Internships Abroad

Working for Coca Cola in France

A Michigan Student Experiences the French Workday

By Sharon L. Stebbins

The following is a day-in-the-life description of my internship experience at Coca Cola Midi outside of Toulon, France. A Chamberlain Fellowship from Kalamazoo College paid for half of my expenses while I worked and conducted research for my undergraduate thesis.

After a rich and satisfying breakfast of fromage blanc, muesli, and Provencal honey, my host mother drives me down to the small town of Le Beausset. The main street leads to Coca Cola Midi, and anyone who works at Coca Cola zooms by between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m.

They all know me at the plant—I’m the American college student doing a stage (internship) in the purchasing department in order to gather information on differences between the French and American workplace. This data, along with interviews of my colleagues, will eventually go into my undergraduate thesis for Kalamazoo College. So I stand at the corner, thumb out, and wait for a boxy Renault or Citroen with a Coca Cola parking sticker to pick me up.

After the ceremonial kiss on the cheeks, I thank today’s driver, a 20-something garçon, and fire up my French for the day. We talk about his dream of visiting the U.S., the differences between French and American cuisine, and how much he loves Motown music—still. Never does the subject of work arise. We ascend the Ste. Baume mountain chain and finally hit the secluded neighborhood of office buildings and the Coca Cola factory. Like at all good American companies, entrance is not permitted without one’s magnetized ID badge. I make my way up to the purchasing department on the first floor (the second floor to us Americans) and greet my co-workers with the French bisous (kiss). At first it seems too personal to be kissing my boss each morning before work. But soon it becomes routine and I find myself feeling like family with him and my colleagues. The set-up of our coffee area engenders this feeling as well: our desks, bulky and of dark wood, face each other in groups of two or three. They stretch down a long corridor with large glass windows at either end. The absence of cubicles and wall partitions add to the sense of a unified team.

Before switching on our PCs—the official start of the business day—we all drink strong French coffee from the community vending machine.

This morning I create an Excel spreadsheet in order to store records of production information—how much of secret ingredient A was purchased from supplier B, etc. The challenges arise when I hit a vocabulary roadblock. The French keyboard gives me daily challenges as well. I spend the rest of the morning doing some routine tasks such as helping Alan run a computer printout and proofreading some documents translated from French to English for Sylvie.

Lunch is at noon in the cafeteria. I eat the chicken plate today which is seasoned with herbes de Provence. I dine with two French women who are temporaries at “Coca.” They’re close to my age and have both spent time in the U.S. We all laugh over coffee in the lounge while swapping stories about our adventures abroad.

That afternoon I attend my department’s team meeting. During the meeting I’m asked if I’d be willing to help make the plant’s telephone message in English along with another woman who will say the same lines in French. Currently, the recording is in British English, but everyone agrees that it should be re-done in American English since the company’s headquarters are in the U.S.

The end of the day is spent with my interviewee, Lydie. She and I meet on a regular basis to discuss French business culture, gender differences within the work place, and her professional life in general. Today we discuss the hiring process she went through in order to work for Coca Cola. She informs me that most French employers require a writing sample from potential employees so that they can do a psychological analysis of their handwriting. The interviews are also very personal; she knows of people who have had to reveal their sexual preferences during interviews. Questions may be asked about marital status, parents’ or spouse’s occupations, and personal hobbies.

The day ends at 4:30 and my colleague, Valerie, drops me off in Le Beausset at Coca Cola corner. From here, I walk up the long, twisting drive to my host family’s house. In between the olivers (olive trees) and lavande (lavender), I reflect on a day’s work and anticipate an evening of leisure highlighted by un diner français delicieux.

SHARON L. STEBBINS' internship was part of a study abroad program sponsored by Kalamazoo College.