My first few weeks at Hitachi Solutions Portugal

In the past few months, I've read substantially on topics around comfort zones and how, to be a better version of yourself, you should always look to leave your comfort zone by taking a leap of faith. It's interesting to see increasing amounts of online content surrounding this very topic. I believe in something slightly different. Maybe we shouldn’t be looking at leaving our comfort zones but rather expanding them.

Having just recently moved to Porto, I could not be more impressed with the positive vibe of this city. People are nice, people are welcoming, people are warm, people are... People! And that's what makes this city what it is today - one of the most desired cities to visit in Europe with tremendous energy, great food and outstanding sight-seeing - and of course, a great place to settle in.

Personally, I just had a euphoric last few weeks: My first week at Hitachi Solutions commencing in the Porto offices and getting to know the Portuguese team. I’m still getting used to the new offices, but everyone here seems really focused and invested in making sure everything is tidy and ready for the weeks to come.

Later in the week, I had the pleasure of visiting London and our offices at Tower 42; a huge building with such a great view over the city that certainly energized me to meet the leadership team with everybody involved in putting this project together. I then sat down with my new manager and developed a clear and defined 6-month career development plan. We then closed out the week with a summer garden event enjoying some nice pizza, beer and DJ by the Fountain Court on what turned out to be a well relaxed evening.

I was back in Porto for my second week to welcome some new joiners, whom much like me seem to be overwhelmed with so many new faces to put names to but all to be expected from a new company! The week began at a sensational pace with the Learning and Development program kicking off. With all the energy on learning and exploring floating through the air, I ended up participating in a global TDGI Hackathon around Dynamics and the Power Platform with a very successful team. I was fortunate enough to work alongside the Portuguese team and with some great folks around Europe and the World!

Hitachi Solutions invests deeply in its people and therefore on company expansion, having created a fantastic place to work in one of the most central areas Porto has to offer. The office is not only amazing for its informal open space but for the little details that people who sit there every day are most dedicated to the comfort of its people. Some examples of this are:

• There's a lovely outdoor wood terrace where I've witnessed some creative workplace activities:
  • People having unscheduled meetings to brainstorm some idea
  • Having lunch as small groups with people you haven't met before
  • Enjoy a beautiful sunset after hours (I won't confirm nor deny whether drinks were a part of it)
  • Enjoying some well-cooked burgers on a barbecue that is installed on the terrace for Hitachi "chefs"
• At the office entrance, there's a Dream Wall where people post their favourite personal photos with a brief description around who they are. It's sort of a describe yourself in 3 words, which has been very helpful with so many new faces around!
• We're building up a colourful wall where people will be able to randomly add post-its with their thoughts, ideas and thank you messages all around the office

Hitachi is a Japanese company, expanded through Hitachi Solutions to the UK as a British company and further to Porto by hiring Portuguese locals, turning it into a combined force of different yet surprisingly synergistic cultural aspects; You may want to work early to enjoy an amazing sunset at the end of the day, take yourself up a journey on multiple office locations to work with people from all across the world or take the opportunity to work with innovative technology by implementing Business Solutions/Apps in some of the biggest organizations in the world. All while enjoying harmony within your team and a structured career plan to be able to challenge yourself daily.

Moving to a new job, being a part of a new, growing team in a program that focuses solely on developing careers through a challenging pace and evolves according to people's goals has been a great pleasure for me. Looking ahead, I'm eager to participate further in the planned growth for Hitachi Solutions Portugal and supporting our path where Learning with and Developing our people is the number one priority. All while ensuring they strive to extend their limits and expand their comfort zones, thus being better versions of themselves every single day.

If you want to find out more about how to join our growing team then visit our careers page.

Speak to our team today.