Success stories

Tell us briefly about yourself and your current position at BODE. How did you come to BODE?

My name is Albert, I am 47 years old and I am currently working as a Lean Manager at BODE in Poland. I started my professional journey within BODE as an Account Manager. At a time when there was no project management department, I was committed to setting one up. I quickly took over the management of the project management department. Over time, strategic projects were implemented, including the construction of a new warehouse building. At the same time, I was appointed Strategic Project Manager and founded the Lean Management department, which I still head today. I will shortly be taking on another new role at BODE, this time as head of the planning department, due to my previous involvement in production planning.

Could you give us an overview of your professional career?

I started my career in a Japanese company. After two years, I was sent to Japan where I worked as a production engineer and also acted as a link to improve communication between the head office in Japan and the European factories. At the end of my three-year contract, I moved to the position of design engineer and soon worked at the Toyota Technical Center in Toyota City (Japan). After another four years, I moved to Toyota Motors Europe, based in Brussels (Belgium), to develop parts for vehicles to be manufactured in France, the UK and Turkey due to continued projects.

When I started my career abroad, I was 28 years old. Before I returned to Poland, I was 39 years old, married and had 2 children who were big enough to go to school. As they spoke French better than Polish, I decided to close the "Toyota" chapter and return to Poland. Working at BODE was an obvious choice as I live in Rawicz.

What tasks are part of your daily work routine?

My daily tasks at BODE include 5S audits, Gemba walks, coordination of Kaizen implementation and employee training. My main goal is to improve production efficiency, which is why I support the production planning team. No two days are the same and I enjoy the new challenges. As a project manager, or now as a lean manager, I work with different departments on a daily basis and enjoy the close cooperation.

Is there a project at BODE that you particularly enjoyed working on? Why?

Setting up the new department was one of the projects I really liked. I was happy that I could use my experience from my work in Japan and implement some lean solutions at BODE.

Is there an experience within the team that you particularly remember?

One fond memory I have of my team is when I was given a bonus for my teamwork as head of the project management department. As a thank you for their commitment, I decided to use this bonus for a trip with my entire team to an escape room. I thought it would be a good team-building activity. And indeed, we had a very nice and fun day.

What values are particularly important to you and how are they reflected in your work?

Personally, I like working with people who are professional, take responsibility and have a problem-solving approach. I find these qualities in my colleagues at BODE and it makes the work a lot more enjoyable.

What advice would you give to new employees who are just starting at BODE?

I would recommend new employees to talk to other colleagues. Use the knowledge and experience of others to understand the best way to work. Also ask what the expectations of your superiors are. Show your commitment and share your ideas.

In addition, be willing to learn new things and find (and solve) the root cause of problems. Continuously improve your processes. Be consistent and persistent, but also open-minded.

Our company is constantly evolving. It is very interesting to see how the company grows and how new technologies are developed and introduced. I hope that everyone is satisfied with their work and performance.