CPO, Merck Group - 'I don't like to call them HR initiatives - that disconnects them from the business'

Khadija Ben Hammada was offered her dream job while pregnant with her long-awaited son, and she embraced both major milestones. The Merck Group Chief People Officer explains why motherhood made her sharper in the boardroom, not softer.

HR wasn’t her first choice

"I wanted to become a teacher," says Ben Hammada. Her childhood dream, however, didn't turn out to be the reality she'd hoped for. "After university I did a teaching placement and discovered that, while I loved working with the children, there were lots of other elements I didn't enjoy as much - including the challenges of dealing with parents!"

Having made up her mind, she shifted focus and undertook an MBA in 2004 while at home in France. "It had a specific focus on human resources, and that's how my career in HR started," she says.

As the first in her family to attend university, she worked hard to get there - not just academically but financially too. "My dad will tell you that you need to earn every penny, and so I did multiple jobs to make enough money to go. Every job I've had, I've been grateful for; I've smiled and stayed positive. That's always been my mindset."

Her first job post-MBA was an internship. "I went to Paris with just my backpack, slept on my sister's floor for six months and was paid 300 euros a month, which wasn't much - but it was an invaluable experience," she says. Working for a boutique headhunter, she may not have earned enough to rent a room, but what she gained was exposure to the workings of a business and its customers. "Working for a big business doesn't offer you so much so quickly, but there I had the chance to do so many things."

She adds: "You can't say, 'I'm not going to make coffee or do small jobs for the boss - you have to do everything. But then you get the chance to speak to top clients like L'Oréal, and that's why you do it." Big Fish Consulting was the start. "It's where I learned to become a good headhunter, because you have to do everything and learn to talk to candidates and clients."

Reflecting on that first job, Ben Hammada recognises it was the chance that made her. "I'm still in touch with some of my colleagues from there. I'm so grateful to the company for that first opportunity – it’s where I fell in love with HR," she says.