Meet Glorian Coeckelberghs, Talent Acquisition Specialist at Strand.

Glorian Coeckelberghs is Talent Acquisition Specialist at Strand. He also works as a backup Quality Officer PTC at Strand’s client Sanofi. Read all about his experience at Strand and the possibilities he has embraced since starting his career at Strand.

How would you describe the work culture at Strand?

Horizontal is the first word that comes to my mind. Before starting at Strand, I did not have a very positive idea about corporate life. I thought companies were built in a strong vertical hierarchical constitution, based on the fear of the higher hierarchical layers. However, at Strand, I experience the opposite. 

Everyone has the right to speak, to share ideas and suggestions for improvement, no matter what your role is. 

Another essential part of the culture at Strand is ‘work hard, play hard’. We have an energetic headquarter shared with other SISU companies. Here, everyone jokes around, gives feedback, supports each other and works over hours that seem a blink of an eye to reach the same goal. Self-improvement and success are at the heart of how we do what we do. 

How did you feel supported by your team and management at Strand? 

The strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the pack is a quote that immediately comes to mind. A perfect illustration of the support of my team and management at Strand.

Co-workers act in a supportive instead of a competitive manner toward each other. We care a lot about strong team cohesion, and we stick with our values: humane and bold.

You currently take on a role at Sanofi. Can you tell us more about what they were looking for?

I indeed became a quality consultant for Sanofi, which was a first! We already had a consultant who became part of the HQ team, but not the other way around yet.

Sanofi was looking for an intermediate profile for a one-year mission combining scientific background and trilingualism. The content of the mission linked to seniority and budget was a real challenge to complete. Our Business Unit Manager came up with a solution: a combination of a junior profile and offering a backup from Strand, me! 

I slept on it, and a few days later I accepted the role to get a better pharmaceutical/consultancy insight.

How did the collaboration go? 

I followed the training with Philippe Muls, the main consultant, for a week. Then I stayed on with continuous training in case he falls sick or leaves for holidays. 

Why was this new step important for your professional growth? 

I learned about quality systems, data integrity, SAP, complaints management, temperature excursions, investigation, GMP’s, GDP’s, pharmacovigilance, CAPA and deviation matters. It helps me to better understand the different missions I source for, and connect dots I couldn’t before.

Becoming corporate allows you to work on your way of living and to better structure your long-term vision of life. We depend on each other in this company, and we need to build trust in order to succeed. I consider being reliable a key value for all relationships and it starts from yourself.

Can you share any feedback about how Strand has helped you to develop your skills and advance your career? 

Regarding soft skills rather than experience, I got into Strand before even getting my diploma (which I eventually got). I now feel at the right place with growing possibilities. I started with recruitment but got trained in business development and sales. 

What’s the number one reason you would recommend Strand to your peers? 

It’s not easy to believe that a company is truly humanely oriented rather than driven by economic purposes. It might seem as a cheeky bet Strand makes, but it works. When I recruit, I carry out Strand's humane values because I experienced it myself. 

Strand is a place for community, fun, development, and growing together to a better version of ourselves.