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“I feel we are listened to and that personal wishes for growth are taken into account.” |
How would you describe your job and role at Yokogawa?
My official job title at Yokogawa is 'Service Support and Admin' which is actually a shorter way of saying that I do a little bit of everything. Some of my tasks are related to service coordination (call-handling, service notes follow-up, emergency spare parts requests, complaint-logging and visits and services follow-ups). I am also the work planner for the operations department; organizing engineer’s planning regarding projects, services and visits… and communicating these between our engineers and customers. I also execute order handling tasks, varying between purchase-order verifications, drawing-up administrative documents and order confirmations, sales & service orders… and finally, sending out the invoices. So, I actually execute all sorts of supporting tasks for the engineers and the customers.
What is the most remarkable thing you have done at Yokogawa so far?
Job-related, I would say, was the transition to our (global) SAP system. We have had several weeks of training in the Netherlands, also exchanging ideas and concerns with colleagues all over Europe. Then, once back in Belgium, we had to train some of our colleagues and prepare the system for upgrade, hoping everything would go well at go-live. There were certainly some obstacles to overcome at the beginning, but the collaboration with other colleagues in Belgium and in Europe was great and we mastered the new system quite rapidly. This, I think, can be called quite remarkable.
Another amazing work-related achievement was our participation to the 'Hercules'-trophy in 2018. The cognitive and physical tasks assigned to our team were quite challenging, and it was incredible to see how well you can do, when you work together. We may not have won, but we had so much fun! I believe the team-spirit and collaboration between us as colleagues can be called remarkable too.
Yokogawa values 'quality of life' for their employees. How do you experience that in real life?
Really good! Since last year we got the opportunity to work from home a day per week. It may sound silly, but it does make a huge difference. This is one day where you can use the time you usually spend commuting to actually do something productive. Furthermore, when I have a lot of work to do, it's easier to do it at home, with no disturbance or distractions. You end up getting more things done which also contributes to a calmer state of mind.
Our company also set-up a health group which promotes a healthy way of life (diet, exercise, mental health) to the employees and I am sure that the outcomes will contribute to our quality of life and our overall well-being as well.
Why should talented people consider Yokogawa as a potential new employer?
I have been with the company for a little over three years now and I have seen quite a few people making career-steps. We have feedback-talks with our manager during which training and personal development can openly be discussed. I feel we are listened to and that personal wishes for growth are taken into account. Furthermore, Yokogawa Belgium is quite a small company where everyone knows everyone, the management knows everyone and they know what your strengths are, which potential you have or may have. You are not a number here. This makes it easier for your wishes and opinions to be heard, which I imagine would be more difficult in a larger company.