Learning by doing
I was born in the North-Eastern part of India where I grew up with my mother, 2 brothers and a sister. In India, people are warm and kind, and the food is amazing. I love to cook and use many recipes from my late mother. I grew up in a former British colony, and the infrastructure and possibilities are not on the same level as in other parts of India. To get a good education I had to leave home to attend an engineering college 3500 km away from home. It was tough but worth it.
Even before graduation, I was recruited by IBM and had the opportunity to gain experience in a globally well-known company. For four years I worked in Bangalore. Still very far from home but gaining more knowledge and experience every day. I did not like the hierarchic structure very much. People tend to agree when they really disagree, or they do not voice a solution for diplomatic reasons or even fear. The first time I travelled abroad revealed a lot, I soon figured out that there are different ways of working. IBM had placed me on a project at KPN in the Netherlands, and I loved it. The Dutch way of working is very transparent and straightforward. You are allowed to speak up, better still you must. Especially at IMCD, initiative is encouraged, and thinking outside of the box is applauded. Even when you make a mistake you just share it, we fix, and learn from it.
Not only did I fall in love with the country I met a nice French guy as well. Today it has been 6.5 years already, living by the sea, a daughter of 5 and a full-time job as integration developer in the IMCD IT team. Yes, I suppose all mums say it’s a lot of juggling but in our case my partner would say exactly the same thing. We really do it together as a team.
Dijenliu Gangmei
Integration Developer
At IMCD I can just jump in go for it
When I first joined, the team made me feel very welcome. Harmony is important, not just output, skills and knowledge, personalities should click. I had the ambition to join a product driven company and work from start to end on a project. I was drawn to the stability and room for growth. Today my role is diverse, from integrating applications and developing business processes for our customers, suppliers, and supply chain partners.
What is particularly appealing to me is that I can partly shape my own role, we discuss projects and challenges and if I have a good suggestion, I can just go for it. Apart from IT development I have also taken up some new development tasks, this is challenging as they gently push me out of my comfort zone and provide room for growth. We are in the middle of the digitalisation journey; this provides a wealth of opportunities, and we are all encouraged to grasp them. At IMCD we go fast, we are not delayed by a mountain of rules, we just get the people together and go for it, all whilst acting responsibly and with internal alignment.
At home, our kitchen is the most vibrant space
My partner also works in IT. Some of our friends don’t understand, and think were geeks, guess that’s partly true but I don’t mind. At the dinner table we talk about specific challenges and present solutions to each other. Our little daughter might turn into an IT wizard listening to all this shop talk, but she can be anything she wants to be, we are just equipping her with the right life skills.
I bring home spices from India, infusing our family kitchen with scents from home. Expressing my affection through food is dear to me. Making time for things that matter in life is important, inviting friends and family and enjoying good food together is one of my favourite things.
Dijenliu Gangmei
Integration Developer
