At itk, we have one principle: being present to others, out of team spirit.
Every fortnight “Take a seat” gives the floor to the professional networks in which itk is involved.
They have energy to spare and we open their doors to you. Take a seat!
Today, Balkis Vicaire, Director of Vinseo answer our questions.
At what point in his development does a leader join Vinseo ?
Vinseo is a cluster, that is to say a “bunch” as in the vineyard, which federates companies providing solutions to winemakers and cellars, but also the actors of Research and Teaching specialized in the vine and wine in Occitania. Vinseo carries in its DNA two strong elements: network and innovation, one greatly feeding the other besides!
A manager or employee of a company joins Vinseo to energize its network and surround itself with experts in vineyards and wine, especially in the region. All our members have either their headquarters or part of their activity in Occitania. Because of the wide variety of profiles that make up our network, our goal is to grow our culture and values, but also the opportunities that our industry offers. The typology of the member organisations ranges from start-ups to large groups, including Tpes and Smes, from the world of vines to digital, including consultancy, services, wine cellar and packaging.
The exchanges bring conviviality and synergies, they sometimes lead to partnerships and the creation of common solutions. Much grey information, essential to stand out, is shared informally and yet decisive sometimes even between competitors! Links between structures that would never have crossed, friendly relations are created..
How relationship was established between itk and Vinseo ?
We can say that itk is fully committed: member since 2017 by its investment in the sector and in the Mas Numérique that hosts us, itk invested a lot of time and positive energy in the network! The dynamism of itk has made it possible to introduce and familiarise the wine world with digital solutions and innovation. Vinseo has benefited from the support of itk teams on multiple projects: the vinseo.com website, designed and maintained by itk, the organization and animation of international fairs such as SITEVI and Vinitech, Occitanie Innov in the region, seminars around the Wine tech… an overflowing activity!
itk is vice-president of Vinseo, which gives it a significant weight in the association which, thanks to itk, was able to get closer to the Occitanie Leader cluster.
This period is marked by the health crisis: What has changed for Vinseo?
After the shock, the network quickly moved to share as much information as possible, making it possible to navigate on sight without sinking: information on the virus of course, on the management of staff or accounting, on support devices at all levels… companies have played the game and given what they can to help each other and also participate in the collective effort by giving resources, equipment or team time to support medical devices.
We stayed connected, supported each other, and carried out an internal review to target the needs to be traced back to the public authorities in times of crisis. And this may be surprising, the biggest concern of our members was not their cash flow, but the health of the wine industry! The Leader Occitanie cluster has put its masks and gel commands at our disposal and we thank them.
Vinseo has thus grown in terms of solidarity and proved its usefulness as a network and finally, as a representative of a good part of the suppliers of the sector in Occitania.
Regarding the network, what trends do you see emerging?
Clearly, the trend is towards dematerialisation: we held – successfully – our General Assembly via videoconference, welcoming 90 participants and three representatives of our public partners: Irène Tolleret for the European Parliament, René Moreno for the Occitanie Region and Yvon Pellet for the Departmental Council of the Hérault, all three winemakers in the Hérault!
We are holding two commissions this week (Export and Digitech) via video conferencing, and we plan to create a virtual Vinseo show, which will reach a wider audience at Vinitech: a «hybrid show» finally, which will better showcase our members and their expertise.
So we are gaining in efficiency and in hearing, which is a positive consequence of the pandemic, which is worth highlighting.
Predict and Decide