Agustina Venturin is a Start-Up Manager at Axens. In this interview, Agustina discusses her international background, the importance of adaptability throughout her career in chemical engineering, and how practicing ballet has impacted her personally and professionally.

Interviewed by Juliette Travaillé

You were born in Argentina and moved to France in your teenage years. How has this international background played a role in your career?

Indeed, I have a multi-international background. At 12, I received a grant to come and study in France as I was practising ballet at a high level. It was difficult to leave my parents and my whole family behind at such an early age but being this young actually helped me. It was easier for me to adapt to France and its culture then than it would be now, as an adult.

I think that it played, and still plays, an important role in my career because it gave me the crucial skill of adaptation. This is important in the work that I do today, where I meet and exchange with lots of different people. Depending on the person in front of me, I always adapt my speech, behaviour and actions to make sure they feel heard and understood.

Depending on the person in front of me, I always adapt my speech, behaviour and actions to make sure they feel heard and understood.

As of right now, I wish to stay in France. When I arrived here, France adopted me, gave me a chance to pursue the career of my dreams even though I was not French myself. Staying in France is a way for me to give back. But my work gives me the opportunity to travel and explore other countries, while keeping a foot in France, my home.

You've done a PhD in chemical engineering and recycling processes of nuclear fuels. Why did you choose to pursue your studies and focus on R&D (Research and Development) ?

After my master’s degree, I had to make a difficult choice between the R&D and the supply chain worlds. I decided to continue with a PhD mainly because I felt that it would enable me to grow further both professionally and personally. During this time, I learnt a strict methodology that shaped me as a chemical engineer, letting me embrace my real personality and teaching me to be my best self.

After your PhD you decided to keep working in Research and Development (R&D) and switched to Axens in 2018. How did that transition go and what motivated you to take this step?

After my PhD, choosing a position as a R&D engineer was the logical way to go. I had the chance to get a position at IFPEN (IFP Energies Nouvelles). I stayed there for three years and put into action everything I had learnt during my PhD. After those three years, I felt the need to get closer to the practical reality of what I had been researching, and to the final product, so I decided to move to Axens, which is part of the same group as IFPEN.

I quickly realised that I would like to pursue my whole career in this direction. R&D was the best way for me to get started but I believe that shifting my focus to working on the final product and industrial units was the best way to go at this stage.

In 2022, you took the role as Manager in Axens’ Start-Up department. Could you talk about this position and what it entails?

Before becoming a manager, I spent more than four years as a start-up engineer. What I love about the start-up sector is that there’s no typical day. Every day is full of surprises. We mainly travel to our clients’ sites around the world and help them put in service the industrial units and products we sell to them. Thus, there isn’t a ‘typical’ project, which forces me to adapt.

Now, as a manager, I support my team on their projects and missions around the world. I juggle between technical and administrative issues and topics, in France and abroad. This is both challenging and fun as I have to go out of my comfort zone a little bit every day.

I am juggling between technical and administrative issues and topics, in France and abroad. It’s both challenging and fun as I have to go out of my comfort zone a little bit every day.

How do you deal with working in chemical engineering, a male-dominated field? What advice would you give women who wish to be a manager but are weary of this?

We can fairly say that it is a male dominated sector. To give you an idea, at Axens there are approximately 40 start up engineers and only 10% are women. There are other companies with even less % of women in this sector.

What I would advise is to never see yourself differently. I never feel different from my male colleagues or clients. I see all my co-workers as sources of inspiration, growth and knowledge, whether they be a man or a woman. As I have said before, it is crucial to learn to adapt in every situation. If you know how to adapt, you will avoid confrontation and conflict. Always be patient and adapt. Prove that you deserve to be there so you can gain people’s confidence.

I see all my coworkers as sources of inspiration, growth and knowledge, whether they be a man or a woman.

Since March you have been part of the Women Talent Pool (WTP) Programme. What are your main takeaways from the programme thus far?

My main takeaway is that even if we are very different women, working in distinct sectors, we have so much in common. We all have similar ways of thinking and issues to overcome. Hearing from these women and learning from them has been very empowering for me, whether it be from the workshops or the mentoring sessions, which are especially inspiring.

Before pursuing a career in chemical engineering you practiced ballet to a high level. How has this sport impacted your life?

I practiced ballet for a long time and there are lessons I learnt from it that I carry with me and will continue to do so. Ballet taught me two important things; to be rigorous and passionate in everything I do. These are two virtues that I believe to be the key to a balanced personal and professional life. I am not necessarily looking to achieve a perfect work-life balance, but to approach both my job, and my hobbies in the same way; with passion and rigour. My job as a manager has enabled me to work in the field that I wanted and to do it with passion. But this opportunity didn’t present itself, and my rigour was a key player in achieving my career goals.

Ballet taught me two important things; to be rigorous and passionate in everything I do. These are the two virtues that I believe to be the key to a balanced personal and professional life.

Ballet also taught me to make decisions. Indeed, at the end of high school I had to choose between pursuing a career as a professional dancer or studying chemical engineering. I decided to go for the latter and would still do so today if I had to make the choice again. I decided to fully close the ballet door and this chapter of my life and I don’t regret it because it led me to where I am today.

Finally, as a reader, what is your favourite book of all time?

This is such a hard question to answer, and I thought I would never be able to pick just one book. But I decided to pick The Einstein Enigma by Portuguese journalist José Rodrigues dos Santos. It’s the perfect mix of science, history and mystery. It tries to scientifically prove the existence of God based on a formula developed by Albert Einstein. It takes place in various settings and presents a totally different view about the origins of the universe. I really recommend this book, even if you are not a big scientist yourself!

Video edited by Claudia Heard