Reflets Mag #147 devotes its cover feature to Benoît Coquart (M95), CEO of Legrand, who talks about his career with the international giant of electrical and digital infrastructures, his strategy in the context of inflation and his views on transition, energy efficiency and workplace well-being. Here is a free online translation of an excerpt of the article… subscribe to get the next issues (in French)!

Reflets Magazine: You have spent your entire career to date with Legrand, what led you to join this group?

Benoît Coquart: I was interested in the sector, and Legrand is a company with both B2B and B2C activities. I was attracted to the idea of working with both the end customer and a more structured business chain of professionals. When you begin your career, and I think this is the case for a lot of people, you don’t start by making big plans; when an offer comes your way, it’s your first job and a company you like, you don’t hesitate for long.

RM: Your recruitment was a little unusual, while you were in South Korea...

B. Coquart: When I graduated from ESSEC, I went to take up a short-term cooperative placement in economic expansion in Seoul. Legrand contacted us because they were looking for a young, inexpensive cooperative worker to open their representative office in South Korea. I applied for the job and was hired.

RM: Was this initial position a decisive factor in the next step of your career?

B. Coquart: An overseas experience is definitely an asset for your future career, especially with an international company such as Legrand. Having said that, I wouldn’t necessarily advise a young graduate to begin abroad. I think it’s useful to begin in your home market to acquire a certain number of methods and processes, and then after, why not venture abroad. I do remember feeling a little lonely and lacking a framework during those first months in Seoul. Things went fairly well, though. I came back to France after 2 years, where I had the opportunity to try several different marketing and finance jobs in quite diverse sectors.

RM: Legrand achieved outstanding results in 2022. How do you explain that, given this period of strong pressures?

B. Coquart: Legrand has always been a profitable company. Much of that comes down to its business model and a growth strategy based on two fundamental pillars: innovation and external growth - the aim being to create value for its customers, ahead of increasingly useful and stylish products which are easy to install and use. Take the light switch, for example. In its most basic form, it's a white button which allows you to switch lights on and off. Legrand adds special finishes to this white button, such as glass or leather casings, as well as extra features to enhance users’ lives, now that a light switch can even be connected. Our business model is that ability for innovation with simple products, which generates both margins and growth. This is the aspect I like to emphasise, and the most remarkable thing for me in recent years has been our ability to create growth. In the last 5 years, Legrand’s turnover has risen from around €5 billion to just over €8 billion. Yet these five years have not been easy between the pandemic, the raw materials crisis and the consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

RM: So the energy crisis, rising energy and raw material costs, and your withdrawal from Russia have not impacted your results?

B. Coquart: Our withdrawal from Russia was not a major event on the scale of the group, as Russia represented only 1.5% of our turnover. Regarding the energy crisis, we suffered like many other companies, but we are not a business which uses large amounts of energy. Before the crisis, our energy costs represented around €30 million annually. This crisis provided us with a certain number of opportunities, however, as we are lucky enough at Legrand to be ‘part of the solution’. By that I mean that 40% of CO₂ emissions come from the building sector; ways to save energy and reduce power costs are in big demand, and our catalogue offers several solutions. These solutions, among others, will enable buildings to become more energy-efficient.

RM: Have you taken advantage of this to invest more in research and development?

B. Coquart: We have always invested significantly in R&D. For several years already, R&D investment has represented around 5% of our turnover at Legrand, which is about twice the average of our competitors. In recent years, we’ve been focusing our efforts on three high-growth segments: energy-efficient products, smart products and products for data centres. In all, this represents a third of our turnover. The other two thirds relate to more traditional infrastructure products such as the light switch, circuit breaker and floor box.

RM: What are your aims for 2023? Are you looking for new acquisitions?

B. Coquart: We’re still banking on growth, even if we remain wary of economic uncertainties. And yes, we’re going to pursue our acquisitions. We carried out seven in 2022, generally with small, highly-specialised companies. As an example, we announced the acquisition of the Brazilian leader in lightning arresters early this year. To date, we have a list of some 300 companies of this type. I can confirm that we will be announcing other acquisitions in the quarters to come! Despite a highly uncertain context, we intend to pursue our relatively offensive external growth strategy, in accordance with major financial balances.

RM: Have you seen a rise in demand for your energy transition products?

B. Coquart: Definitely, and especially in Europe, where a great deal of emphasis has been put on these issues and energy prices have risen the most. In the last two years, we have seen very strong growth in certain product families, the most emblematic and consumer-market item being the smart thermostat, but I could also mention products which save energy in data centres or large service buildings. We’re thus experiencing a real upsurge in these types of products and I think this trend will continue for at least the next ten years.

RM: Is Legrand itself a model for energy efficiency?

B. Coquart: We have a roadmap aligned with the most ambitious goals of the Paris Agreement. We’ve thus undertaken to reduce our own emissions by 50%, i.e. Scope 1 and 2, and upstream and downstream Scope 3 emissions by 15%. In other words, our targets are compatible with the 1.5°C limit in temperature rise compared to pre-industrial limits. This is achieved through the installation of our own solutions in our buildings and plants. It also implies shifting our energy procurement to renewable sources, gradually replacing our petrol fleet with electric vehicles, and changing to more frugal practices. All these actions will enable us to achieve our targets. I believe this is an important aspect in terms of corporate social responsibility, but it is also a rising demand on the part of our customers, suppliers, employees and even applicants seeking to work for us.

RM: Are you seeing a real shift in this direction with potential employees?

B. Coquart: There is a striking change in applicants’ expectations. Ten or fifteen years ago, expectations were related to advancement within the company to reach attractive positions, and salary, of course. At present, in addition to these expectations come the questions of CSR and work-life balance. Those questions we didn’t dare to raise just a few years ago are now approached head-on during recruitment interviews.

RM: How would you define the employee experience?

B. Coquart: [Article to be continued in Reflets Magazine #147] 

Interview by François de Guillebon, Chief Editor at Reflets Magazine

Translation of an excerpt of an article published in Reflets Magazine #147. Read a preview (in French). Get the next issues (in French).

Image : © Arnaud Calais