Sergeant Manon

Manon wears her “cyberdefence” badge proudly. Photo credit: Sgt Lou

What is a 22-year-old former jazz dancer from Reunion, who used to struggle against authority and who suffers from vertigo, doing in the army? Manon laughs, well aware that her career path so far may seem improbable. “It’s true that when I first heard that I had to do a commando initiation course I was really worried. I mean, I get dizzy just standing on a table so I thought I’d never manage! But in fact, the military environment makes you surpass yourself all the time,” she remarks.

Proud at her achievement, she explains that although it may seem surprising, her years of dancing modern jazz, "taught me to really know and master my body and that was a really big help, particularly for this commando course.”

““You should not underestimate your physical and mental capacities” ”

Today its mostly her fingers that dance... on computer keyboards because Manon has become a cyber defence specialist at the 807th Signals Company. “I’m a Supervisor, which in civilian life is equivalent to a SOC (Security Operations Centre) analyst operator. That means my job is to monitor the IT system in the broad sense in order to detect all suspicious or malicious activities on our networks and systems.”

These cyberdefence experts are also deployed with the French army wherever it is operating abroad.

She explains that in her job "we all have different skills that complement each other in order to achieve an end goal. We learn a lot from each other. We’re a big family.” Manon has known most of her colleagues since they were all studying for their technical certificate (the BTS) and then at the Signals School (ETRS) in Rennes. She was the only girl there among 26 students but never suffered from harassment or sexism. "They treated me like their little sister, except when they had personal issues and came to me seeking advice as though I was their mother," she laughs.

Today she is one of four women in her company of 73 people, “but there are also women in other companies. So if I feel the need to chat with another girl, there's always one around.”

Nobody else in her family is in the military, "but I’d been interested in the army since lycée (high school) where I passed my SVT (life and earth sciences) baccalaureate.” A meeting with the retired major who was coaching her father in combat sports was decisive. She’d come along at first just to watch the lessons before deciding to join in, which gave the major an opportunity to talk to her about the army. "He was the one who suggested I might be interested in doing a digital systems, computer science and networks BTS [equivalent to the UK’s BTEC Higher National Diploma] and as I'm very curious and I was young, I thought I’d try, see if I liked it.”

But this could only be done in continental France. “Anyway I’d already warned my parents that I would not stay in Reunion after my baccalaureate. I love going back there but it's an island, it's small and the career choices for young people are very limited.” So at 18 she landed in Paris. “It was really tough for the first few weeks. But it was my decision, my choice.”

There were four other girls in her class of 34 studying for the BTS. "But by the second year, there were only two of us left," she regrets. With the BTS in hand, she chose to join the army and entered the National School of Active Non-Commissioned Officers in Saint Maixent where she spent eight months acquiring military fundamentals. "I was a rambunctious teenager and thought I’d have a hard time with authority, but in the end it was not at all what I imagined and I quickly fitted into the environment," she smiles, adding that "it has to be like that to keep the system well-oiled." Now that she's the one giving orders, she realises that "if I give an order it's not because I don't want to do whatever it is myself but to make the system work".

Manon has no intention, in the immediate future at least, of sitting the exam to become an officer. "I’m not interested in management, I'm passionate about technology. That’s why, in the near future, I want to do an analyst course and gain responsibility or switch to auditing. The army gives me lots of possibilities to evolve.”

An engagement ring shines on her left hand. Her fiancé is also a soldier, but deployed at the other end of France. They nevertheless manage to see each other almost every weekend. They have no home, each living in military housing. "It's a bit complicated," she admits, but they have to do make do. As she’s still not very familiar with continental France and loves to travel, Manon arranges to meet up with her partner in a different city almost every weekend so they can discover them together. But she concedes that this way of life cannot last forever.

Manon was an enthusiastic modern jazz dancer back home in Reunion. Photo credit: personal photo

Manon is clearly thoroughly enjoying herself and that reassures her family who were a little worried when she signed up. She explains that having fun and being a soldier are not incompatible. "We're serious when we have to be, and we also have great camaraderie. It’s the right balance between rigour and flexibility,” she notes.

She signed an eight-year contract but hints that she’d like to continue her military career beyond that. "I think it’s important to emphasise two points for young women who think that the army is not for them: first, you should not underestimate your physical and mental capacities and, second, the military environment will not affect your femininity.”

She adds that since joining the army "I’ve learned a lot about myself and, most importantly, I’m happy coming to work every morning.”