At NOVOPLAST, project managers play an important role in the development and construction of innovative plastic solutions. Among them is Rainer Wiestler, a project manager at NOVOPLAST for more than five years who is very passionate about his job. Far from requiring merely specialist knowledge and a range of professional experience, his job also demands qualities such as resilience, flexibility and creativity. Rainer Wiestler can look back on an exciting, years' long career and brings with him a large backpack filled with valuable experience.
Rainer, how did you get into the plastics industry and your job as a project manager?
Even when I was young, I was sure that I wanted to do a job with a lot of variety. That was also the reason why I became interested in a career as a machine tool technician at the time. After successfully completing my internship, I continued working at the same company, where I spent five years winning my spurs. After that, I felt the time had come to take up my first advanced training course – in this case to become a master toolmaker. In the years that followed, I held various position at Jakob & Partner ranging from design engineer to head of toolmaking. During this period, I completed my first training course to become a technical business economist alongside working. My training allowed me to expand my specialist knowledge while also simultaneously learning a great deal about processes and personnel management. After 25 years in a managerial position, the question came back to me again: "What next?" That's how I found NOVOPLAST in 2016, where I've been working as a project manager ever since.
How can we picture a typical workday for you?
To be honest, that's not an easy question to answer. Each day is different – you never know what to expect. I often oversee multiple projects at once, mostly from the idea stage right up to finished series production. That's why it's not uncommon for one project to proceed smoothly while we're also simultaneously working flat out on another, solving problems, and making decisions. Practically every project encounters obstacles at some point, sometimes smaller ones which can be overcome quickly, but sometimes also larger ones which are a bit more costly in terms of both time and nerves. But they do also sort of go hand in hand. It's precisely because you can't plan for these in advance that flexibility is so important in our profession. This makes our day-to-day work varied and exciting – and that's just right for me.
What do you particularly like about your job?
As I mentioned, my job as a project manager requires a great deal of flexibility. In return, I can organise my own time because, essentially, I'm not tied to time or work processes as you might be familiar with in production, for example. I do, of course, also have to meet deadlines, but on the whole I enjoy a great deal of freedom. If I want, I can go for a walk during my lunch break or even take a longer break. Similarly, there are also days when I work for longer, and sometimes even late at night. What really appeal to me are the challenges I mentioned. Sure, sometimes they have you at your wits' end. But for the most part, I benefit from them by learning, gaining valuable experience and developing myself further. At the same time, in these moments, I also take the opportunity to introduce innovative solutions and ideas.
What's changed over the past few years at NOVOPLAST?
That's a good question, I don't even know where to start. In my opinion, NOVOPLAST has made tremendous progress and developed in a wide variety of areas over the past few years. From a somewhat stuck company arose a modern, innovative organisation of tomorrow. When I started at NOVOPLAST, communication via video conferencing was still unthinkable, yet today we work using modern web-based communication technologies to enable our teams to collaborate virtually. We use tools like Slack and Trello every day and create both transparency and simplicity in our day-to-day work. The way we handle projects in particular has been greatly optimised by this, with cross-departmental collaboration having been promoted as well. We follow new, innovative approaches as well as question and optimise processes again and again while also striving for maximum efficiency.
What in particular do you value about NOVOPLAST AG as an employer?
In addition to a drive for innovation as I just explained, I also appreciate the way the team collaborates like a family. People deal with one another based on mutual respect and trust, which also strengthens both collaboration and cohesion. All for one and one for all – a culture which I value very much and where I feel happy and appreciated. And as the 'icing on the cake', I have a great manager who backs me up and supports me wherever necessary. I get enough freedom to work independently while also being encouraged by him to contribute and try out my own ideas.
Professional career at NOVOPLAST
NOVOPLAST supports employees who want to continue their education and strive for a career. Employees are given one hour a week to further their education via the LinkedIn Learning platform. Everyone can make their own decision as to which areas they currently need and want to develop more expertise in. Employees also receive financial and practical support for their training and further education goals while also being accompanied by experienced NOVOPLAST employees and familiarised with new areas of responsibility.
