Product Group Specialist
About me...
I was born and raised in Rijeka, in Kostrena to be precise. I graduated from the General Program for Athletes at the Salesian Classical Secondary School, where I practiced synchronised swimming. In 2009 I graduated from the Faculty of Economics and Business in Rijeka. I am a mother of two girls, three and five years old. I have been working at JGL for almost two years as a Product Group Specialist at the Central Procurement Department.
About my workday…
After my morning routine - getting up, having breakfast, getting myself and the children ready and dropping the children off at daycare, sometimes I feel like I’ve just ran the marathon, as I’m sure those with small children can relate. I come into work at 8 AM and the work day begins. I start my computer, go through emails and reply to different messages from both internal and external users and customers regarding the procurement, delivery, invoicing of products, the encryption of materials and creating purchase orders. I also perform and keep track of all product ordering activities, from the ordering to the delivery and invoicing. The tempo is intense, so a nice little break is necessary - around 11:30 AM I take my lunch and coffee break, and then continue with my tasks until 4 PM.
About work challenges…
My position is pretty complex and entails a lot of communication, both internal and external, alongside regular daily tasks, which means I multitask a lot - lucky for me, as a woman I was born with a great talent for multitasking! Still, every day is a new challenge and every day I learn and try to do my job as best I can. One of the ways I do that is by prioritising.
Working with different people with different work habits and communication styles is another challenge, but that one doesn’t bother me much because I am very understanding and patient towards the differences between individual people.
About the team environment…
I have always worked in a team and teamwork is really no problem for me. I consider myself very communicative and adaptable. I am someone who works well in a group and who can contribute to the success of the team with character and unique perspective.
About motivation…
What motivates me most is a healthy work environment - the wonderful people I work with, my coworkers and my superiors, who inspire me to do my best every day.
About working at JGL…
My hard work and efforts are appreciated here. I feel respected as a worker - my opinions, comments and ideas are heard and valued - but also as a person, a woman with a family and small children - there is tolerance for sudden absences often provoked by the current situation (COVID-19) and by the fact that small children in daycare often get ill. By adjusting to different external circumstances quickly, JGL provides its workers with a better work environment and an atmosphere of contentment. Investing in employee development is very advanced - various seminars, webinars and trainings are offered. The emotional wellbeing of employees is also taken care of through the organising of different polls and workshops, which prove to be very necessary in these times. There is great emphasis on different benefits and success rewards, which are substantially greater compared to other employers.
About the desire for new knowledge…
I would like to know more on the optimization of input effort and operations and how to prioritise more efficiently. Also I want to learn to be more confident in my opinions, more proactive and more objective in making strategical decisions. And of course, I aim to achieve work-life balance with as little stress as possible.
About my hobbies…
Because I have two little children and a husband who works 12-hour shifts, there is fairly little time for my own hobbies - my children are still at that phase in life when they need me a lot. But you know what they say, “happy woman (mother) = happy family”, so for the good of all of us I try to steal some time for myself when I can and go to a Tae Bo or zumba practice dancing the worries away at a salsa party. Dancing is my favorite hobby and it helps me recharge with positive energy!
About success and satisfaction…
My greatest achievement are my children and the work I put into the steady raising and creating of two little humans, in every sense of the word. My career growth and development is definitely another proud achievement - my career path has been full of challenges and, in a way, this has defined me as a person, both in the professional and the personal way. This makes me who I am today. I am a fighter, an unrelenting optimist, and I believe that a smile and a kind word really do open every door. Obstacles can’t hold me back, they make me go on. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. I find happiness in the little things, because that’s what life is made of - the smiles of my children, the happiness of those close to me, the understanding that I made somebody’s day brighter or helped them in any way, that a project performs well, etc.