Laurent Melin to Become SVP Sales at PI
As of January 1, 2024, Laurent Melin will head PI’s Global Sales division as Senior Vice President (SVP) Sales, reporting to Florian Geistdörfer, Chief Operating Officer. In his new role, Laurent Melin will succeed Stephane Bussa, Chief Sales Officer, who will leave the PI Group at the end of the year at his own request.
With more than twenty-five years of professional experience, Laurent Melin has held various positions in project management at the American subcontractor Solectron, as well as in direct recruitment at Michael Page. Over the past twenty years, however, he found his way in Sales Management: first, as Inside Sales Manager and then as Distribution Sales Manager EMEA within the Keithley/Tektronix Group from 2004 to 2011. In 2011, Laurent Melin joined the Polytec Group to take over management of the French subsidiary which he transformed into a profitable and growing entity. Mid-2022, he joined the PI Group as Director Sales EMEA, where he managed subsidiaries as well as a distribution network.
Stéphane Bussa has been a key contributor to PI’s success for many years and he leaves behind big shoes to fill. I am therefore particularly pleased, that we staffed this key position with such a high-caliber candidate from within the Group and thereby ensure continuity both for our customers and internally. Laurent Melin brings proven industry expertise in our target markets coupled with extensive international management experience. His customer-oriented mindset, positive attitude, and holistic approach make him stand out. Laurent will be a great asset to the Group in his new function and I am looking forward to working even closer with him.
The new SVP Sales sees his focus on expanding OEM business with solutions from the three PI areas of expertise: nanopositioning, piezo technology, and performance automation. He plans to support PI customers in the core segments and to develop and scale innovations.
According to Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s quotation “As for the future, your task is not to foresee it, but to enable it,” I see our competences as inspirational drivers for supporting our customers to innovate. I see innovation as a sustainable partnership with our customers, collaborating with passion and the ability to act as quickly as possible. I see transformation as an opportunity, and I thrive to involve our customers in this concept.
Laurent Melin lives in the Paris region, is married, and has two children aged twenty and seventeen. He holds a master’s degree in Global Management from the Paris-Dauphine University and is certified with the Conceptual Selling® and Strategic Selling® modules according to Miller and Heiman. He describes himself as a “Wei Ji addict”, always seeing opportunities in difficulties!
New Director of Sales EMEA
Erik Reichardt, who currently holds the position as Head of Country - Netherlands, will additionally take over the role of Director Sales EMEA as of January 1, 2024, reporting to Laurent Melin. At the beginning of next year, his focus will initially be fully dedicated to his responsibilities in the Benelux region, ensuring a smooth continuation of the Benelux’ activities. As PI Netherlands progresses, he will gradually shift his priorities to fully integrate himself into the EMEA role.
I am looking forward to taking on the new role of Director Sales EMEA, as well as keeping my current position as Head of Country - Netherlands. While I am excited to take on this new challenge, I can assure you that my commitment to my current role remains unwavering. As Director EMEA, it is important for me to have a long-term view and focus on growing our OEM business. This requires a solid team, transparency, and a good level of trust. We have a great foundation and I look forward to continuing to work on that!
Read the full press release here.
Contact person: Florian Geistdörfer, Chief Operating Officer