Societe Generale has poached Claire Calmejane from Lloyds Banking Group to spearhead the French bank's innovation programme.
An IT engineer, Calmejane began her career in 2006 in the Technology Transformation department of Capgemini Consulting. Recruited in 2012 by Lloyds Banking Group, as head of digital delivery, she was eventually appointed innovation director and set up the Innovation Labs and the Digital Academy. She has also been an outspoken campaigner on the gender diversity debate in banking.
At SocGen, Calmejane's mission will be to foster the innovation culture and identify new business developments and services for customers. She will be in charge of driving the venturing efforts in internal and external startups, identifying relevant market trends, developing partnerships beyond banking, and harnessing disruptive innovationss from emerging technologies.
SocGen in November announced a three-year plan to cut 900 jobs and close 300 branches while dedicating EUR150m to "disruptive innovation projects", which will be achieved through equity investments in startup businesses.