Growing individuals & the collective
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A proud community, united by our shared purpose
From purpose to reason for action
The search for meaning can be a driving force for our collective commitment and performance: by ensuring the active involvement of all its staff, Avril is building a solid, proud community that makes our purpose its call to action.
2023 was a year of celebration as we marked the Group’s 40th birthday – this was also an opportunity to get staff involved in making our purpose a part of their everyday actions.
Today, this purpose forms part of our strategy and is deployed within each of the Group’s business lines and activities.
Celebrating 40 years of Serving the Earth
In 2023, Avril celebrated 40 years of Serving the Earth with a long-running series of events for all its stakeholders. It was a year defined by conviviality and communal events to celebrate our shared heritage, and all those keeping it alive today.
Working with mutual respect
Safety is an essential factor for the community’s peace of mind. It is also Avril’s no.1 priority as an industrial operator. The Group encourages employees to consider and express their differences, while also ensuring they feel welcome within the community. This diversity promotes outside-the-box thinking, and facilitates inclusion.
Safety as a priority
The We Care 2019 – 2023 plan will be extended into a new cycle, We Care 2, with a focus on three key pillars accompanied by appropriate support and tools:
- Developing leadership and appropriation: adopting positive behaviors
- Leading risk prevention: bolstering safety tools and making them more robust
- Improving health and quality of working life: working to enhance ergonomics and working conditions.
3rd edition of the Soficare forum
The 3rd edition of the SofiCare forum, an event initiated by Sofiprotéol which aims to share best practices and feedback on occupational safety issues, was held in 2023 at the Saipol Le Mériot site. The event’s motto was “All accidents are preventable; your safety is my priority.”
The latest edition of the SofiCare forum was held on 21 June, and brought together some sixty participants representing over twenty partner companies, who shared their experience and took part in round table discussions, working together to improve safety practices.
Going further for disability inclusion
In agreement with labor organizations, in 2023 Avril pursued its initiative by signing the International Charter on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities. The Charter provides a shared foundation to help standardize practices across the Group’s various business units, in France and internationally. It provides a new dynamic for initiatives already in place, while also encouraging signatories to assimilate the charter’s principles based on the sites where it will be applied.
Avril's commitment to the talents of the future
In 2023, Avril obtained the Happy Index Trainees Label with a score of 90.1, as well as the Happy Index Trainees label for work-study placements with a score of 89.3, reflecting the positive experiences reported by interns and work-study participants based in France during their time at Avril.
The Group has implemented practical new initiatives to foster the development of young talents:
- Creation of a mentoring guide
- Establishing student communities
- Standardizing remote working practices for students
- Increasing internship pay
- Holding an in-person Student Day at the Monceau site, bringing together 90 students from our various business units based in France
- Creation of an International Challenge entitled “Your Future as CEO.”
In figures
90% of interns or work-study placement students would recommend Avril as an employer
92% of interns or work-study placement students feel they can be themselves at Avril
Your Future as CEO
In July 2023, the winner of the “Your Future as CEO” contest (held by Avril for its interns and students in work-study placements) had the opportunity to shadow Jean-Philippe Puig, CEO of Avril SCA, for ten days.
Eva Salgado, a work-study program participant in product management at Lesieur, won the contest after completing its three challenges: a presentation video, a report on an inspiring leader, and an oral presentation to a jury of managers and executives, including Jean-Philippe Puig.
From 3 – 12 July 2023, Ms. Salgado accompanied the Avril CEO to all his meetings and exchanges with the teams, including meetings of the executive committee where she was able to observe managerial alignment with the Group’s purpose.
Ms. Salgado has now joined the Lesieur “Incubator” course, which provides a blend of commercial and marketing training.
Making a shared commitment to the common good
Inclusion is also about giving each and every individual the chance to contribute to the collective through their own personality, their expertise, their preferences and their experiences. Avril has established multiple initiatives to encourage its business units and their employees to play an active role in driving both the Group and our society forward.
Nourrir la Vie: dare to suceed!
Each year, the “Nourrir la Vie” initiative invites Avril staff to put forward their most audacious ideas in order to address four strategic challenges: operational efficiency, employee well-being, solutions for the planet, and a client-oriented approach. For the event’s 8th edition, the motto was ” Dare to suceed ”
Vis ma Terre: improving knowledge and understanding of agriculture
The world of agriculture lies at the heart of the Avril model, and in order to fulfil our purpose – Serving the Earth – we must fully understand agricultural realities, along with the role played by farmers and the challenges they face. As such, in 2023, a number of Group employees were invited to participate in an immersion day at a farm operated by an administrator of the French Federation of Oilseed and Protein Crop Producers (FOP). The program, known as “Vis ma terre” (‘Live my earth’), was established by the Terres de Com EIG and aims to remind participants of the Group’s history, its roots and its agriculture-based governance, shedding light on the vocations involved, creating inspiring interactions and improving our appreciation of the complexity, commitment and technical aspects involved in farming.
