Meet Kevin Carpentier – Business Unit Manager at Bekina Compounds

Today we’re turning the spotlight on Kevin Carpentier, Business Unit Manager at Bekina Compounds. Kevin joined us in May 2020 and has now been part of the Bekina family for more than five years. Learn more about his role at Bekina Compounds, what attracted him to the company and a special project he’d particularly proud of.

I started here five years ago, in the middle of Covid. Meeting colleagues while wearing face masks was certainly unusual, but I was mostly grateful to be able to come to work every day. I joined Bekina Compounds as a Production Manager and recently moved into the role of Business Unit Manager – an opportunity I seized without hesitation.   

In short, I oversee our business unit, Bekina Compounds, and am ultimately responsible for the entire chain from production to sales: from A to Z. My work is incredibly diverse: I define production policy, manage our key accounts with sales and prospect new customers. I also work closely with our Logistics Manager on purchases and proactively seek new suppliers, often leading negotiations myself. Project management is also a major focus. For new projects and investments, I ensure that the right people are in the right positions so that we can perform at our best as a team. As P&L lead, I report directly to the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors. Lastly, I take a helicopter view of the bigger picture, ensuring everything fits with our corporate strategy. 

I used to work in Antwerp, but spending at least three hours a day commuting from Kuurne made me reconsider my options. I was already familiar with Bekina from my previous employer and had visited a few times, leaving with a positive impression. When a headhunter contacted me about an open position as Production Manager at Bekina Compounds, I didn’t hesitate for a second. From my very first interviews, I felt a strong connection. What also attracted me was the variety within Bekina’s different business units. Moving from a multinational company to an SME also brought many benefits. Decision lines are much shorter, allowing us to take action more quickly on important decisions and investments. 

Without a doubt, the switch to SAP. As a key user, we spent a year preparing for this, and when we finally launched our first production order and saw the first transactions go through, it was magical. It was such a rewarding experience because we had reached our goal. I am pretty proud of where we are with this today. Those who joined our team later may not fully realize just how big an impact this shift had at the time. It brought many advantages, such as better reporting, improved warehouse structure through batch management, precise production tracking, and a smooth production planning process with real-time updates. 

I think we can be very proud of where we are today with Bekina Compounds. There’s an incredible sense of camaraderie and teamwork on the shop floor, combined with a strong work ethic that makes for a close-knit and high-performing team. Year after year, we continue to achieve strong results, and we’ll keep striving for that success. Personally, I’m still most proud of our SAP implementation. After that, I had to take a leave of absence due to health reasons, but what I truly appreciate about Bekina is their human approach. HR Manager David Dessers kept in touch with me throughout my absence, and when I returned, the company did everything to help me reintegrate and gave me new opportunities to grow. That says so much about the corporate culture here. 

The diversity – every day is different. One of the things I value most about my current role is the helicopter view it gives me. I’m no longer directly responsible for day-to-day production operations, but I’m still very much involved. I wake up and go to bed with the responsibility of leading Bekina Compounds, and in a way, it feels like ‘my’ business unit.  When I get to report the results we achieve together as a motivated team, I feel incredibly proud. 

At Bekina there is room for self-development – you get real opportunities here. I also really appreciate the company’s commitment to sustainability, something that has always been a priority under the leadership of our owner, Thomas Vanderbeke.  The extra benefits and initiatives also add great value, such as game nights and the free fruit provided for employees. Bekina has an open door policy, which means you can reach out to anyone. While the business units are technically separate, in practice, we work very closely together.  I often get approached by colleagues from other units for discussions on various topics, and that collaboration is really rewarding.

Definitely! Bekina is a company with a lot of growth potential and offers opportunities to anyone who wants to grow. This isn’t a typical 9-to-5 job – it’s dynamic and fast-paced. If you feel that you wouldn’t thrive in a corporate multinational environment but would prefer an SME setting, I’d definitely recommend making the switch to Bekina. I still enjoy working here just as much as I did when I first started. 

Would you like to be part of the Bekina family like Kevin? Then take a look at the Bekina job page and who knows, maybe we’ll meet soon!