CAREER HISTORY
Zsolt Szőllős
Project management and preparation manager
“Bekomold is the peak of the profession in Hungary. Whatever we do, we do well.”
I started at Bekomold as a student in 2009. While writing my thesis, I also helped out with the technology, and then slowly got involved in other work. Among other things, my task was to develop the basics of scheduling – which did not exist as a separate department in the company at that time – which is very significant for me because the work of the scheduling team is still based on this Excel database – now with a software solution. In fact, even my German colleagues use the Excel tables I came up with back then, albeit in a different form. So, I definitely left my “fingerprint” as a student, which I still see today, 13 years later. One day, the managing director at the time came to the technology department with the idea of developing a system to better track which part belonged to which tool. Then I pulled out a colourful little chart that clearly showed everything. As everything went through me at the technology department, I was confused by the opacity of it all, so I sorted everything in order. Maybe that is why he noticed me, and shortly afterwards I was offered a job as a PM assistant in project management. At first, I was only dealing with spare parts, after six months I got my first tool, and after about a year I moved on from assistant to project manager.
I worked in this job for 7 years, and then, thanks to my systems approach and organisational skills, I was appointed head of the preparation team that was being established at the time. Since 2018, this role of mine has been extended to include the management of the project management team. So, now I am responsible for one of the most complex areas: production preparation, customer contact and final approval processes. Not to mention the fact that as a manager I deal with people, and the teams I work with, from designers to project managers, are made up of very different – sometimes extreme – types of people. In order to ensure that make things run smoothly, I try to approach things from the person’s point of view. Anyone is able to to put together standard processes and rules, but the biggest challenge and the most important thing is to get people to work well together, to make it important for them to make sure that a project is a success. This means maintaining cooperation and communication between them, which is one of the biggest challenges for managers.
I have held a lot of positions, and it has not always been easy to fit in and be accepted. For example, as a technologist in my early twenties, measuring cycle times with a stopwatch in hand while the production staff were working did not make my job any easier. But my managers have always been satisfied with me, we have been happy to work together, and I have always been able to count on their support. The management is one of my main supports. My other major pillar are the team leaders I work together with.
I have grown a lot professionally in 13 years. This is natural when you are a student immersed in the life of a manufacturing company, but I would say it is my personality that has developed the most because I have come a long way in the meantime.
I like to work here. I love my job, I love the people, I love this environment. I feel like I am at home here.
I have had many memorable moments at the company: shared experiences with colleagues, team-building events, and I also met my wife here, which for me makes it a familial environment.
Why would you recommend the company to others?
On the one hand, Bekomold is a stable company that has been around for more than 30 years and will continue to do so for a long time. We have been through all sorts of crises and we have not really felt them in terms of turnover or the amount of work; we have always had a lot of work. On the other hand, Bekomold is the peak of the profession in Hungary. Not because other companies could not do what we do; but whatever we do, we do well. Our professionalism rivals that of German tool-making companies. There is room for development within the company, and everyone can develop according to their own interests and strengths. We work with the latest technologies and the latest machines that keep us at the forefront of the world. The management is united, we have a common goal and we are heading in the same direction, which is reflected in the operation of the company. This is what makes us successful.
