Ana-Maria Tihon joined Stefanini at the beginning of last year, when she realized that a role here would allow her to build on her Team Leader experience in a brand new sector. Since beginning the role, she’s already learned more than at any other company she’s worked at previously, whether as a result of coordinating a team of over 20 people, or participating daily in meetings and interacting with several departments from the company.
We caught up with Ana-Maria to discuss her experience at Stefanini, including the importance of multitasking, how to build a successful team and why success relies on ambition and hard work.
This is the fourteenth interview in our series involving our Digital Workplace Services (DWS) colleagues. DWS spans multiple roles and skillsets, with team members able to meet customers’ changing needs. These range from traditional Service Desk and Field Service to modern infrastructure capabilities, including cloud, virtualization, platforms and applications. This series explores the career journeys, best practices and learnings of DWS colleagues across EMEA and showcases what life at Stefanini involves.
Why did you choose to join Stefanini?
I wanted to work at a company that I could trust and that would help me to grow – Stefanini felt like a perfect fit. Also, I’d previously worked as a Team Leader in a publishing house and wanted to continue to develop myself within the same role in a new environment, so was very happy to find the role existed within Stefanini. Also, the fact that IT was a very different field to my previous experience actually made me more eager to join the team and take on a new challenge.
How have you evolved professionally within the company so far?
Until joining Stefanini, I had just one year’s experience as a Team Leader, which is not enough to understand every aspect of the job and all of the responsibilities and tasks involved. Whereas in my previous role, I felt fairly comfortable and like I knew everything, arriving here meant moving out of my comfort zone, learning a great deal and growing a lot professionally in a very short period. I joined the company when we launched a new service for our client, so was thrown right into dealing with a new account and newly created team while learning how IT and the service desk functioned. This was naturally challenging but also really accelerated my personal development.
What are the most important things that you have learned here?
In around a year and a half of working at Stefanini, I have learned more than at any other company I’ve worked at in my career. Whether coordinating a team of over 20 people, or participating daily in meetings and interacting with several departments from the company, there have been significant opportunities to learn throughout my time here.
The most important thing I have learned – and that I think will help me the most in life – is multitasking. It might sound trivial, but being faced with a significant number of tasks every day, there’s been real value in learning to manage my time correctly and prioritize all tasks efficiently.
What are some best practices you have learned and applied in your current role?
Among the most important things I’ve learned is what it takes to ensure a team is successful, including:
- Don’t let people feel demoralized. There must be a constant discussion between the team leader and the employee, in which you try to understand the person not only from a professional point of view, but also personally. It is very important to understand how an employee thinks as well as the nature of support they require.
- Be transparent with your team, because open communication is essential for building trust. In the most difficult moments, when the things aren’t going to plan, it is very important to explain to everyone why certain things are happening, what exactly is causing the challenging situation, and to give them the chance to share their thoughts about the issue. This not just ensures the team feels heard but rightly involves them in the process of making things better.
- Stand-up for your team members. Encourage them every time they feel insecure and don’t blame them when they fail or make mistakes. Try to engage them in training, workshops and everything they need in order to grow and feel confident.
What do you like most about working at Stefanini?
Mostly, I like that Stefanini has offered me a great opportunity to develop in an area that seemed so difficult for me initially. I never thought I’d be able to work in the IT industry as part of such an amazing team. I really appreciate the help I’ve always had from my direct manager and from my colleagues and I’m very grateful to work with such outstanding people.
What advice would you give to a new Stefanini employee?
It’s important to be confident, to work efficiently and to be involved and open to all the opportunities that will help you grow inside the company. Ask for advice and help from others every time you need this. And don’t be ashamed or scared to share your thoughts and new ideas with your managers.
What advice would you give to other Stefanini colleagues when it comes to building a success story here?
Never give up and never stop trying. Yes, things can sometimes be hard, but that’s how it’s supposed to be, because success only comes through ambition and hard work.
Want to be our next success story? At Stefanini, we’re always interested in hearing from talented candidates across all levels of experience. You can browse our current EMEA vacancies, here.
