International Day of the Girl – Unlock your potential

“Think about what you enjoy the most and then make a profession out of it.” In the first of three interviews to celebrate the UN International Day of the Girl on October 11, Our Talent Acquisition Partner Ana Timofei, who helps scout the best R&D talent in the market, shares her tips on finding the right career path, discovering your full potential and why R&D is an exciting career opportunity.

What’s the best part of your job in talent acquisition?

There’s so much that I’d love to mention! But one thing that stands out is when I reconnect with a candidate six months or more after they joined us and hear how much they’re enjoying themselves at Electrolux. When I see they are happy, and they tell me this is the right place for them to further develop and achieve both personal and professional results, it gives me great job satisfaction. It’s exciting for me to come to work and know I can play a part in the career growth of others.

You recruit talent to R&D, which is still a male-dominated field. What makes it a great career for females too?

The thinking that R&D is for men only should be left behind. R&D is where all the ideas begin that can literally change a person’s life. That’s so inspiring! And, of course, it’s not just men that can achieve that. Looking back in history, women have played pivotal roles in driving positive change in society, including in the field of engineering. As engineering evolves with digital transformation, I hope more women step forward into this exciting area and make their mark.

At Electrolux specifically, we shape living for the better and as we focus on creating the future connected home, working at the forefront of this in R&D is a truly exciting career opportunity. We would love to recruit more females to help us on our journey.

What do you look for in talent when recruiting at Electrolux?

It’s actually complicated yet simple at the same time. On the one hand we look at the core competencies designed to set the standards of behaviors we want all our leaders and employees to embrace at Electrolux – energy, openness, growth and agility; while on the other hand we simply look at the passion and enthusiasm for the particular role or area we speak about. It’s fairly obvious if someone is passionate or not about a role – and it’s very important that they are. In R&D we look for digitally-minded people, with an interest in the Internet of Things, ready to say yes to challenges and ready to drive change.

What’s your best advice for young girls thinking about what career path to take?

Think about what you enjoy the most, what you’re passionate about and then make a profession out of it. You’ll rarely feel like you are working, but most likely you will enjoy it more and more as you grow, learn and improve on a daily basis.

If you don’t yet know what the ‘thing’ is that moves you, look for it. It will give you energy, and you will know when you found it. Then apply the above.

Tell us something about you that we wouldn’t learn from your CV.

I actually have a blog where I sometimes write about career development. I think it’s important to speak about the topic as from my experience of working in recruitment for almost a decade I’ve learnt people have so many fears and doubts about themselves professionally, making it hard for them to discover their potential. I hope with the blog to help someone believe a little bit more in themselves to make a career out of what they love. Here it is: http://careeryourway.blog/