A Limitless Potential

People

It takes great people to make a great company. We regard people as our most valuable asset; we owe our success to their commitment.

We believe people are our most valuable asset. So in this special issue of our magazine, we decided to place some of the people that are part of our great family in the spotlight, to learn what they think and feel about their job and their daily tasks.

As a global business, our workforce is as diverse as the world itself. An advocate for equal opportunities, we strive to create an inclusive environment where everyone feels engaged, respected and able to be at their best. We are protecting the people we care about. We work in a demanding industry where the challenges may be complex, but there’s one thing that’s simple – our attitude to safety, which always takes priority. We also work to create the leaders of tomorrow. Few people know our business as well as the people already working for us. That’s why, when it comes to finding the leaders of tomorrow, we start the search within. The Prysmian Academy identifies employees with the potential to make it to the top, and helps them get there.

Our team members are continuously offered a wide range of opportunities to expand their skills, take on new challenges, and develop professionally within the business. At Prysmian Group, your abilities can take you anywhere. In the following pages, some of our Prysmian people share their thoughts on why everyone deserves the chance to reach their potential.

“Find the humour and think positive”

Amy Shackelford – Lead Applications Engineer at General Cable – believes flexibility is the key to success. She also recommends never taking yourself too seriously; this lets you to take on new challenges with a positive attitude.

In a fast-changing world, flexibility is one of the most important skills an engineer has to have. And Amy knows a thing or two about adapting. Before joining General Cable, she spent 15 years in the U.S. Army where she led a team of junior soldiers in the guidance and optical systems. “My military background was a good technical fit when I first started with General Cable in the electrical lab”, she recalls, “my skills were quickly adaptable.”

Embracing New Challenges

She adds: “Adapting to change is critical element in all aspects of life. You don’t grow as an individual, or professionally, by standing still. Finding the positive and being flexible makes progress much easier and more enjoyable.” Today, Amy brings that same philosophy to her role as a Lead Applications Engineer for the Utility Engineering team. She also lends a hand with the team’s quality early warning system, creating new tests for manufacturing and supporting the current specification engineers with her expertise. Having learned so many things from her experiences, she still believes that “the most important thing I’ve found is never to take yourself too seriously.” She continues: “Finding the humour in the ordinary makes an enormous difference in how you approach each day, and enables you to take on new challenges with a positive attitude.”

“Striving to be the best in class”

Dario Fozibo, Supply Chain Manager at Prysmian Group, shares how his job gave him a way to combine his passion for both supply chain and manufacturing, because when combined, they are both aimed at investing in people.

Dario is one of 50 individuals Prysmian recruited through its 2017 Make It programme. “Prysmian Group has catalysed a process of constant change and growth. We set ourselves apart not only in terms of what we make, but in striving to be best in class in how we make it. The Make It programme challenges you to do both.”

Forging Ahead

Dario sums up the impetus behind Prysmian Group’s Make It programme. In just three years, it has proven to be a first-class career development program for manufacturing engineers. In his own words: “Prysmian looks to drive growth in the fast-changing and demanding global manufacturing arena in two ways: by building its expertise, as well as its operations excellence.” For Dario, Make It provided him with the perfect platform to forge ahead in his career. He added: “after ten years in the same company, I wanted to expand my know-how in a new business working in supply chain. Prysmian gave me even more; a way to combine my passion for supply chain and manufacturing. I could see they also invested in people. Taken together, I was convinced it was the right choice.” His journey into the world of Prysmian began with a two-week orientation between the Milan HQ and the Manufacturing Academy in Mudanya, Turkey, where he was introduced to the Group’s products and technologies and manufacturing processes.

‍

“Embrace the unknown and adapt to change”

For Jon Schemmel – Product Manager, Electrical Products Market Segment at General Cable – the only constant in the world of business is change. Markets change, and to keep moving forward, businesses have to embrace the unknown and adapt.

Jon welcomes change. After all, it’s constant change that has shaped his career and enabled his skills to shine. He joined General Cable as a graduate in 2008 and learned the production planning process at General Cable’s Lincoln Rhode Island facility before starting his role in supply chain, supporting the automotive and telecommunications businesses.

The Support of the Entire Team

“The only constant in the world of business is change. Markets change, and to keep moving forward, businesses have to embrace the unknown and just adapt”. Unafraid of change, Jon actually left General Cable to become a program manager at a fledgling aerospace company. But before long, he was drawn back to our industry. “While I loved my work in aerospace”, he tells us, “I ultimately missed the fast pace of the cable business, and the shared culture of the General Cable team.” When he rejoined General Cable in 2011, he managed the North America Copper Datacom business, followed by the North America Carol® Cord business. But it wasn’t long before he was ready to embrace the unknown yet again: he accepted the challenge of relocating to Sao Paulo, Brazil, despite not speaking a word of Portuguese. “I believe being open to change improves your ability to listen and learn”. Sao Paulo was a big change for me”, he recalls, “but the General Cable Brazil team was 100% behind me”.

“Follow the mantra nothing is impossible”

Ute Stiller – Prysmian Plant Director in Schwerin, Germany – boasts a career spanning over 30 years. She began as one of a small number of women employed by the company, to becoming part of a management team made almost entirely of women.

Many industries are still dominated by men. But things are changing, as Ute personally experienced. Spanning 30 years, her career has brought her from being one member of a small number of women employed at Schwerin, to becoming part of a predominantly female management team.

Nurturing Young Talent

Ute tells she has a mantra, “nothing is impossible, there is a solution for everything. It got me where I am today.” Both her parents worked in Prysmian’s Schwerin factory, sharing their stories of the workplace when they got home. The factory produces best-in-class LV and MV cables and solutions for the T&I and PD businesses, and has been a key employer in the town for over 50 years. Ute herself began her career there in 1984 as a machine operator, but, she tells us, “things are very different compared to when I joined, as now many programs are aimed at helping young, talented people develop and find a role that’s right for them. I know what it’s like to work hard and move up the business.” Ute adds: “That’s why I want to encourage more women to work in this industry, and give young talent joining us a great start to their careers by connecting them with strong, experienced mentors.”

“Fresh thinking and open arms”

Alejandra Espinosa – Talent Manager at General Cable – tells how her spirit of discovery and collaboration led her to make the leap from school teacher to professional people developer. A career path typical of high achievers who harness their skills and experience and apply them to new experiences.

“Open minds and open arms” is Alejandra’s favorite statement. Why? Because she believes that having a global perspective is crucial for success. “Whatever the business, you can achieve so much, just by keeping an open mind, and welcoming fresh thinking with open arms”. The spirit of discovery and collaboration led Alejandra to make the leap from school teacher to professional people developer.

Spotting Opportunities

Alejandra grew up in Nicaragua and taught school while finishing her bachelor’s degree in business administration, then applied her teaching skills to the workforce, where she worked in talent acquisition for the agriculture industry. Her international mindset led her to Madrid, where she gained a master’s degree and secured an internship at General Cable. There, she helped manage the team during a phase of global transformation, and was offered a permanent role as a Human Resource Business Partner for the Specialty and Export business. “I love change” tells Alejandra. “My experience of moving from one region to another has expanded my cultural awareness and has put me in a position where I’m able to choose best practices to share and apply to my work.” She continues looking ahead and is excited by the opportunity to collaborate with her new Prysmian Group team members and share her global perspective.

“Details are the steps on the way to success”

Francesco Sapienza – Automation Engineer at Prysmian Group – started his career by applying to the Make It programme along with 10,000 other candidates. He made his way through the company by always making sure he does what it takes to succeed straight away.

“Details make perfection, and perfection is not a detail”. The famous sentence from Leonardo Da Vinci mirrors Francesco’s approach to work. For Francesco, who describes himself as a “very precise, detail-oriented person”, Make It was just the first step along a whole new career path. It was, he adds, “the way for me to deep dive into the new world of cables – and grow right along with it.”

Francesco recalls “I had three different interviews: one with the agency, a second one with key management, and a third with human resources. They were more like friendly chats, but they helped me realise the advantages of joining the programme". From here, it was a few simple steps into the Make It program. After passing an initial screening, he went into the first round of interviews with the company’s recruitment partner. Orientation was followed by three-months of local on-boarding, including on-the-job training and a job rotation phase geared to offer new hires maximum exposure to various parts of the business. Francesco was then assigned a mentor to further expand his learning curve and help him learn from others’ experiences in the company. “During Make It, I made sure I did what it took to succeed straight away.”