Interview with Tanja (42), technical draughtswoman within the business unit Communications Technology
If you work for EQOS Kommunikation for 18 years, you get to experience a lot, and this also applies to Tanja. She has been with the company through various stages of life, both privately and professionally. During this time, she went through three corporate relocations and also acquired her trainer’s qualification certificate. Now she is facing the dual challenge of mastering her life as a mother of two as well as her profession at the same time.
Tanja, you have been with EQOS Kommunikation for 18 years now. How has your everyday work life changed in all this time?
In principle, I am still planning mobile telecommunications systems – on roofs, in churches, on wind turbines or on masts. Up until my first child was born, I was involved in all planning phases for any site construction project. For some of them, I was even allowed to join in the inspection of sites prior to the start of planning. The planning of drafts and execution is an assignment that carries great responsibility, because lots of things must be taken into account: Do you need handrails for occupational safety or something of the sort, and if so, how does it have to be constructed? This kind of problem has been a challenge time and again. Later I obtained my trainers qualification certificate which enabled me to supervise younger colleagues. These days, I work for the company part-time and am in charge of inventory planning. I reconcile the current execution plans with the actual, constructed facility and make the corresponding updates. In doing so, I am incorporating additional information such as measuring results and information from the site managers.
Based on this information, you have covered a great spectrum of areas of responsibility during your career. Are you missing a challenge these days?
Absolutely not. My work continues to interest me. This is mainly due to the diversity of providers with whom we work. Each of them has different requirements for the plan to be delivered, such as different plan contents and formats. Overall, the customers’ demands have also changed over the years. In the old days, a drawing needed to contain much less information, but it is increasingly demanded now. What I like is that I can work very independently but can still rely on a great team that is always there for me when I have questions. My colleagues and I have been working together ever since I started working here, which means 18 years. This means that we are a very well-coordinated team, who are still getting along great after all this time.
It is nice to serve as an confidant.
You have already guided some trainees into their career. How did this come about and what do you enjoy about training new colleagues?
That was a lucky coincidence. I like to communicate and was intrigued by this idea, so eventually I told my supervisor that I wanted to do this when we had a meeting. It just so happened that my supervisor wanted to hire new trainees anyway. The timing was right and EQOS Kommunikation supported me in obtaining my trainer’s qualification certificate. It was lots of fun for me to work with young people and to motivate them, even if the examination phase was sometimes a little more stressful for my young colleagues. I always taught them to take a positive approach to things. Two of my three trainees are still working for the company, which makes me very proud. I am also proud of the fact that they still come to me with problems – I was allowed to guide them through a very intense period in their lives and thus became a person they could trust. That is a great feeling.
You have taken your professional life down a notch – is it easy for you to attain a good work-life balance?
I am happy that I can work part-time after my parental leave. It allows me to be a mom and have the opportunity to work on other things. My work and the contact with my colleagues is good for me, because I sit down at my desk and do something productive. Of course, it isn’t always easy to reconcile family and job, but thanks to great support at home and at the office I have always been able to manage everything.