Leong Woon Teo
I’ve been at Imerys for almost 16 years. In that time, I’ve worked in Singapore, France and Belgium, before returning to Singapore to take up my current role as Group Industrial Projects Manager. During these years, I’ve had the opportunity to visit many countries and meet people of different backgrounds and cultures.
The opportunity to take flight
What attracted me to the opportunity at Imerys was the scope of the position. I really like to be involved in a project from start to finish, as it gives me enormous satisfaction to see what started on paper come to life through team effort. Another attraction was the opportunity to meet and work with people in different countries: I worked on numerous feasibility studies in Asia Pacific countries and completed projects in China, Thailand, Malaysia and India. During my eight years in Singapore, I was promoted to Project Manager and subsequently Regional Project Manager, leading an engineering team for Carbonates Asia Pacific.
When there was an opening in France, a former Operations Manager who had worked in the Asia Pacific recommended me. This allowed me to move to Limoges, where Imerys conducts most of its ceramics R&D. Throughout this role, I assessed the feasibility of several projects with my colleagues and undertook projects in Belgium, Turkey and Thailand.
My three years in France were followed by three years working near Brussels, in Belgium, when all our Carbonates operations were brought together. I reviewed all the projects in this business with an investment of over €1 million, ensuring they were planned and executed in accordance with the company’s Industrial Projects Management System.
A path full of surprises
I never imagined that I would have the chance to work in France and Belgium – my career sort of took on a life of its own as people in the company got to know me. I don’t really plan where I’m going to go next, but I am ready to take on the new challenges that Imerys offers.
In my current role, I’m more involved in the planning and support of operations beyond the execution – it’s my job to make sure that people are sufficiently prepared to ensure industrial investments are approved and successful.
Working at a global level in the Project and Technical Assistance team allows me to network and align our internal client needs to company priorities. We are committed to completing projects safely, while keeping costs within budget, meeting performance requirements and finishing on schedule. It also provides possibilities to share experiences beyond organizational boundaries.
Imerys is a lean organization, so if you like taking initiatives and solving problems, you’ll enjoy your experience and go far! Because we’re not really based in the office, every day is different.
Surrounded by inspiration every day
I have been really lucky with my mentors. My direct supervisors have always been very rich in experience and happy to pass that on. The projects that we work on can be complex, so it helps to have a manager who can share expertise.
Imerys is a lean organization, so if you like taking initiatives and solving problems, you will enjoy your experience and go far! Because we’re not really based in the office, every day is different. I’ve been fortunate to work with people from different backgrounds all over the world and I enjoy solving problems together with them.
As other members of our team, we believe in simple communication, personal involvement, professionalism and internal and external client satisfaction.
