[FEATURED MEMBER] Manuela Montserrat

Manuela Montserrat

Group General Counsel - Employment and global mobility
Holding Structures HR Manager
TMG

What is your role?

My primary role is as the Group General Counsel, overseeing a modicum of responsibilities, in particular, with an expertise in employment law and international mobility. As a result of having a complex international corporate structure, I also oversee HR for French and North American branches alike. With clients in over 80 countries, the TMG Group has subsidiaries in France, United States, and Canada, as well as local presence in regions around the globe. This large international representation requires a sophisticated array of local contracts, expatriations, employers of record, and other nuanced arrangements. 

What is your hidden talent?

On the artistic side, I regularly practice figurative painting and drawing. Sometimes stepping back from a purely legal mode of thought winds up unlocking different creative solutions for my work.

What do you like the most about your job?

The great diversity of subject matters is highly stimulating, with my work regularly interfacing with every department and subsidiary of the Group, across levels. I enjoy situations that are both highly technical and complex. My role enables me to exercise my legal expertise, while at the same time fully being part of hands-on operations. As well, I find the great cultural and multicultural richness of working in an international context very rewarding.

Any advice for people new to the profession?

Take an active interest in all aspects and innerworkings of your company, in order to fully understand the larger strategic picture in as much detail as possible. Similarly, be open to learning topics and gaining expertise well beyond your core skillset. Be curious. Immerse yourself in foreign language study in order to more deeply understand varying cultures and ways of thinking.

About TMG:

Majority owned by Unigrains Group, TMG unites its industrial baking equipment and services subsidiaries with a privileged partnership approach to serve the industrial bakery and pastry sector. Amongst the world leaders in the markets where they operate, the TMG subsidiaries provide solutions for manufacturers all around the world and help them in overcoming the challenges of product quality, operating costs, operational efficiency, and sustainability. The TMG Group has more than 500 employees and draws on the unique expertise of its brands: MECATHERM in France and in the United States, ABI in Canada and MaMaTa in France. Solutions provided include the design, the production, the installation of ovens, machines, and automated production lines, the supply of automation, robotics, vision systems solutions, as well as services such as after-sales and connected services. www.tmg.biz