Our people have been raising the bar since day one, thinking fast and acting faster to make an impact that is felt around the world. We challenge and support each other – it’s how we grow.
Listen to several people stories of associates in charge of their own career.
“A native North German, loving the salty winds there but fascinated by the East Asian region and intentionally pursued a career move to the Regional HQ in Singapore.
Being open & flexible to new perspectives has brought me the benefit of broader experiences that help me learn & grow. IT is my passion, having the opportunity to contribute to the growth of the region excites me and makes me go above & beyond in what I do.”
"I started my JDE journey as an intern in the Sales department, where I was involved in several cross-functional projects. That’s when I discovered there’s so much to learn by working in diverse functions, each one can bring unique critical experiences to you. Though I was a bit uncertain at first, my switch to the Marketing team has been a great decision - every day I do something new and exciting, I constantly learn new things and I can leverage my strengths better."
"I wanted to have international experience working abroad. JDE gave me the opportunity to move from Barcelona to Amsterdam. Personally, this challenge got me out of my comfort zone but it also helped me to understand the global strategic approach vs local realities. I had the pleasure to meet many people along the way from different cultures that inspired me."
"My motto is “relationships live in conversations” and I extrapolate this to “careers live in conversations”. During my career, what contributed immensely to my journey from a small plant to regional jobs, from procurement to sales, from innovation to bottom line improvement projects, were the people who listened to me, helping me imagine a future that I didn’t even know I was dreaming about. They saw potential and pushed me to dare, believed in me when I was doubting. Seeking out those advisors was instrumental to my growth."
"I started my JDE journey in the local Dutch business and my last role in NL was at Headquarters. I decided to accept the opportunity in New Zealand as I wanted to move back into the ‘business’. That experience helped me develop as a true finance business partner - a skill I will use in my next role in the UK.
Everything is possible when you are in the driver seat of your career."
"Being in a leadership position with a global scope in a multi-cultural environment was part of my professional aspirations. Based on that I focused my individual development plan to reach this aspiration and received support from everyone throughout the way. The direction of my career is something that will always be under my accountability and I’ve always known I need to invest time & effort to make it happen.
I am confident that such a career leap can only be a great opportunity for personal and professional development while providing meaningful contributions to our business."
"I really enjoy learning new things and meeting new people, so I grasp every opportunity that comes along - that new project, that stretch assignment abroad, etc. Most recently I moved from Finance to a different functional department: Sales. Stepping out of our comfort zone can definitely be scary sometimes. But I try not to let fear be in control and I have learned things only get easier with practice.
My advice: be open to new challenges, go the extra mile and most importantly have fun."
"I wanted to gain new experiences and develop new insights into other parts of our business. So I saw an opportunity to move to the Central Supply Chain, and simply followed the process to make it happen. Actually the biggest challenges I had was leaving the R&D community and my former team. But this change gave me an opportunity to learn a lot along the way by connecting with professionals from other parts of our organisation and getting inspired by how they work and what they do."
"I’ve always been honest with myself and transparent with my managers about the career I want and next steps I am ready to take. I experienced 2 country moves and 3 role changes within the last 5-6 years. During the journey the main driver was to clearly define which things bring you energy, motivation and growth.
Moving to other markets widens your world view, teaches you to look at things from different angles, to be open to other points of view, and most of all - experience different cultures. It could be challenging, but you adjust and stretch yourself in a way that makes you stronger."
"Every day I want to be able to develop and challenge myself at work, so after 2 years as HR BP in Andrézieux I decided to move to an Operations Manager role. Even though the responsibilities are not the same, both roles are actually really complementary to each other. Both require that I stay close to my team, work together with them and be a leader.
In JDE we have the opportunity to stay in the same company yet have different occupation. Yesterday I was supporting the people organisation, today I learn about technology and about leading a team.
The hardest part is getting out of your comfort zone and getting started; but my advice would always be - do it!"