Finally, it’s essential to make sure that the strategy of the com pany is related
to its purpose. This is totally congruent with the re port I wrote with Nicole No-
tat. The role of the CEO is first and foremost to validate the link between a com-
pany’s strategy and its purpose. I tried to do this at Michelin, and I expect to
follow the same approach in the alliance, because I think this alliance needs to
articulate its purpose.
S+B: What do you think the purpose of the alliance should be?
SENARD: It’s only been two months since I agreed to take the role. If I said any-
thing now, it wouldn’t make sense. At Michelin, defining our purpose took two
years of internal debate: What are we here for, what should we do, et cetera.
Of course, we will consider sustainable mobility, environmental sus-
tainability, the well-being of customers, and the well-being of employees.
But it takes time, and deep involvement in a company, to be able to answer
these questions.