"I am black, French and I measure 1.93 meters. Here's how Tidjane describes himself himself a headhunter British came to offer him a position with Aviva in 2002. This polytechnician Franco-Ivorian then 40 years and worked for international consulting firm McKinsey study. Yet he prefers to prevent the caller who asked him to go to an interview for a position at the first insurer in the United Kingdom.

At that time, Tidjane was scalded by all its difficulties in finding a position to match its ambitions in France. However, his resume is not supposed to let recruiters indifferent. Born into a family of C?te d'Ivoire, son of former Ivorian Minister of Information and an illiterate mother until his thirty years Tidjane joined the cream of French schools in a faultless display.After preparatory classes, he pocketed his diploma from the Ecole Polytechnique in 1984 and parade on the Champs Elysees on July 14. He also wins a civil engineering degree Mines de Paris is a major promotion in 1986. The same year he completed this course with an MBA at Insead.

The fight against the discrimination he experienced in France became one of his fights. In a text entitled "What does being French," written for the think-tank "Institut Montaigne," the man tells her "frustration" when one of her classmates became hunter head told him to have his name struck off the list "because the answer was invariably: profile interesting and impressive, but you understand … '. He said he tired of constantly hitting the "glass ceiling" image means economic difficulties of a class of person to get to a position of responsibility.Term frequently used for women.

Parenthesis policy

Before the episode Aviva Tidjane fled discrimination in the economic world to take refuge in politics. With again, an extraordinary journey. After his degree, he took a sabbatical to attend the Young Professionals Program of the World Bank. A training program designed to attract the best young talent around the world. In 1994, he accepted a post as head of the National Bureau of Technical Studies and Development of the new President of C?te d'Ivoire, Henri Konan B?di?, he proposes. It will occupy until the coup of December 1999.

In August 1998, he became Minister of Planning and Development of his homeland. That same year he was selected among the "100 most promising leaders of tomorrow 'Forum in Davos (Young Global Leaders of Tomorrow).He was elected member of Dream Cabinet in 1999 and the Consultative Council of the Institute of the World Bank. With his little glasses and his smile, Tidjane convincing as Tony Blair. The British prime minister at the time chose to be a member of his Commission for Africa.

Back to Economics

In 2002, Tidjane closes the parenthesis policy by accepting a position with Aviva as director of strategy and development. He opts for the Great Britain said that "very tolerant and very open." Ambitious, Tidjane quickly climbed the ranks to become CEO of the biggest insurer in Britain. So when he decided to "downgrade" to the position of CFO at the competitor Prudential in September 2007, the new surprises. "This is not common.It almost never happens except when the directors of the divisions run much smaller, "says Gavin Hinks, British journalist. "Tidjane is obviously a very talented and ambitious. This is clearly someone who is being tipped for the top and should not remain very long time CFO.

The reporter was right. In October 2009, Tidjane becomes CEO of Prudential. He became the first passage to black to head a multinational FTSE 100. The City is also in love. So much so that she heartily applauded his promotion.

Today, the strategic choices of the Ecole Polytechnique are unanimously. The latest to Asia is no exception to the rule. Five months after his arrival at the head of Prudential, the group set out to conquer the biggest emerging market in the world.When Tidjane formalized the acquisition of Asian operations of AIG by a transaction colossal $ 35.5 billion, the news has excited all the financial centers of the United States to Asia via Europe. Incidentally, Prudential has also returned to profit in 2009, with a net profit of 676 million pounds (about 755 million euros) over the past year, against a loss of 396 million pounds (493 million euros ) a year earlier.

ALSO READ:

"Prudential bought the Asian operations of AIG