During my job interview for the position that I started with at this company, my then-future manager told me, “Your initial training is likely to be outside of Mexico, are you available to travel to the other side of the world?” My answer was of course! I never imagined that the beginning of this path would lead me to be part of a multicultural family in which day by day I have been growing professionally.
In July 2017, on my first day of work at the plant in Serbia 11,000 km away from my home country, my heart raced anxiously when I met my co-workers, who not only spoke a different language than mine, but they also had a different way of seeing the world. In my first steps I learned about the manufacturing process of rubber hoses, the most commercial product of the company. By the time I returned to Mexico I had a clear perspective of the responsibility I was taking on and a new perspective of seeing the world.
One year later, the decision was made to change the course of my professional career to a more technical area of the company, I was assigned as an Automation Engineer. Once again, fate took me to the old continent to meet a couple of different cultures. Turkey and Bulgaria were the countries that I had the opportunity to get to know, surviving in cities where English is not a widely used language was quite an adventure, however, the number of professional and personal experiences with my colleagues from those plants boosted the knowledge that it formed the technical basis for the position to which I had just been assigned.
Once again in Mexico, the number of challenges and opportunities that have been presented to me within the company has been increasing, I currently hold the position of assistant manager of the technical services area, which requires being in constant communication with development areas in different parts of the world and although I have not had the opportunity to continue traveling, I am still in contact with my colleagues from other countries learning more about different customs or cultures every day.
All in all, these 5 years of career have not only taught me how to handle technical situations, pressure situations and achieve goals, but they have also taught me skills to work with people from different parts of the world. I couldn’t have asked for a better experience than what I have had on this exciting 5 years journey in 4 different countries.
The key message is that you do not be afraid to face situations with different cultures, you never know when the audacity to take this type of opportunities will lead you to one of the best experiences of your life with extraordinary people.
Miguel Machuca
