Florent S - Senior Technical Program Manager at Tesla, San Francisco

MINI PORTRAIT

" Originally from Toulouse, I joined Centrale in 2007, did my 1st year internship at Airbus and 2nd year at Air France. Then, I enrolled for a double degree at the Pontificia Universidad Católica - PUC.

My first job was as an R & D engineer in a start-up in Boston in the United States. I joined Tesla Motors in San Francisco in 2014."

YOUR CURRENT POSITION

" I'm a senior technical programme manager at Tesla Motors (electric cars manufacturer) in San Francisco. I'm in charge of manufacturing introduction of Model 3 Drive Unit.

My job is to make sure that all the tools are in place to produce the few thousand chargers needed per week - a few months ago we produced only a few prototypes per week."

HOW IS YOUR TRAINING HELPING IN YOUR JOB TODAY?

" Centrale Nantes has developed my ability to feel comfortable in various fields, roles and technologies, to remain curious and to learn quickly. All this helped me to adapt during my first job in R & D and afterwards during my transition as project manager."

WHAT DID YOU LIKE AT CENTRALE NANTES?

" At Centrale Nantes, I discovered and then experienced internationalisation.

Mixing with the large number of nationalities on campus made me want to pursue a double-degree in Chile. This was the best decision of my studies, even if it was somewhat impulsive at the time. I learned to be self-sufficient, to adapt to a new environment, a new culture and a new language."

ADVICE FOR PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS

" Make your studies a real experience. Discover as much as possible."

CENTRALE NANTES IN 3 WORDS

• " Opportunities
• flexibility
• openness to the world"