Resilience and ethics to survive in the financial world
“Passion, commitment to excellence, creativity, hard work. I have learned to take my job seriously without taking myself (too) seriously.” Virginie Morgon worked for years at Eurazeo, of which she was CEO until February 2023, after a record career in the French financial world. Newspapers and TV called her, not surprisingly, the Queen of Finance. Today she is Co-Chair of the Paris Committee of Human Rights Watch and sits on the board of L’Oreal.
Her story stems from a great passion for numbers and the desire to constantly improve. After completing her studies at Sciences Po University and earning a Master’s degree at Bocconi, she was offered an internship at Lazard in New York in 1991. “I spent 17 years there,” she says, “and that’s where I shored up my skills and developed my professional network. I had the privilege of leading high-profile projects, including the privatization of Renault and France Telecom, the defense of companies like Air Liquide and Danone from hostile takeovers, and collaborating on deals in the consumer, industrial and retail sectors.”
In 2007, she made the decision to leave Lazard and join Eurazeo, thanks to a lunch with friend and mentor Patrick Sayer. And with that, Morgon switched from consultancy roles to handling private equity investments. In her words: “Today I take pride in selecting entrepreneurs, visionary projects, and promising companies, providing them with the necessary financial support and guiding them towards realizing their full potential.”
When speaking of her work, to include her involvement in the Human Rights Watch, she explains that she loves the opportunity to create diverse teams. “Diversity is essential to foster creativity, improve decision-making, and achieve superior performance. I love the dynamism of a team working cohesively towards a shared goal and the collective impact it generates. Leading the company for the past five years has also been a unique and rewarding challenge. Setting strategic goals, working methodically with the team to achieve them, and remaining a leader in a competitive industry are all elements that give me a sense of fulfilment.”
Morgon explains that surviving in the fast-paced world of finance requires both physical and mental resilience and a strong work ethic. “You need to work and take care of yourself like an athlete. Plus, of course, deep industry knowledge and financial skills to make sound, strategic decisions,” she adds.
She also emphasizes the importance of refusing to accept injustice. “I could tell countless anecdotes, some amusing and some humiliating, from being mistaken for an assistant during meetings, to being called by my first name instead of my last name like my male colleagues. These experiences reflect women’s constant struggle to achieve leadership roles. The essential response to these situations is to defend one’s values of equality and to insist on fair treatment.” Which is exactly what she did. “When I found out that my male colleagues, with the same title and position, were getting paid more than me, I offered my resignation and the situation changed. Inequality must not be tolerated, especially in management positions.”
Her advice to younger women: “Don’t get in your own way – dream big and work hard. Live life to the fullest. I sincerely believe that women can have it all, without compromising their values.”
