Step outside Your Comfort Zone!
Susanne Nguyen
Publish on : 20 -06-2022
Priya is a Data Science Professional and recently started working as a Data Stuart for a well-known automobile manufacturer. After a long family break, the mother of two has pursued her career in Germany very purposefully and has also taken part in the job buddy programme from amiga. In the end, Priya was invited to several job interviews. We asked Priya what she would recommend to other internationals in Germany when looking for a job and building a career plan.
How did you get to know amiga?
An Indian friend recommended amiga to me. What I liked there: There were no language barriers, I quickly made contact with the amiga community/family in English. First, I took part in the Expert Week, then had a consultation and this is how I got an amiga job buddy programme.
Priya: “It is important to create a roadmap for your career with a clear goal in mind. This also includes creating a list of your own skills, but also constantly challenging and encouraging yourself.”
What do you like about the amiga job programme?
amiga did a great job and found the perfect job buddy for me: Marco has worked as a recruiter in the IT sector and has specifically recruited workers from India for a company. He understands the Indian way of thinking and mentality very well, which is how I learned a lot about the German working world. For me, the conversations with Marco were like business networking.
What is special about the German working world for you?
In Germany, for example, it is very important to meet deadlines and to be very direct and clear in communications. In India, time management is often different and the way of communication is very diplomatic, a “no” in the service sector is virtually impossible. I am convinced that this knowledge and understanding of German culture as soft skills plays a crucial role in the application process.
What else did you work on within the job buddy programme?
Marco dedicated a lot of time to discuss my career plan with me, to create new ideas and to brainstorm. We also often practiced the job interview and the elevator pitch in role-plays, for example when being interviewed by the CFO of a company. The amiga business experts are very senior, experienced, and competent – it is great that I had someone like Marco at my side!
You then started a real application offensive - how did you proceed here and what came out of it?
With Marco’s support, I was able to better assess the job offers and I also knew how important it is to collect comprehensive information about the company in advance. I was very diligent with individually prepared applications and ended up being invited to around 20 job interviews. Finally, I accepted the job offer as a Data Stuart at a major automobile manufacturer.
What advice would you give to other internationals who are in the same situation?
My tip: “Get out of your comfort zone!” It is important to create a roadmap for your career with a clear goal in mind. This also includes creating a list of your own skills, but also constantly challenging and encouraging yourself. For example, in recent years, I have gained more and more qualifications in the areas of data analysis and project management and have continuously expanded my knowledge of German. This all will not happen overnight, but it is definitely paying off now.
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