Production Engineering and Maintenance, Vestas Blades, China
My Choice
I found out about Vestas’ Graduate Programme whilst completing my master thesis in England. Although, my educational background was not in wind power or renewable energies, I was attracted by the opportunity to kick-start my professional career working and living around the world.
The Graduate Programme has a compelling value proposition to any new comer: work in three different areas of the business in three different countries. Furthermore, a rotation in China allowed me to practise my Mandarin!
My role
One of the biggest challenges as a graduate is that expectations are very high; regardless of age or previous experience. Having a Graduate gives your manager the resources to work on areas that s/he cannot normally do and, on the other hand, being a Graduate gives you the freedom to be as pro-active as you want.
I currently work in the Blades factory in Tianjin, China and lead a small team of engineers under the Production Engineering and Maintenance department. Within six months, we have managed and executed a range of projects: from small IT tasks and equipment improvements to large-scale programs that completely changed the way the department works. So far we’ve achieved our ambitious objectives for equipment downtime reduction and we expect to create a lasting impact in the factory before the end of my rotation. This unique opportunity is providing me priceless experience in cross-cultural management.
My everyday work life
There are two words that describe Vestas well: people and ownership. Vestas truly invests in its people and takes very good care of them. In return, those people believe in Vestas and take full ownership of their work. In my opinion, this is a pretty good recipe for success.
As a Graduate, I am aware that I am not a specialist in any field as yet; however, this has not limited me in my abilities to deliver. Vestas employs the world’s leading experts in the wind energy sector and the people who I’ve worked with are always willing to give you a hand. At this stage in my career, I could not imagine a more suitable workplace; the ever-changing environment represents a never-ending source of opportunities to make an impact and to develop my skills.
My opportunities
I believe that Vestas places no barriers on talent and that there are great opportunities beyond the Graduate Programme. Every day, I give myself 110%, knowing that the better I perform the better chances I will have worldwide after the programme.
I understand that development is something that you have to manage by yourself and Vestas does a good job supporting me with my ambitions and dreams. Whenever there was an opportunity for learning or growing professionally, I only received encouragement from my managers. Vestas provides the framework and the tools, but it is the Graduate’s role to get the maximum out of it.
My life
My biggest passions are, without a doubt, food and sports. In both cases, I prefer to participate actively by cooking or playing rather than letting others do it for me. Food and sports have helped me connect with different people when travelling or moving to a new country. Language and cultural barriers are always smaller in front of a nice meal or whilst having fun on the pitch.
