An entrepreneur’s view: Marilyn Samaha Khair, founder of Cygn
What motivates me on a daily basis is to feel useful, to contribute at my level to the improvement of a global situation, to the management and optimization of talent in the broadest sense.
Can you introduce yourself and tell us about your job?
I’m 41, married with two children, Franco-Lebanese, grew up in France, and have lived my adult life between Beirut and Paris.
I have a dual education, in economics at Saint-Joseph University in Lebanon and in communications at Sciences Po Paris.
I began my professional career in the air transport and tourism sector in Lebanon. First as General Manager of Flying Star, a sales office for several airlines and the Accor group for the Middle East, created in 2004 to compete with the incumbent airlines, then within ADPI Middle East, a subsidiary of the Aéroports de Paris group created in Lebanon, where I was a member of the Board of Directors and responsible for Operations. For over 10 years, these experiences enabled me to manage companies in a context of repeated crises (attacks, war), in a country that was not very stable politically. It was an extremely formative experience.
In 2016, when I returned to France, I turned to consulting and more specifically to career coaching in an outplacement firm.
It was then that I became aware of my ability to facilitate relationships, offer an outside view of the career management issues facing my customers and, more generally, find solutions to the various problems facing the company.
So I decided to set up Cygn, a business strategy and career management consultancy.
Why did you become an entrepreneur?
Actually, I’ve always been an entrepreneur! Although I was destined to work in a communications agency, my father asked me to join him in the Flying Star adventure, at a time when the business was really taking off in Lebanon, and was therefore poised for interesting development. I must pay tribute to him today, for he encouraged me in this direction.
When I returned to France, and to allow myself a period of transition and observation, I turned to freelance consulting, and it was after this experience that it became clear to me that I should set up my own company.
I’m particularly interested in having a development project and a positioning strategy!
The name Cygn symbolizes masculinity and femininity, action and intuition, and it’s the combination of these two approaches that I find most fulfilling.
It’s also a symbol of travel, which is always present in my career!
What do you enjoy most about your job today?
What drives me on a daily basis is to feel useful, to contribute at my level to the improvement of a global situation, to the management and optimization of talent in the broadest sense. I do this with a strong sense of customer service, a customized approach and total confidentiality.
Cygn allows me to evolve in an international environment, with customers in France, Lebanon and elsewhere, an environment in which I’ve always enjoyed evolving and which stimulates me so much!
Doesn’t starting from scratch in a new sector scare you?
Not really, because I’ve worked hard on this transition and I’m building on the solid foundation of my previous experience.
I know I’m taking a long time to develop my company, but I’m in no hurry!
Of course, it took me some time to understand how things work in France, the workings of the administration and the various players involved, but in the end, I’m putting all this understanding and mastery of the workings to work for my customers.
What goals have you set for yourself over the next 5 years?
I hope to develop the company and consolidate Cygn’s two pillars: strategy, by supporting corporate clients in a fluctuating environment, and individual support, because careers are no longer linear at all!
I position myself within a logic of measured development, because I know from experience that this takes time, and that solid, lasting development is based on consolidated, well-thought-out, strategic actions for the company. Structuring the company’s communication and creating a network of experts to support us are very important factors in developing our sales and expanding our customer portfolio.
I’m a great believer in regularity: in speaking out, in customer relations, in animating one’s own network. This is already bearing fruit, as word-of-mouth is starting to work.
As far as organization is concerned, the key word for me today is flexibility. At this stage of my company’s development, I’d opt for a mixed team of employees and freelancers. Ideally, I’d like to have a core group of in-house employees and experts in their fields, to give me real flexibility.
What advice would you give to someone wishing to launch their own business?
Have a well-defined project, surround yourself with the right people and have an action plan that can evolve. Stay open to identifying and seizing opportunities!
Originally published on intersection-conseil.com