Rachel Picard

About Rachel Picard

Rachel Picard is a French executive widely recognized for her long-standing experience in transport, travel, and mobility, as well as for her strong background in listed-company governance. A graduate of HEC Paris, she began her career in 1988 as deputy sales manager at Valle Nevado, a ski resort in Chile. She then worked at Euro Disney and later joined Frantour, where she held successive roles in marketing, communications, and European tour-operating. These early roles gave her a solid commercial and operational foundation in customer-facing, highly competitive environments. In 2000, she became Chief Executive Officer of Atlas Voyages. She joined SNCF in 2004 as Deputy Chief Executive Officer and later served as Chief Executive Officer of Voyages-SNCF.com from 2007 to 2010. From 2010 to 2012, she was Chief Executive Officer of Thomas Cook France. She then led SNCF Gares & Connexions from 2012 to 2014 and became Chief Executive Officer of SNCF Voyages (TGV) from 2014 to 2020. Across these roles, she managed complex, investment-intensive businesses operating in sectors shaped by digital transformation, customer experience, network efficiency, and operational excellence. Beyond executive management, Rachel Picard has built a strong profile as a board member. She joined Criteo’s Board of Directors in 2017 and became Chairwoman in 2020, underscoring her ability to support strategic oversight in a global technology company. At AXA, she serves as an independent director and is a member of the Compensation, Governance & Sustainability Committee, contributing to discussions on leadership succession, remuneration policy, governance standards, and ESG oversight. Her career reflects a rare combination of operational leadership, sectoral breadth, and board-level expertise, making her a notable figure in French corporate governance.