He is changing his running snickers every 1500 kilometers and the job positions every two years
The message of this article should be that even the normal man without the technical education can start on the very basic position in the IT company and move to the expert level in couple of years. People like this use to be marked as the local heroes, or the success stories. Is it truly possible? I was talking to Zdenko Timuľak who works in the Project&Engineering department, Telecommunication division, how the personal and career growth looks like at T-Systems Slovakia (TSSK).
Traveling or IT?
Zdenko started to work in year 2010, he was 23 that time, freshly graduated at Prešov University where he studied the Management major. He was not really interested in IT area very much, he was more to the travelling. When looking for a job, he was offered the admin position in T-Systems Slovakia. After one year and half he started to feel that he wants some change and the challenge has come. Some employees were wanted to attend the certification training two times a week during two summer months. All attendees got the certificates. These were working like a magic, opened door to a better working position.
Networking
Some time later Zdenko started to be interested in the networks. This job was not about the dealing with the incidents, it was more about the network monitoring. The second level, value added. He was working on the platforms shared by more customers or the platforms that were built only for one big customer. Now we are talking about the companies, such as British Petrol, TUI, European Space Agency and more. This job was interesting, they have been building new platforms for more than 15 thousand devices and the whole team was getting the positive feedback from the customers. They started to notice the work from "Košice guys".
Starting the new projects
Troubleshooting was faster, the customers could specify what reports they want. The team from Košice knew how to start and run the project others were struggling with for one year and half. Zdenko has commented this progress: „When the project starts, the first phase, the start is tough. The discussions start, what will be, how will be, the virtual problems are being solved ... there is a need to start the engine.“ When I asked if he is the person who knows to start the engine, he smiled and said: „Yes, perhaps“.
Satisfied customers
The relationships with the customers got to the next level, the boys have built the good name and they started to work on the tasks on the third level. In this way Zdenko got from the position of the operator to admin, engineer, consultant and the solution designer. Now he is starting his new position of the network technical & design architect - NTDA. And it is something. Not everybody can be titled like this. To be concrete, such IT specialists have been working only in UK, not in Slovakia. The Englishmen saw the potential of Slovak guys, they started the hiring and in this way they selected some people in Košice.
Working for the Englishman
After three levels of hiring Zdenko got his dreamed position NTDA in January 2017. As he says, now he can fix something but also, what is more important for him, he can create something. Three guys passed through the selection. I was just thinking what is the work load related to these positions. If you do not know how to do something, where have you look for it? It is not that simple as to switch on the youtube and see the one hour video. Zdenko is always looking for some new trends in IT industry, watching sites as the Packet Pushers, CISCO, or edX. "And with this work you go in the way "try and loose", you have to study a lot of things. In the day I am at work, later I am with my family, we have one little daughter. In the evening we watch the movie and then when my wife is sleeping I have a time to look for some Python scripts. This time from 10 to 12PM is the best. Nobody disturbs me". Smile. „When I started the new position on the beginning of the year, the first two or three weeks were the hard ones, but then I got used to the tempo. The probation time ends now, so my buddy in England does not have to check my work anymore. This is quite special for me, I have four bosses. Two in Slovakia and two in England“.
British Petrol
„Now I have only one big customer, the British Petrol. When I was at Sainsburry visiting their training site, it was great. they have showed me the whole campus. They have the only training center of its kind in the world. All the guys who are going to work on the petrol towers are trained there. Seven years ago they had two buildings and now they have the buildings marked with the letters from A to J. My projects are about the networks. The customer has to be connected if he is at Sainsburry, or the oil platform at Aljaska. I do my best to keep my customer satisfied. Now I am junior NTDA, but I always have the place for improvement, maybe one day I will become the senior or even principal NTDA."
How do you handle it all?
„I need to keep my head clean." This is where running helps a lot. Zdenko is running to work and then back home. He takes a shower at his working place. He is attending the running marathons, last year he ran 42 kilometres in Košice - on the International Peace marathon. He is changing his running shoes every 1500 kilometres and it looks like he changes also his job every two years.
And the favorite movie? He likes Twinpeaks, Matrix and the Lord of the rings. From the books he would choose Murakami and Goerge Orwell.
When I asked him what this company gave him and took from him, he thinks: "Well, I have found friends here, the room for a development. This company did not take anything significant from me. I think there are nowhere such conditions as here in Košice. I think the working environment, the relationships. When two people go to smoke outside in Germany, they stand far away from each other. When people smoke here at TSSK, they chat together.“
Are you a local hero?
„I do not feel like a local hero. There is a need to put a little effort into everyday tasks. If you have a goal the company gives you the means to reach it. You just need to put a bit of effort into it. I think a cliche happened to me – I was at the right place in a right time and I made a good decision. And then it had a natural flow, I was getting the good feedbacks from my customers, my managers noticed me, and so.“
Do you see yourself in a managerial position in the future?
„I think I am not matured enough. These positions are from forty higher, managers should have something behind, more life experiences, they should know to communicate. I am thirty now.“
When Zdenko was sitting with me, talking about his job, he seemed like a normal person. Later, I was thinking how to write this article and I catched myself smiling. This is a nice man, who is very responsible, taking care of his family, accepting the challenge at work and having the hobby to learn the scripts in the night and run long trails, ... now I think this is quite rare and unique. I hope there are more people at TSSK "normal" like Zdenko. I would be happy to meet them and talk to them.
