Andreea Emilia Simon, Continuous Improvement Manager – Office Depot SSC
“I love my job!” All of us aspire to say and truly mean those powerful words. If your work brings you joy, if you feel proud of what you accomplished and if you feel the need to share with others the innovative way you manage to complete a challenge, you are on the right path to do just that, love your job.
My favourite project, ongoing for many years in Office Depot, is Idea Box, a quarterly competition in which anyone from the company that has an idea on how to improve a process can share it with the entire company while also having the chance to win a prize. Our employees have the chance to make a powerful impact and they become “Improvement ambassadors” along the way. Although 2020 is a challenging year for all companies, we have seen a significant increase in the number of ideas submitted and innovative thinking along the way. We believe this shows how engaged and connected we are, even in the most outstanding circumstances.
The most amazing part about this project is that the ideas don’t remain just written pieces of genius, but they materialize and transform the way we see things. In order to have all those brilliant ideas come to life, we have a strong Process Improvement team in place. Our technical knowledge only increases with each challenge; we grow stronger together. Even older projects are being revised and developed further; improvements have no limits.
At the end of the day, our reward is not only focused on ROI or automation but the excitement we see in all our colleagues when a process was improved because they took the time to think like there is no box.
Alexandra Iacob, Project Analyst
What exactly are you doing in your current role (and how did you start)?
It started with the phrase “Think like there is no box” – my journey to developing a continuous improvement mindset. Looking back to when I first joined Office Depot in 2013, I understand I was lucky: the company already had a self-sufficient, highly engaged Process Improvement team and strongly established improvement platforms such as the Idea Box Competition.
I have migrated through different roles within Office Depot, always keeping the Process Improvement team and mentality in the centre of my actions. At the beginning of this year, I officially joined the team, having a range of tasks more than dynamic I would say : from ad-hoc interventions on request for different fixes, mainly related to already implemented tools of automation, to conception and development of strategies that globalize a continuous improvement culture.
What are the activities that bring you great joy?
I wanted to list those specific projects that are exciting to me. Reading the question, a second time, I realized my answer is related not to the processes we improve, but to my colleagues’ reaction , that “aha moment”, when they see the consequences of the improvement that was made.
What challenges have you faced so far?
Every day should bring a new challenge. And if it does not, we should look for them, find the provocation and turn it into an opportunity.
Tell us about the most unique experience/project implemented in your current position.
The Process Improvement Academy was my window towards the continuous improvement mindset I mentioned above. I joined as a mentee in the first edition and developed to a mentorship role at present time.
The Academy is one of the talent development programmes hosted by our company – it is amazing how such an initiative can develop and become a key component of success. Each year, 5-8 mentees are selected and undergo intensive mentorship and coaching sessions, advanced training modules and shadowing opportunities to understand other processes under the umbrella of our SSC.
When you explain to your parents/family what you do at work, how would you do it?
I would show them how improvement works, a before and after example.
What do you consider to be trends in your domain?
Automation and growth brought together. Simplifying business processes and global competitiveness.
What are you doing to ensure you continue to grow and develop in the pioneering work?
My solution here is exposure. I work on building an end to end understanding of our business, by partnering in projects with a high diversity of people.
Paula Afaneh, Project Analyst
What exactly are you doing in your current role (and how did you start)?
I am part of a 3 people team whose purpose is continuous improvement of the processes within the company. I started working at Office Depot a few years ago, in the AR department. My curiosity and the fact I enjoy learning is what brought me to this team. It just felt natural to apply when the position opened.
What are the activities that bring you great joy?
I started learning VBA a few months ago and I really enjoy it. Excel macros save you time and headaches by automating common, repetitive or complex tasks and I actually enjoy creating them.
I simply find relaxing to translate people’s requirements into code and it is quite rewarding when you tell them that instead of dealing with something for a few hours, they can now just click a button and the macro does everything for them.
What challenges have you faced so far?
If I had to single out something, I’d say working with people, getting them to understand what is important and what is waste, why change is helpful, not scary is the most challenging part of every project, at least for myself.
Lock me in a room with my laptop for hours and I am happy- put me in a half hour meeting, and I’ll leave exhausted.
Tell us about the most unique experience/project implemented in your current position.
We had a campaign called „Process Improvement in Real Life”, just after we started working from home. The purpose was to raise morale and encourage people to think about process improvement ideas at work. We gather all the emails we’ve received on the subject and created a little magazine called „Office Depot Anthology of Life Hacks”.
Putting the magazine together was challenging, but also fun, and I could let my creativity loose.
When you explain to your parents/family what you do at work, how would you do it?
Corporate jobs are hard to explain as it is. In my particular case, the fact that we do a lot of different things- from delivering trainings to automating certain processes to organizing an annual company-wide competition- makes it even harder.
My mum came to visit one day and I was working from home, so I actually tried to show her. It helped a bit, I think, but I usually just tell people “It’s complicated” and change the subject.
What do you consider to be trends in your domain? Please list 3.
Change is definitely a trend, automation and continuous improvement.
What are you doing to ensure you continue to grow and develop in the pioneering work?
Be curious, never say something cannot be done until you I try everything I can think of.