CULTURE, LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNICATION / Laura Bello Urbina

After finishing her programs of study in Psychology she joined a business head hunter, where she became passionate about the world of Human Resources. After traveling and gathering professional experience she was appointed in 2009 as HR Business Partner for Spain, Portugal and Italy at Google, being one of the few people appointed by the business for Europe, who were at that time a startup that was beginning to grow. This allowed her to make processes from scratch and accumulate a lot of knowledge.

She now leads, for the last 6 years, the human resources area at L'Oreal Spain. A business subsidiary of the L'Oreal group , issue 1 brand in beauty, with more than 36 integrated brands, and a workforce that reaches 2500 employees in the country.

Because of her interesting experience, she was invited to the master sessions of the cycle "My experience managing people", organized by the MDPO. Mireia Vidal began the session stating that more than a presentation she wanted questions from the audience. Her empathy allowed the students to direct her intervention and to know in depth the path that is needed to reach a position like hers, of which I highlight some below.

What has been your biggest professional challenge ?

One of my biggest professional challenges was my first year at Google, for two reasons: one, the English language, the way workers in the United States speak, which made communication complex, and two, the way of work , which I was not used to. There were days when I would come home feeling 'dumb', but this was largely due to the fact that Google is a business of constant change and there are many differences between HR management in Europe and the United States, so it was very difficult for me to get used to the new way of working.

Inevitably, there were no culture clashes. For example, European legislation made it difficult to do many processes that in the United States were done without any problem. It was necessary to learn intercultural management in a technological, cultural and startup context, which was Google at that time.

What did you learn from this challenge?

How important it is to use common sense and to unlearn. I came from a pharmaceutical business where the processes were very structured, which taught me that sometimes experience can be contaminating and the worst thing you can do is to duplicate what you have learned when you come to a new business . Each business is like a country and has its own culture. Also, the experience I had in a small head-hunter business , at the beginning of my professional degree program , gave me the tools to assume what it meant to be in the training a business like Google and to make processes from scratch.

What does it take to become an entrepreneur?

Entrepreneurship means using common sense, being in a hurry and a lot of desire.

What is it like to work for L'Oreal?

It requires a lot of work, but it is very rich and interesting. L'oreal is a business immersed in a very competitive world, but it can say that it is the issue 1 in beauty. We have earned this position through the efforts of all our employees and by focusing on intrapreneurship, innovation and digital transformation.

One of our differentiators is being a beauty tech, which makes use of technology to improve processes. For example, right now, we are moving towards artificial intelligence and augmented reality so that our customers can try products at home.

How has L'Oreal been affected by the pandemic?

Despite the losses the pandemic has meant for everyone, L'Oreal is a strong group . During the pandemic, our E-commerce channel has been the fastest growing, so our current efforts are focused there. On the other hand, we are choosing to train our employees in digitalization rather than laying them off.  

Another aspect is flexibility. The pandemic has confirmed that we want to maintain a hybrid model between telecommuting and on-site.

What advice would you give to those who are applying for internships?

The most important thing is to study the business, to know about its culture, the consumers and to get a clear idea of the place where I am going to be. In addition, it is essential to understand the business, because HR is part of it. Finally, don't forget to ask questions about the company to find out what is there that can be useful to me. You have to be honest with what a business can or cannot bring you, because not all of us fit in the same.