What brought you to RICARDO?
The story goes that I wrote three letters of intent for three separate jobs at RICARDO, but I never sent any of them. After completing a degree in copy writing and another in web project management, I wanted to work as a copy writer, but life took me on another path. I ended up meeting Mireille Arteau, who is now RICARDO’s General Manager, and I joined her to work for another employer. She was hired by RICARDO before me, then called me later on to ask me to come work with the digital team. I accepted and, shortly after, I was offered the position of Digital Director. I now have the job of my dreams. This is where my two passions—food and the Web—meet.
You’ve been living in Norway since last summer with your family, while continuing to work remotely. How did this project come about?
Travelling and tackling challenges are important aspects of my life. In 2022, I even participated in the Rose Trip trek, in Morocco to test my limits. This time, the idea came from Quebec friends who have been living in Norway for work. Their experience was tempting and we decided to move there temporarily with our two children. My son and my daughter attend an international school where they rub shoulders with children from 45 different countries. Living in Norway also allows us to travel elsewhere in Europe easily during our holidays.
How do you reconcile your personal life experience with your professional life?
It wouldn’t have been possible without help from the RICARDO team. First, the company agreed to let me take this trip abroad as a pilot project. Then all of my colleagues in the management and coordination teams adjusted the schedules and project meetings so that the time zone difference wouldn’t affect our work.
I like the pace imposed by distance. In the morning here, when everyone is still asleep in Quebec, I work on tasks that require a lot of concentration, while my afternoons are filled with meetings with my colleagues.
What made this experience such a success?
The pandemic paved the way for this project. As we say, “Never let a good crisis go to waste.” During the pandemic, all the tools necessary to ensure that projects would be well-managed remotely had been implemented. These communication tools really made working from abroad easy. I still jot down meetings in my schedule simply to “chat” with my team, as I don’t have the chance to run into them at the office or work in close proximity with my colleagues anymore.
What’s the most important project you’ve worked on?
My RICARDO+ is both the biggest and the most stimulating project I’ve worked on. We started working on this project in 2019, a year after I joined the company. We’ve re-engineered a number of functionalities on ricardocuisine.com and developed a smart search engine for recipe recommendations, based on the user’s search history, to offer personalized suggestions. Our goal was really to improve our website’s experience and to make life easier for people who cook. It required a lot of digital innovation from our partners and our team to bring this colossal project to fruition. Everything was new and it was incredibly exciting to work on it.
How do you manage to remain creative at work?
I’m a fairly rational person, so my creativity shines mostly when I apply it to solve problems. Sometimes, my work is like a jigsaw puzzle I have to put together and I find that very invigorating. Otherwise, my everyday life involves a lot of strategic reading and thinking. The wheel is constantly turning in my head. I’m always thinking about the projects I’m working on. A good idea can spring up during a hike or while I’m making dinner!
The strength of RICARDO Media comes from people, like Julie, who bring their passion and experience to the company. To check job offers and opportunities with us, click here.