By Chi Yan Ng

Did you know that the Red Door Centre, the Multi-Purpose Pitch and the Primary Specialist Centre were not part of the original Renaissance College campus? These facilities were built in later years to elevate the wellbeing of the student and staff body and represent the diverse cultures present at RCHK. But without the crucial input of Mr Samuel Hureau, our school’s Business Manager, these projects would not have gotten off the ground!

Mr Hureau was born and raised in France and, for the past 11 years, has been our school’s Business Manager! Prior to joining the school, he worked non-school occupations in France and the United States — but his last job was in a similar position at the French International School in Hong Kong. However, after an eventful tenure at RCHK, he will sadly depart us for greener pastures. I recently had the opportunity to interview him, and he reflected on his endeavours at RCHK and how they compared to his past jobs.

Because Mr Hureau often works behind the scenes, the wider school community often underappreciates his role and duties. As the Business Manager at RC, his job entails running the school from a logistics or finance perspective, including various aspects of the school apart from teaching, such as admissions, communications, staff payroll and cooperating with outside staff (cafeteria, blue team).

“It’s a big responsibility, but luckily, I have several staff members on my team to help me. As for working hours, I usually work 8:00-18:30 on school days (Monday through Friday), and sometimes on Saturdays as well,” Mr Hureau says.

To him, one of the most notable parts of RCHK was its changes since he first arrived. “I was able to oversee the construction of the Red Door Centre, Multi-Purpose Pitch, and Specialist Centre,” he notes.

“RCHK is considered a middle-class school within Hong Kong — in a good way — where parents put in an appropriate amount of money in ratio to their income. This gives us the responsibility to provide the best education possible to their children.”

When asked what he will miss about both RCHK and Hong Kong, he responded with “the spirit of Hong Kong” and described the city as a “vibrant territory, with more than just a city — it has beaches, forests and more beautiful scenery.” In addition, “having English breakfast with coffee outdoors in Sai Kung on a Saturday morning and greeting nearby teachers” was a unique perk of Hong Kong that brought many memories. He added that he would also miss “seeing parents, students and teachers being thrilled” with the outcome of his work.

“It comes from a combination of academic success, wellbeing and enjoyment. For example, the recent Year 11 (MYP) graduation was really nice to see because everyone was really happy.”

For those who wish to pursue careers similar to Mr. Hureau, here is his advice: “Firstly, go to university and study business administration. [Knowing languages] is also important, especially if you wish to work overseas. You may not be accepted for a job if you don’t speak their language. I went through this experience as I had only spoken French previously and had to learn English.” He also places emphasis on the workplace: “As a boss, you want to be empathetic, flexible and nice, employees can be more loyal to you in the long-term.”

Mr Hureau expresses that he will miss the “spirit of Hong Kong as it’s a vibrant and busy place”. His final words for the RCHK community are “I’ll be back” (The Terminator, 1984).

In return, we would like to thank Mr Hureau for his hard work and countless contributions to the development of our school over the past decade. We wish him all the best with his new job and life in Belgium!