Working all around the world

October 25, 2019

Working as a consultant in a multicultural company makes you get out of your comfort zone every day. At your home base, but also and especially working on-site. There is this known concept, that it is when you are out of your comfort zone, that you learn the most about yourself. I would add to that, that you also learn about others.

One of the first benefits I see when I look at my experiences, is that working on projects in different regions gives you a unique and personal portfolio. Among other things, as a consultant your expertise is mainly based on the different experiences you make through the years. Each project has its particularities. Thus, by working in different parts of the world, you are able to gather a diverse range of practical knowledge. Innovation put aside, this combination of practical know-how is useful and bringing together all experiences helps you to propose a range of solutions and eventually find the one fitting best – for the client and the current project.

Not only do you gather practical knowledge. Working in this type of environment also means, that you have the advantage of constantly meeting new people, discovering new ways of working and challenging yourself by doing so. Meeting new people from a different culture in a work environment is demanding at first and can stay challenging through the life cycle of the project, if you do not react accordingly. You need, no you MUST adapt.

By being assigned abroad, you are on the one hand confronted with a new working-culture of a company. On the other hand, you are also confronted with the culture of the country you are in. Despite being challenging, this situation has plenty of benefits which I particularly enjoy. This situation does not only give you a great opportunity to develop your stakeholder management skills but also your resilience.

The key is not to come with prejudiced ideas but to understand how your counterparts work and how you can adapt yourself to them without losing who you are. Fighting the culture/codes difference will not help. It is critical to embrace it and to understand how to make your way around it. If not, it will be most likely a failure.

The work environment, particularly within airports, is changing rapidly. Working as a consultant, especially at MAI, gives you the possibility to develop skills and knowledge that will enable you to grow personally and to deal with those rapid changes – in private as well as in your professional life.