Joining Sucden

interview

Solène – Junior Lawyer

My current activity

I provide daily legal advice and support to operational teams (e.g. in trade, freight, procurement…), work on litigation and pre-litigation cases, as well as provide assistance in the analysis, review and negotiation of contractual documentation.

What I like about my job

The international aspect of soft commodities trading, and the fact that we have many subsidiaries abroad, implies working on diverse topics with a variety of people.

What I appreciate at Sucden

Sucden is a well-established group that trades a wide array of commodities (sugar, coffee, cocoa, ethanol, grain), all of which abide by different sets of rules and types of standard contracts. The human-sized legal department also enables us to work on a broader number of topics.

How I joined the company

I was looking for a position that would allow me to practice maritime law, my specialty, and applied to a job offer on the Apec website. Job duties included maritime law, as well as a broader scope of subjects related to the trading industry (commercial law, sanctions, compliance, …). It was right up my alley.

My recruitment process

The recruitment process was very straightforward (no aptitude or personality tests). I initially met with the head of legal and compliance, and with another lawyer from the team, and then a second time with them and the General Manager. Both times, it felt like an informal conversation about the position and the group’s activity. The whole recruitment process lasted about a month.

What surprised me at Sucden

The company is a multinational corporation by its metrics and skills, but its organization allows for open communication between services and subsidiaries. Many corporate events are organized to bring people together.

My special moment

When I joined, I got to tour most of Sucden’s departments with another recent hire. In these three-hour sessions, we became well acquainted with the group’s key activity and people.

My Sucden experience in a nutshell

Energy, adaptability, collaboration.

My message to future employees

Sucden is a good place to work in an international environment, often on high stakes cases.