Taking the Hot Seat

I am now officially job hunting after my last fixed term assignment ended last week. I have to admit that I do pat myself on the back whenever my CV or application makes it through the millions of job seekers to the job interview. This is then followed by the anxiety of having to take the hot seat for the intense and thorough interrogation and cross examination of my past, present, future, and even the hypothetical self. Unlike most people, I do not dread this moment as years of lecturing and public speaking mean that I am quite comfortable being in the limelight and thinking on my feet.

What the interview does, however, is to help me reflect on who I am in terms of personality, and what I would like to be. Obviously, there are those competency based questions that get repeated every now and then and for which in my wisdom I have done enough soul searching to formulate my responses to them. We all know all those questions that begin with "Tell me a time when ...". However, once in a while I do get very reflective questions that almost throw me a bit off balance. These are the questions I keep pondering over even long after I have vacated the hot seat. Sometimes, the curious questions emanate from my CV which tell my life stories with career switches, territorial moves, and openness.  I thought I would address some of them here.

1. What's your plan in the long run?

I see myself as a sustainability and project management professional. This, at least, is my aspiration. Sustainability here is meant to mean continuity or keeping going. It includes environmental, economic, and social components. It covers business process improvement, resource efficiency, long term planning, options appraisal and new product development. Project management provides the tools that enable processes to be transparent and logical. I believe that all the skills and lessons that I am acquiring are all coming together for this common good.

2. How did you end up in the energy sector?

Well, I think I have always been interested and curious about the origin of stuff. This interest intensified during the lecturing years on sustainable tourism and sustainable development. I thought I wanted to explore the whole subject in greater details. It became an obsession that would not go away. So I decided to pursue a master's degree in sustainable energy and environment at Cardiff University after much research. It was a choice I was very happy with. Apart from the technical, social and economic aspects of sustainable energy, other areas that were explored included waste and water management, and sustainable development and thinking. Obviously, after my studies I have had various roles involving stakeholder management, consulting, business development, and project management.

3. How did you end up in a PMO?

Well, I had an unplanned opportunity to work in a Programme Management Office as a Senior Coordinator and I embraced it. Strategically, it fits into my sustainability agenda. The PMO did a lot of research on best practice and developed tools, templates and guidelines to help the project management community. The tools would ensure that projects are well planned, risks are identified and managed, issues are addressed, and that project budgets are appropriately assigned to deliver value for money. This will ensure that projects with unsound business case are not started, and that the governance structure in place can take actions if projects are derailed or will no longer deliver the required benefits. Talking about benefits, the PMO will also ensure that there is a long term benefits realization plan long after the project is over. This is real sustainability in practice!

Of course, there are so many other questions I find challenging such as "what is the biggest challenge you have ever faces? ". At the end of the day, I see the whole process not just as a public enquiry tribunal but also an opportunity to see what the employers consider important. To my amazement, many seem to be looking for people who can challenge the status quo, change people's mind, and open to criticism and feedback-all of which I think I am very comfortable with.

There is so much fun in the process but at the end of the day, all I am waiting to hear is that final whistle to say you are hired!