Tell us about yourself and your career at Professional
I joined the company in 2015 and with it a move from China to Italy. Prior to that I was working for a Swedish subsidiary company in Shanghai as a product manager. Interestingly, after I came to Electrolux, I found out that an employee had just joined the company I used to work for..
The world sometimes looks big, while often it is very small in contrast. We move from west to east, east to west and company culture become more vibrant because of it.
I spent three fantastic years in Italy and adapted to the lifestyle and business environment from the very beginning. By the end, I was well integrated to the team and delivering good performance. I enjoyed the journey, which inevitably comes with ups and downs, but it has made me who I am today; ready to step out of my comfort zone and do something new.
What are you most proud of?
Firstly, I am very proud of my supportive family – my wife and son as well as my parents have supported important decisions that I made. Taking the job in Italy meant being apart from each other for an unknown amount of time. My wife and son eventually moved to be with me but originally they didn’t know when that reunion would be, yet they still supported my decision.
Secondly, I am really proud to be a team member of Business Unit Laundry; a truly multi-cultural team, consisting of seven nationalities. We may have different opinions based on our cultural understanding but we are always engaged and prepared to share ideas, discuss and find solutions we agree on in the end.
What conditions are most effective for your learning and development?
Change and accountability. We live in a dynamic world where change is constant, no matter if you realize or not. On joining Professional, I encountered a lot of change – new country, language, colleagues – and I needed to learn how to adapt.
During my time as Product Manager in Italy, I oversaw front load washers and tumble dryers in our Ljungby factory in Sweden then also worked with barrier washers in Troyes, France, for eight months. Now I am working on a semi-professional laundry project, which required me to return to Shanghai, knowing I was the right person for the job.
Why Electrolux Professional?
It’s an innovative company and learning organization in so much that we look at market trends, customer behavior, our competition and learn from what we have done right and wrong in the past.
The global professional food and laundry market has traditionally been seen as a manufacturing industry up to now. But in recent years, Professional has been proactive in digital transformation; we embrace IoT, Big Data and innovation. As a result I believe that makes our products stand out and they will continue to do so in the future.
Check out our global career site, if you aspires to pursue a career similar to Victor’s.