Would you share with us how the story with you and the ISAM program started?

After 6 years working with supply chain, I wanted a commercial/marketing position and decided to pursue my masters in marketing abroad. When I came back to Brazil, I started to work at Evonik as Customer Service and since working abroad has always been a dream, ISAM was exactly the match of what I was looking for, international experience on the marketing area.

Looking back – what will be always special to you during your assignment?

It is difficult to pick one highlight of such a rich experience, but so far, I would say my first assignment working for technology and infrastructure in Germany. Learning the culture in a different area of work was a huge challenge and completely out of my comfort zone, learning the culture in a different area of work, but it had good feedback and outcomes. After this experience I learned that it is always possible to learn something from scratch and now I feel more confident to face new challenges in my career.

What would you consider the biggest challenge during this time?

I believe that mentioning the fact of living this experience in the pandemic times cannot be avoided. I had an assignment in the Parsippany office, and I was having an amazing experience. Although when the social isolation measures were put in place and the office was closed, I made the decision to leave the US and continue my assignment from my home country, where I would feel safer and more comfortable. It was a complicated decision, but I had good support and understanding from my assignment managers/coordinators.

Why is working internationally such a precious experience and helps you to grow?

An international experience definitely helps you to grow not only professionally, but also personally. To share some advice, I would say it is very important to be flexible, resilient, open, understanding and willing to work hard. Challenges will be part of the path and if you face them with the right attitude you will always learn and get the best experience out of it.  

What makes ISAM such a special program?

The ISAM program is one of the Evonik programs that are open for candidates of all countries. I believe this is what makes it so special, in that it offers the opportunity of development in the company and an international career for all regions.

Taking a look on your professional career - how is ISAM supporting your next steps?

I believe that ISAM opens a lot of doors within the company, providing a good network and developing your abilities to communicate and build relationships in different hierarchical levels. The international experience definitely prepares you and develops skills for working in the most different environments culturally and business wise.