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Celonaut Spotlight: Nadia Elner, Vice President Product and Engineering Operations, Munich
What makes working in the Product & Engineering Department at Celonis such a unique experience?
I am working with the most motivated and talented people I’ve ever met. In addition, we are growing very fast and as a result face various challenges. We are not scared to set very ambitious goals for ourselves and achieve them as one team (best team wins). I am excited about what every new day will bring, it is never the same and never gets boring.
What makes you proud?
First of all, my team! But I'm just as proud of the product we are developing and the value we bring to our customers.
Which advice would you give to less experienced talents who are just starting their career?
Be curious about everything! Connect with your colleagues both inside and outside of your direct team and learn from their ideas and experience. Do not be shy to ask questions or ask for help if needed. Find a mentor (or even various mentors) who is (are) a role model for you and meet with them on a regular basis.Most importantly, to progress in your career you have to own it. Do not wait for someone else to tell you how it will look. Dare to find the next challenge, take bigger responsibility and propose new ideas.
Which key qualifications should applicants have to join the Product & Engineering Department?
That's an important point! We are hiring and looking for talented people to join us.
Most important is having a proactive and curious mindset, genuinely loving what you are doing and continuously learning to become the best in your field. Regarding experienced candidates we are looking for a record of consistent achievements with high impact. In other words - own what you do and come up with unique, intelligent solutions.
What challenges do you face every day and how do you deal with them?
Every organization has a lot of topics to deal with on a daily basis, new things are popping up frequently and everything might seem to be of top urgency. It is easy to get lost and feel overwhelmed.
Nevertheless, in order to succeed in our fast paced world, I take the time to plan, take a step back and look at the whole picture. This way I can easily identify my top priorities (keeping the list short) and stick to them until successful results are achieved. I believe this is the key to deal with any challenge.
You took over a completely new role and built up a new team. Tell us about your learnings and plan for the future.
That was a special experience. When I started in Celonis, this role didn’t exist before. I came to a green field of possibilities where I could quickly learn what both Product and Engineering organizations needed, clearly see my vision, and start to build my team.
I learnt how challenging it is to start without a team, to fulfil a large and growing scope where many topics require urgent and overdue attention.In such a situation it is tempting to focus only on the speed of hiring.
However, it was clear to me that I need the best people to form an excellent team who will take this journey with me. My plan is to ensure that the Product and Engineering organizations can scale frictionlessly and continue to deliver our top quality products, which bring the greatest value to our customers.
Describe your team at Celonis in three words.
Talented. Ambitious. Motivated.
Which of the Celonis values matters most to you and why?
The Best Team Wins - I genuinely believe that people are the key to success of any organization. We are making sure that our people have everything they need to thrive, succeed and be creative.
Nadia joined Celonis remotely in 2020. With a major in Industrial Engineering and Management focusing on Information Systems she gained previous working experience at Intel corporation and Apple. Nadia speaks English, German, Hebrew and Russian, likes to be active outside and travel the world.
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