That's how Philips has shaped me. I have been with this organisation for almost 2 years now, since the time I was a management trainee in the Business Leadership Program. I have developed professionally and personally into someone who, instead of taking the manager's word as the final verdict, has learnt to commandeer from the driver's seat.
When I entered my first full-time employment with Philips, I was given responsibility way beyond what I had expected. Before starting the role, I had no prior work experience, save for the 2-month internship I undertook at Philips while I was in college. I assumed that with my lack pf experience, I would be more of a “do-er” than a “decision-maker”. My manager had different ideas though. She constantly pushed me to pick up things on my own, and encouraged me to drive my projects and own them from start to finish, all while providing support if I needed any assistance. In all my projects with Philips so far, I have had the opportunity to propose my own ideas and challenge the views of others. On many occasions when expected these conversations to be fronted by someone more experienced, I was pleasantly surprised when I was asked to take the lead. My manager always backed me up and encouraged me to get my hands dirty and make decisions courageously. I was initially more of a “Yes man”, carefully considering the opinions of others and not really voicing my own. She noticed this and told me, “Raga, you're not being paid to agree with me. You're being paid to do your job well”, and that has been etched in my mind ever since.
