At Work: Veronique Chayer

How did you first become involved in the NDT industry?

Like most people, I like to say that we stumble upon NDT. About 10 years ago, I was working in the mining industry and was headhunted to join Eddyfi. Throughout my career, I’ve worked primarily in B2B [business-to-business] and industrial settings. So, it was a happy stumble upon NDT, and it’s the one industry that I haven’t left after that “seven-year itch.”

You mentioned working in the mining industry. Are there other parts of your background that informed your NDT career?

I started my career in a fiber-optic sensing company that had dual applications. Life science was a big part of it, but the other part was monitoring pressure and temperature inside large power transformers in a heavily male-dominated industry. I also worked for the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Canada, overseeing the technological and educational partnership between Canada and Belgium. So, I’ve always been industry- and technology-focused, whether it’s bringing a solution to market or bringing programs to life.

Could you tell us more about your current work?

Most of the day is usually spent with colleagues from the sales team or, most often, from the product management teams. I like to say I have the best job in the world because I’m at the intersection of all these great products and innovations that are almost ready to be launched. I’m able to relay the voice of customers and their needs to the product teams, and then communicate to customers, “This is what we do, and here’s why it will have an impact on what you do.”

The day-to-day consists of go-to-market meetings, assessments, and industry feedback—what are the critical applications that have everybody talking, and how can we position what we do as a win-win for both sides? We develop products and solutions that are innovative, yes, but there’s always a purpose. It needs to fit within real life.

What do you see as some of the biggest challenges facing the industry?

We’re always hearing about the shrinking workforce and thinking through how we can address that. Yes, you can have more products and innovations that help the workforce we have right now, but we also need to make sure we position our industry as a viable career option. And we need to attract a workforce from so many different fields. We need the people who go out and deploy the technology and do the inspections, but we also need the software developers and programmers, and mechanical engineers and physics engineers, and the ultrasonics experts.

We also need to ensure we’re an inclusive environment. The NDT industry doesn’t have many women, and those that we have often leave. That shouldn’t happen. I think it’s changing, but we still need to work very hard and keep everybody accountable for it to work.

Do you have any professional milestones that you’re currently working toward?

I think I am entering my mentorship era. And I think it’s a great milestone because there is a lot of responsibility that comes with teaching. I’m slowly growing into a role that is more of a thought leader, leaving room for others.

Do you have a favorite quote or motto that you live by?

“Action is the foundational key to all success,” by Pablo Picasso.