Making Trade Happen

Coface's mission revolves around simplifying both global and local trade through solutions that empower businesses to make informed commercial choices. We collaborate closely with our clients to preempt payment defaults and shield them with our credit insurance services.

Our function extends to steering our clients in a rapidly evolving world. By evaluating the creditworthiness of their buyers, suppliers, and potential partners, we equip them with comprehensive insights. We also anticipate pivotal economic trends and dissect risks across different geographical regions and industries. Joining Coface involves contributing to the amalgamation, cultivation, and dissemination of this distinctive micro and macroeconomic proficiency. It also entails aiding enterprises in their day-to-day commercial decision-making and strategic pursuits.

• Our Coface Global Solutions teams support the development of multinational companies through a range of specific services. In this video, one of our clients - Tyrolit - talks about the support it receives from Coface on a daily basis.

Embracing Global Connectivity also Means Embracing Each Other!

Coface is a multinational company that places humanity at its core, valuing the significance of every individual. Within Coface, you'll encounter a diverse array of individuals, encompassing various generations, genders, and cultural backgrounds. This inclusiveness is also evident in our work philosophy, underscored by our appreciation for simplicity, accessibility, and transparency.

As a responsible employer, Coface is firmly committed to following a socially aware approach that rests on three pivotal objectives:

• Cultivating a workplace that encourages inclusivity
• Facilitating the growth of each team member
• Promoting equal opportunities and denouncing all types of discrimination

The Happeners Making Trade Happen How does Coface connect you to the rest of the world? I have always had to work with people who are very open-minded in a sense, very open to international growth. And in my day-to-day work I'm always working with people from other countries, both at the local level - there are always foreigners in almost all the subsidiaries - but also at the regional and group level. Everyday, we communicate with the risk underwriting centres located in seven regions around the world. I think the cultural context that we have gives us the opportunity to share and implement unconventional solutions, to exchange experiences, ideas; to look at different management styles, and implement some of them in our day-to-day work. What makes the employee experience at Coface special for you? I don't feel that there are differences in terms of culture, nationalities, or even location. For me, we work in a team that is located in different places, but in everyday life, we don't see where each of us is located. We work and we make progress on our projects. It's the style of communication between departments with a willingness to always help out, and to share the experience and knowledge. I know colleagues who have very local jobs, but have been assigned international, global or regional projects. And yes, I think that has always meant that Coface can make you feel comfortable, and that you can always have that international vision and that intercultural support. Coface has an open culture: here, we can speak up freely, and share ideas across the organisation. Coface is like a big family: it does not matter what your nationality is, or what accent you speak. Each of us is contributing to the world economy, and that's our common objective. At Coface, we are Making Trade Happen. The Happeners Making Trade Happen Watch the series at coface.com/happeners

What our collaborators say about it

• “Our internal Women to Lead network looks at ways to develop the careers of women at Coface. We are also committed to diversity and a mix of generations at every level of the company. Our diversity is also reflected in our decision-making - which is unquestionably an advantage!”

Leigh M. 
Risk, Legal and Compliance Officer in South Africa

Working in harmony with the global economy means operating in a multicultural environment.

The ability of our teams to combine their expertise enables us to gain comprehensive insight into a market and successfully address our customers' concerns.

Our global focus shapes our day-to-day work and manifests itself in the following ways:

• Serving our clients around the world allows you to work closely with your colleagues abroad
• In the office, in meetings and at training sessions, you will interact with colleagues from different countries and cultures
• Thanks to our unique international network, you have numerous opportunities for assignments abroad, even at the beginning of your career

We received a request from a major French car manufacturer, who wants to develop its electric vehicle sales, via its main distributor in Denmark. How do you work together to meet clients' needs? I'll start by going to the Economic Research Department, to ask them for information about Denmark, specifically the electric vehicle distribution segment in the country, and market share figures, if possible. Then I go to the Information Department, to ask them about this distributor, what is the financial trend. As the economist for Northern Europe, I'm am of course the first port of call when it comes to Danish market issues. In this specific case that we're looking at, the first thing I'll do is examine automotive market data for Denmark. For example, registration figures, or the current e-vehicle trends. When I have summarized that, then I have a nice macroeconomic picture. But when it comes to micro data, for example, the specific business environment, then of course I pass this question on to my risk colleagues on site. In order to understand the risk involved with the market for electrical vehicles, I'd take a look at publically available information, such as government regulattions, the electric vehicle market's development, as well as key figures from the company. I would also contact their CFO or CEO and talk about their company, to learn about their sales figures, and what developments they expect to see in the future. What is the added value of collaboration for clients? The Coface system, is based on being "close to the risk": we know that the local people are our teams in the field, and are the best placed to respond to the requests we receive. Here, at the EIC, (Enhanced Information Centre) we survey, and collect knowledge about the most significant parts of the exposure that Coface has. You can never know absolutely everything, but you can still get enough information to improve your understanding of the company. The strong international environment is a great advantage when looking at risks from different angles and therefore making the best possible risk assessment - even if that means I have to juggle my work around different time zones! At Coface, we are Making Trade Happen. The Happeners Making Trade Happen Watch the series at coface.com/happeners

What our collaborators say about it

• “I work with colleagues from very diverse backgrounds at Coface. It’s an environment where I can learn about different cultures and points of view without even leaving the office! Our diversity fosters creativity and boosts our performance. It makes Coface a great place to work alongside a team I'm proud to be a part of.”

Yuliia N. 
Key Account Manager, Coface Global Solutions based in Dubai

We consistently evaluate our achievements and victories and innovate - This has been a cornerstone of Coface's accomplishments for over seven decades!

We incorporate fresh technologies, particularly Data Science, into our operational framework to streamline and enhance our procedures.

We give precedence to novel approaches to work that are more adaptable, responsive, and cooperative.

And due to the ever-evolving world, we encourage inventive concepts and hold in high regard inquisitive individuals, both men and women, who possess the determination and bravery to shape a new world.

In innovation, we do two main things. We have a prospective work, trying to identify the technological trends in use that will impact our businesses, our customers and our partners. We have a customer vision that guides our project. We don't do R&D to develop projects that will remain in a laboratory, but we are already driven by an existing need of our customers, which are the business lines. Coface's international database is unique in the world. The data contained in this database allows us to be absolutely predictive in evaluating a single company and the market; the risks of the market where the company operates. And this is absolutely a competitive and innovative key. We set up a hackathon, where we brought about forty people together from seven different regions. I think there were about fifteen countries represented and we got them to work remotely on customer needs, so they connected with the customers. They came, we had several stages and finally, we managed to produce a kind of prototype that we showed to our clients, who were very satisfied. So, from there, we started to build the product. With a series of small weekly challenges, each week we asked the teams to ask themselves a question, so one challenge per week. And at the end of the week, they would come and pitch their proposal. So, at the end of this hackathon, I participated in the development of the product by extracting the data used to build the different indicators used in this product. We created an innovative, user-friendly platform with the purpose of guiding companies in their sales choices. All of this not only involving our staff but also involving the clients, and this allowed us to launch a platform more rapidly, in a better performing way. Innovation is the key to success for a company. Improving our own offer, listening to the market, testing all aspects of the platform, understanding if we're meeting our clients' needs and listening to the commercial feedback. All of this helps you to innovate and to succeed. Our team works in an iterative way. Generally, we start by trying to understand a need. Then we dig in when we think we have something that starts to work. We'll do some tests. We'll try to propose things, mock-ups to customers, or test a technology with them with Coface employees. And then, the more we advance, the more we'll enrich the solution to obtain something that is a complete solution in the end. Creating a product in less than six months that corresponds to customer needs proves that we are agile. It proves that we listen to our customers and it proves that there is real creativity in what we do. At Coface, we are making trade happen.

What our collaborators say about it

• "We have devised a 'commercial hub' with an agile process and cutting-edge technology so we can put a new team in place that is dedicated to customer service. It has helped us improve our quality of service!”

Bjoern M. – Senior Solution Development Manager (Germany)