My name is Miriam and I work for market communications at the Hamburg site. What I like about my job is the variety of the tasks and the exciting people around the world that I deal with. But the way to get there was not easy. In 2017, my former employer, Dr. Straetmans became part of Evonik. The integration of the company and the workforce was a major effort for everyone involved and I confess for me, too. To be transferred from a formerly owner-managed medium-sized company with family structures to a group does not happen overnight. Sometimes I felt like a beginner who had to start over completely.  

But many new colleagues and positive moments have encouraged me not to give up and to look forward. It took time, sometimes it was even very painful to say goodbye to known structures and to people, but in retrospect, it was worth it.  

If I have learned one thing, it is the fact that life means change. Nothing is for eternity and you can never rest in your comfort zone. In order to arrive, it was important to come to terms with all changes and innovations, while still advocating for certain values and structures in order to maintain a part of the corporate culture. Today, I see advantages in being able to look at the Group with a differentiated view and I also see the many advantages that a group offers. You just have to take your chances, take action and accept the changes. I appreciate my job of working with many different people in different locations, the diverse perspectives and the changing tasks. "Change" means something positive to me, because it makes you stronger and encourages self-reflection, even in my private life. I wish all future Evonik colleagues a dose of courage, it is worth it!