THE SUPPLY CHAIN INTERVIEW

gility, empathy and foresight. These are the three qualities Vanessa Clemendot says are crucial to leadership. Having spent 25 years at L’ Oréal before moving to Sanofi as Global Head of Supply Chain, she is certainly talking from experience.

Vanessa joined the pharmaceutical and healthcare giant late in 2025 after spending a quarter of a century at L’ Oréal, where she held a host of prominent supply chain leadership roles across the group’ s four divisions in France, Canada and the US.

Her time at L’ Oréal culminated in her position as Chief Supply Chain Officer for North America, which involved looking after US $ 11bn in annual revenue and taking responsibility for the end-to-end management of the supply chain across all distribution channels.

Now, Vanessa is embracing a new challenge in a new sector – and in a new city, Paris, as she settles into her new role. From beauty to biopharma, it’ s a fascinating change – and“ embracing” is certainly the word for one of supply chain’ s most experienced leaders.

Vanessa Clemendot SVP, Global Head of Supply Chain Sanofi

“ The move to Sanofi represented a natural evolution,” Vanessa says.“ What attracted me most was the transformative purpose. In beauty, we helped people feel their best. In pharmaceuticals, we’ re saving lives every day. There’ s an urgency and meaning that’ s simply unique. Sanofi’ s global network – with more than 30 manufacturing sites, more than 100 distribution centres and complex regulatory requirements – represents an operational challenge that truly energises me.

“ Sanofi had built a solid foundation through its transformation journey, and my mission is to accelerate and re-invent the future of supply chain, integrating AI at full scale. Finally, Sanofi’ s culture –‘ Aim Higher, Act for Patients, Be Bold and Lead Together’ – aligns with my personal values and with how I believe leadership should operate. When purpose, ambition and culture come together like this, it’ s not just an opportunity, it’ s a calling.”

Human connections Supply chain is unrecognisable from when Vanessa entered through an internship while she was at college in the UK. She completed a Master’ s programme in Supply Chain and Logistics and then, when L’ Oréal came calling, she would end up staying for 25 years.

Now, having crossed the Atlantic from New York for Paris, Vanessa’ s day starts at 7.30am when she takes her children to school –“ it grounds me before the day takes off” – and business begins as she checks in with the Sanofi network.

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