Starter in the spotlight: Angie Lateur
As human beings, we never stop growing. That's Angie Lateur's motto. From the start of her career, she has resolutely chosen environments where she was able to continue learning. That's how she ended up at KBC. She tells you more about it in this article.
So, Angie, what did you study?
I took a Master's degree in Criminology, which included financial and economic crime. That degree qualifies you for several jobs in the civil service, but I was advised to consider the private sector as well. So I did.
I found two vacancies on LinkedIn for jobs in compliance at KBC, and decided to apply for both. I was successful, and I was fairly quickly able to start working as a Compliance Monitoring Officer in the Group Compliance department.
What exactly does your job entail?
I check the extent to which our business activities are compliant with all regulations. In my team, we focus on regulations governing conflicts of interest, complaints handling, greenwashing, sustainability policies and GDPR implementation.
To take the latter as an example, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was translated into internal rules by our compliance advisers at the time. As a company, how do we ensure that we don’t infringe the new regulations? What do we need to do differently from now on? My role is to check that those changes are implemented properly and that we adhere to the GDPR rules in everything we do.
Compliance is a very interesting field at the moment. There is a lot coming our way. There’s the AI Act, for example, which seeks to create a legal framework around artificial intelligence, and new regulations around Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG).
How did your job application process go?
I had an initial conversation - with my current manager - in which I was given more information about compliance in general. Then the Compliance Monitoring Officer who is now my immediate colleague told me more about the job itself. So I had already received a thorough introduction even before taking part in the assessment, which was the next step in the process.
I appreciated the fact that they took the time to get to know me better. They didn’t just look at my knowledge and competences on paper, but also at who I am as a person. I have a wide range of interests and I am keen to keep learning throughout my career. So we’re a good match, because personal development is very important for KBC.
Why did you choose this job at KBC?
During my interviews, I became convinced that everything about it was right for me. A bank bears a certain responsibility to society. Banking is about much more than numbers - as a consumer, you need to be able to trust your bank. What KBC is doing to earn that trust appeals to me. I wouldn’t have applied to just any bank. It’s also intellectually challenging because reconciling regulations and business is not always straightforward.
As well as training opportunities, there are also exceptional on-the-job learning opportunities at KBC. Because KBC is a large organisation with international entities, I can learn things here that you don't learn everywhere. A whole new world opened up for me within a short space of time.
How is your work-life balance?
Sometimes my job is 9-to-5, sometimes not. I am given the freedom and trust to take on my own responsibilities. Working from a different head office or working from home is perfectly fine, as long as I work in the same office as my immediate colleagues for one or two days a week. Overall, my work-life balance is good.
Did you quickly find your place in your team?
Absolutely; I was given a warm welcome. I get on well with the only direct colleague in my team who has exactly the same job title as me. He will be retiring in three years and I am only six months into the job, but we are learning from each other. It's really nice that he takes me seriously while also providing support.
Our managers are attentive to the team dynamics. For example, they recently organised a workshop on collaboration. There is great diversity within the Group Compliance department, both in terms of different generations and diverse cultural backgrounds. It was extremely valuable to learn about each other and to be given tips on how to work together even more seamlessly.
