Bernard started his career in 1969 with The Boston Consulting Group in the Boston and Paris offices. He joined Telemecanique (Schneider Electric Group) in 1975 as Vice President, Corporate Strategy and became VP/General Manager of the Switch Gear division in 1978 and of the Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) division in 1988. In 1994, he joined the management board of AEG Schneider Automation (Schneider Electric Group) as Executive VP, Worldwide Sales and Marketing.

Bernard moved to Chicago in 1997 for Square D/Schneider Electric as Senior VP/General Manager of Schneider Global Business Development (SGBD), the entity managing global strategic accounts (GSAs) for Schneider Electric worldwide. That year, SGBD was managing 24 GSAs, driving $180 million of consolidated sales. By 2001, the entity was managing 74 GSAs with over a billion dollars of consolidated sales. The compounded growth of Schneider Electric sales at GSAs was twice the average growth rate of the total company. Strategic Account Management at Schneider Electric was recognized by the organization and its competitors as a major competitive advantage. "Bernard's wealth of knowledge, experience and engaging style will be a true asset to SAMA and under his leadership we look forward to a bright future," states Rosemary Heneghan, Chairperson of the Board.

Retired from Schneider Electric since March 2005, Bernard is president of the French American Chamber of Commerce in Chicago, a permanent Chicago resident and also a native of France. Bernard holds a BS degree in electrical engineering from the University of Paris and an MBA from the University of Chicago.