Inside EUMETSAT - meet Sophia
Get to know us a little better
This week we’re happy to introduce you to Sophia Michel! Sophia works as Secretary/Administrative Assistant within the Legal Affairs Division (LAD) at EUMETSAT.
We sat down for a chat to ask about her role - see what she had to say!
Can you explain your role to us?
I should maybe start by giving an explanation as to what the mission of the Legal Affairs Division is. We provide legal advice and services to the organisation and monitor, develop and implement EUMETSAT’s Data Policy. LAD monitors all major EUMETSAT legal documents and supports the establishment of documents with legal relevance, such as data exchange agreements and cooperation agreements for satellite programmes. LAD also provides advice to Delegate Bodies, Senior Management and Staff on legal issues. Additionally, we also organise the meetings of the Data Policy Group (DPG) and monitor the Licensing Schemes for EUMETSAT data and products.
I assist all of the LAD team members and support them with their daily tasks, including managing the paperwork for the division which involves mail registration (all documents including letters, memos etc. need to be registered within an internal registration tool and further distributed to the respective colleagues). Furthermore, I need to make sure that this documentation is saved electronically (in our internal document management tool).
There’s also lots of filing involved (both electronically and in hard copy), following up on correspondence, providing regular updates on the LAD intranet pages and divisional travel arrangements (booking of flights, trains or hotels, meeting registration and approval processes).
I also organise some of the meetings with internal/external partners (including the booking and setting up of meeting rooms, preparation of slides or handouts etc.) and support the organisation of the EUMETSAT Data Policy Meetings by preparing the invitations, creating the list of participants, organising social events etc.
There’s also some calendar monitoring involved for the Head of the division, which includes the monitoring of appointments and points of contact for internal/external enquiries - generally having an overview of the calendar and providing reminders on deadlines or meetings. There’s definitely a wide range of tasks I take care of for the team!
Do you complete the same tasks each day?
There are certain tasks that I take care of each day, though there are always some spontaneous things that pop up and I need to take care of them too as and when they arrive.
How long have you been working at EUMETSAT?
I started initially as a temporary employee in 2016. Then, a staff position became available to which I applied and I was very happy to be chosen for the role, which I’ve been in for seven months now. So around two and a half years in total.
How many people are on your team?
There are eight people on the team, including myself. Apart from me there is one other secretary and we take care of the tasks between us.
Do you come from Darmstadt or nearby?
I’m actually from Fulda, a small city which is approximately 1.5 hours away by car. When I first started as a temp I moved in with my cousin who lived here, but now I have my own place in Darmstadt.
What were you doing before you joined EUMETSAT?
This is actually my first job after my apprenticeship. I studied in Fulda to become a secretary for foreign languages.
What would you say are the main challenges and things you enjoy about the job?
I really enjoy working in this environment, it’s very interesting and varied. There are a lot of things to learn and, although I’ve been here for more than two years now, I’m still learning something new every day. It can be challenging at times because there are some areas I haven’t experienced before or am not trained in, so it means a lot of self-learning and asking questions.
Do you need a background in this field or do you need to have legal knowledge to do the job?
A secretarial qualification is required but knowledge of law is not needed for the secretaries, however it is of course helpful to be interested in the work of the Division to learn more about some of the topics, because it will make things a lot easier in the long run.
What do you like most about working at EUMETSAT?
It’s such a special environment. To be honest, I would never have imagined working for a satellite organisation a few years ago! It was all very new to me and I’m happy to be learning so much every day.
What do you like to do outside of work?
I like to meet friends and go out and I recently started doing some fitness again. I also enjoy hiking and have plenty of opportunities to do as there are many beautiful places I can go to nearby. I also really like playing pool - but I’m in no way a professional! However it’s something fun I enjoy doing with friends.
Do you have any memorable moments from your time here at EUMETSAT?
I can imagine there’s quite a lot but the most impressive moment for me was when I attended the Sentinel-3 launch, that was really nice. I’ve actually never seen a rocket launch! I was really impressed and enjoyed the energy in the room - everybody was sitting nervously waiting to see if the launch would be a success, it was a very special moment.
