The Adventure in Continental Sibiu
1. How did the journey with Continental Sibiu begin?
The adventure in Continental Sibiu started on September 5th, 2011, when as a student I was offered the opportunity for a part time job in the Labeling Team. I was a year 2 student at the time, and I was very proud that on the one hand I was the only student working for such a prestigious company, and on the other hand I always wanted to be independent. Once the job was obtained, this wish was fulfilled.
I remember the excitement of the first few weeks when everything was new and so different from everything was new and so different from everything that the school prepared me for, but I was lucky with a very friendly environment, most of my colleagues being students too, integration was very easy thanks to them.
And for the beginning to be perfect, at the time I got hired, I was the 500th employee in the research and development center, a moment marked by a short meeting with Liviu Balan (R&D manager) and a personalized Continental gift. For me, as a student, this moment will remain in my memory as a very special moment that I have always been proud of.
2. The challenges and lessons you have learned during this period.
The first challenge that I would mention and that I think has happened to all of us – adapting to the professional environment for which, unfortunately, the school does not prepare us very much. Another challenge that I would mention is to accept the possibility of making mistakes and overcoming the fear of being judged, and this challenge has also become a lesson at the same time – that mistake is part of the learning process and is inevitable at certain times, and ver time I have learned that its is not about the mistake but about accumulating information that step by step leads you to the desired end point. The confidence in my own resources that has always been instilled in me through accountability, freedom to act, specific trainings both technical and personal development, is another lesson that I consider very important. Then each project brought its specific challenges, which we overcame by applying methods learned from previous experiences, but also by trying new methods continuously, and when needed, the team we were part of offered support. So teamwork that brings progress is another important lesson for me.
3. Departure and return to Continental Sibiu
I would describe myself as a curious person and open to adventure, so after 6 years in Continental, the need arose to experience other environments. Why? In 6 years I had a lot of positive learning experiences and I met many colleagues from whom I had information to assimilate, but inevitably, maybe due to age, questions about other environments and fields appeared. How would I adapt from being an engineer directly to another area of expertise? What new challenges would I encounter?
Now, after another 6 years, I can answer these questions and I can say that I have enriched the knowledge that I can further offer to an employer to contribute to the results desired by the company.
After experiencing several work environments, I decided it was time to choose a company in which to build a career, and Continental, through the multitude of opportunities it continuously offers to employees and the very open and inclusive work environment, I considered it to be the most suitable company, so I decided to follow open positions and apply when I find something that suits me.
I had patience for almost a year until a job appeared that I wanted, namely a mechanical designer in the base development area, the first to appear was in the VED department in the EBS group that developed control units for the braking systems of the vehicles.
4. Future plans
Future plans I would share on time frames as follows: - in the short term, I want to focus on gaining knowledge about braking systems in order to be an active part of the development of the following systems that Continental offers to customers.
Regarding medium and long-term future plans as part of my personal development, I aim to progress in my career by accepting new responsibilities to the extent that they are proposed to me as well as in agreement with my senior colleagues with whom I agree with career development plan.
In the first period as a Continental employee I was one of the colleagues who represented the company at job fairs, a member of teams that organized competitions for students, but also as a teacher of an extra-curricular course offered at the University of Sibiu, activities that were very dear to me because I had the opportunity to reward the trust that the company offered me by promoting it to those interested, as well as the additional training of students to become possible future Continental employees, and in the future I want to be an active part of promoting the company abroad again.
5. What would you recommend to people who are thinking of leaving the company?
To colleagues who are thinking about a possible career change, I recommend them first of all to carefully weight the decisions they make and look for the change that will improve their knowledge. At the same time, I would recommend them to be open and together with the direct superior to build a career plan that is comfortable and attractive to them. Last but not least, I recommend them to see their career as a marathon and not as a speed race, because perseverance, consistency, patience and continuous improvement are the solid foundations of a successful career.
