Eliane Vaurisel · Chief Executive Officer · Canada
| Capacity | Committees |
|---|---|
| Ready to join | People and remuneration · Customer and member affairs · Strategy and investment |
I am seeking a board where regional consumer economics, service access or workforce planning is a substantive part of the agenda. A cooperative or another enterprise with a clearly articulated customer purpose could be a good fit, provided the board is prepared to discuss the cost of that purpose. I prefer a company reassessing its operating proposition to one seeking a familiar retail name for promotional value. My present board exposure is an executive directorship and earlier presentations; I would be entering an external non-executive role with that distinction made clear. I would value an experienced chair, an organised induction and a committee remit matched to my experience. The appropriate appointment would allow me to contribute practical questions while learning the company's own context, rather than treating my current methods as a ready-made answer to its problems.
Served as a director
Executive director on the elected board; no independent committee chair role
February 2021–present
Accountable for enterprise proposals on the essentials basket, delivery coverage and the reduced-format store trial
Presented to the Board or a committee
Board operating and capital reviews
July 2015–January 2021
Presented store maintenance and operating proposals as COO without holding a director appointment
Presented to the Board or a committee
Selected commercial reviews at the CEO's invitation
March 2010–June 2015
Explained category plans and supplier funding implications; participation was presentation rather than board membership
IICA Independent Directors’ Databank: Not yet registered
I have not enrolled in the IICA independent-director databank; this Canadian demonstration makes no claim of Indian appointment eligibility.
I would contribute the perspective of a retailer who has held responsibility at store, regional, commercial and enterprise levels. That progression helps me ask whether a strategy can be carried out by the people and places expected to deliver it. I am particularly useful when a board needs to connect the customer promise with labour capacity, local economics and the practical limits of a service. I would not approach another enterprise as though every sector should operate like a grocery cooperative.
My experience of member ownership adds a second perspective. I have had to prepare decisions for directors who bring strong local knowledge and legitimate differences of priority. I can help examine how consultation informs a choice without turning every individual preference into an operating instruction. I would join a people, customer or strategy committee where that experience is relevant. I am not presenting myself as an experienced independent committee chair or as a substitute for specialist audit, legal or sector expertise. A first external appointment should give me a clear remit and sufficient induction to understand the different responsibilities of that enterprise.
Our scheduling trial produced a result the people team valued and a cost the operating team had to absorb. I supported the improvement in predictability while keeping the 2.4% increase in labour cost per trading hour explicit. I resisted offsetting it with an unproven retention saving. On another board, I would bring that same distinction between a measured consequence and a plausible longer-term benefit. Directors can choose to fund a commitment without being promised that it is costless. My contribution would be to test whether the proposal includes the capacity needed to keep the commitment, whether exceptions are defined and whether the eventual review uses the same terms as the original approval. I would also ask how colleagues' own requested changes are distinguished from management changes before drawing conclusions from a scheduling measure.
The reduced-format branch decision required me to put a third feasible option between closure and an unchanged offer. We identified conversion spending, a smaller range, fewer opening hours and a continuing support requirement. The board approved a two-year trial, not a declaration that the branch had become self-funding. I would bring this habit of comparing complete alternatives to an investment committee discussion. It can expose a useful option, but it should never become a device for postponing an uncomfortable decision indefinitely. I would ask what must be true for the option to remain acceptable, which assumptions are most sensitive and who will bring the review back to the board. The needs of affected customers belong beside those questions, including customers whose circumstances are not well represented at formal meetings.
Before accepting a seat, I would agree the time expectations with the chair and obtain the necessary approval from my current board. In the first quarter, I would learn the company's operating model, decision calendar and major commercial relationships. Site visits would be arranged through management, with a clear purpose and without creating a parallel reporting channel. I would want to hear from frontline colleagues while respecting the executive team's responsibility for running the business.
My early contribution would be questions that connect the board's measures with the customer and employee experience they are intended to describe. I would examine a small number of actual decisions from approval through execution and review. Later in the year, I would aim to contribute to a defined committee work programme, perhaps concerning workforce commitments or service investment. I would ask the chair for feedback on whether my questions help the board make decisions or stray into operational detail. A first year should demonstrate useful judgement and disciplined boundaries, not a desire to reproduce my current company's practices elsewhere.
Our cooperative buys from food producers and distributors, occupies leased property and works with logistics and technology providers. Those connections can create conflicts beyond a simple list of direct competitors. I would disclose relevant relationships before considering an appointment and update that account as circumstances change. I would not accept a role intended to provide purchasing access or privileged insight into our plans. Where a potential conflict is recurring and central to the proposed board's work, occasional recusal may not be an adequate solution.
I would also consider the time conflict honestly. Sixteen days is my planned annual capacity for one external appointment, including preparation and travel. A major transaction or crisis can exceed an ordinary schedule, and that possibility needs discussion before acceptance. My current CEO responsibilities remain substantial. I would not describe nominal availability as proof that every board's demands could be met, nor would I rely on undisclosed advisory arrangements to create a second route into the same enterprise.
My present executive directorship is not independent; eligibility for any separate appointment needs assessment of commercial and personal connections by the appointing board.