Thibaut Quetel
Head of Origination Belgium

Welcome to the 1st session of “Stories from the Ground“! In this edition, we are excited to have Thibaut Quetel, Head of Origination Belgium at Centrica Energy Trading with us. Thibaut will be sharing his experiences working with Centrica, and his collaboration with Artemys. As a sales manager, Thibaut is responsible for driving growth, building customer relationships and developing his team. Read on to discover his insights! 👉

Can you tell us about Centrica and what the company does?

Centrica is a large group with several entities, including British Gas, a well-known electricity and gas supplier in the UK. I work for Centrica Energy Trading, under the RET&O (Renewable Energy Trading & Optimisation) branch. In Belgium, we provide balancing services to Transmission System Operators (TSOs), where we are a balancing service provider to Elia, the Belgian TSO. We aggregate flexible power from industrial consumers, renewable developers, grid-scale batteries, and residential consumers into a virtual power plant, which is a pool of megawatts that can be activated by the TSO to balance the grid between consumption and generation. Our optimisation services are part of a larger division called Centrica Energy Trading, which is one of the leading renewable energy traders in Europe. We help clients optimise their flexible power while using those assets to keep the grid balanced and thus support the energy transition. 

Can you tell us about how your values align with the mission and vision of Centrica?

Centrica is focused on supporting the energy transition and reducing CO₂ emissions, which is something I feel strongly about. Additionally, Centrica is investing in renewable energy projects and exploring innovative technologies to reduce CO₂ emissions. Therefore, I am proud to work for a company that is making a positive impact on the world and contributing to a more sustainable future.

Can you explain your role at Centrica?

I’m a sales manager for Belgium. I lead a team that promotes flexibility service contracts to industrial consumers, renewable developers, hydrogen developers, and battery developers. My team and I work to convince clients to sign Optimisation service contracts with us and then use our services to make their operations more sustainable. 

It seems like you’ve had a progressive growth within the company. Can you tell us more about that?

I started as a sales officer in 2018. In 2021 the company decided to reorganise, and I was appointed as a sales manager for a series of products, then as the Head of Sales for Belgium. I have been able to grow within the company due to my commitment to our services, my strong belief in what we do, and maybe also my account management skills.

Looking ahead, where do you see Centrica’s role in the energy transition and CO₂ emissions reduction?

I believe that Centrica will continue to play a crucial role in supporting the energy transition and reducing CO₂ emissions. As the world becomes more aware of the need for sustainable energy and the requirement to keep the grid balanced, I see Centrica Energy Trading growing in this space and continuing to innovate to find new ways to reduce CO₂ emissions and support the energy transition.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

I do not have a specific career plan, but I would like to maintain a high-performance culture in my team and make sure Centrica Belgium continues to be recognised as one of the leaders and a trusted partner in optimisation services in Belgium. Also, potentially supporting Centrica Energy Trading in opening new countries as the technologies and services we offer become more relevant.

Can you tell us about your experience with Artemys? By the way, did you know that you were the first candidate that was recruited by Artemys?

Yes, but I didn’t know it at the time I was signing the contract, I found about it a little bit later…

I remember they approached me on LinkedIn. At that time, I was working in the consulting business, and I was receiving messages for similar jobs from recruiters several times a week. I had already decided that it was time to make some changes in my career and then I received a message from Loïc.

What made a difference with Artemys was that, first of all, without knowing my ambitions and plans, they were offering me a job that really made sense; it was a post in a new energy optimisation sector and I wasn’t even sure what our market would be, but the way the job offer was presented convinced me that it was something that would be beneficial for the climate and the environment.

And second, Loïc’s first email was super professional and very precise about the company, the job, and the role, and I remember my impression that I was contacted by a high-quality experienced head-hunter.

I could feel that they spent time understanding the nature and the scope of the job, the work environment, the objective, the business, and the market, and they could answer any of my questions; and in case they couldn’t, they always committed to look for the information and they always respected that commitment.  

That’s really very nice and inspiring to hear. And what can you say about the preparation and support for the interview? What is your experience in that respect?

Artemys had a very clear view of each step of the process and what the challenges would be. They prepared me well for each step of the interview process, and even advised me what the interviewer would be looking for in a candidate. I appreciated that they were able to provide me with enough information to prepare myself without trying to sell me absolutely to their client or help me as a candidate. Overall, their working strategy and approach made me take the opportunity very seriously and professionally prepare for each step of the recruitment process.

What about the follow-up during the recruitment process? And can you say a few words about how your relationship with Artemys developed over the years?

It’s a good question, and that’s what makes Artemys unique on the market. I’ve always been very impressed by the quality of the follow-up that Artemys provided. They were constantly challenging me as a candidate to ensure that they had higher quality candidates to present to their clients. After the interviews, they became my best ambassador to represent my interests toward my future employer, while helping me gain knowledge about the energy industry. Even after signing the contract, Artemys regularly called me to follow up and make sure that I was happy in the new position, and also to make sure that their client was satisfied with their new hire. I think as an external resource acquisition company, they mediate between the candidates, the ex-candidate, and the hiring managers of companies to ensure that everyone is satisfied, which is a very good thing.

As for your second question, after some time, four years to be more precise, I also became a client of Artemys, and the main reason I approached them when I became the hiring manager myself is that they have the industry expertise, they are knowledgeable about the energy and flexibility sector and its specificities, and I had no doubt that they would know exactly what type of candidate I needed.

As a previous candidate who has gone through the recruitment process with Artemys, do you have any tips on how we could improve our process?

I think Artemys’s strategy of positioning itself as an energy specialist is a great asset, and they should continue to do so. To further strengthen their DNA as energy talent acquisition specialists, they could consider organizing networking events to connect their huge pool of candidates and clients once a year. Additionally, I would suggest that Artemys should provide clients with a more detailed written report on candidates, in addition to their CV, explaining why a candidate was sourced and why they are a good fit for the position. This type of report would also help clients to quickly assess the quality of their candidates. Finally, I would encourage Artemys to maintain their high-quality service, which has been excellent.