Spotlight on Matthew Agius: Reskilling From Design to Electronics Engineering
At DENSO, there are always opportunities for our associates to move around within the organization - after all, we are the makers of mobility! Matthew Agius recently made the move from design engineer to electronics engineering. Here’s what he had to say about reskilling:
“When I was a design engineer in Telematics, I enjoyed my work and team. But the core functionality in a vehicle doesn’t change with each model year, so the system tests and hardware design became repetitive. When my manager came across an opportunity and asked if I’d be interested, I said yes. It was time to try something new and I’m comfortable taking risks.
I sat down with my prospective new director who explained the details of the opportunity – the project, structure and team. And while he warned me that it would be something entirely different than what I’ve done before and I wouldn’t know everything at the start, he was very encouraging that I could do it and would get help from others in the department. Knowing all this, especially the fact that he acknowledged I wouldn’t know everything, as well as spending time openly talking to new team members, helped alleviate my fears and concerns.
Admittedly, I felt unprepared. I wasn’t formally trained on the work I’d be doing. But after making the transfer, another recently transferred associate and I were given a project to gauge what we knew. I’m pretty self-motivated so when I come across a task or area I’m not familiar with, I do some research and teach myself. We successfully completed the project, showing the manager and the team our skills and knowledge. It was a great feeling.
For those considering a transfer, remember, you’ll never be fully comfortable with a job transition and you won’t master the new job right away – you don’t know everything on day one of any job. Be prepared to fail but know your manager and team members will understand and support you.
I feel like making this change will not only be useful to me personally but for DENSO as I can now bring an expanded skillset to my current and future roles. Plus, I get to work with and learn from DENSO associates across the country.”