PROJECT ENGINEER, HITACHI ENERGY

My name is Siti Munirah and I joined Hitachi Energy’s predecessor in 2011. I started my career as a graduate trainee in the High Voltage Products Business Unit and as such I underwent a year of training before being given the responsibility of Project Engineer. I am primarily responsible for sales support, project management and supporting the service team during their sales activities. Besides assisting the service team, part of my responsibilities also includes managing projects assigned to me.

In 2011, we were in the early stages of business operations in Malaysia, and the High Voltage Products team was a relatively lean team. As the first female engineer, I was pleasantly surprised upon joining the team, as I had the wrong notion that office-based tasks were done and managed only by female employees. 

Here in Hitachi Energy, all tasks are shared equally among the team members, regardless of gender - from project management and scheduling to sales documentation, from purchasing and logistics to internal audits, and arranging materials and high-voltage equipment for customer sites; every team member is involved. My colleagues are very supportive, and they made sure to help me along the way. I also got many opportunities to tag along with them, meeting customers and observing their site work.

With all the collaboration and caring spirit, the team was more like a family. Communication within the team was always open and being from different positions within the company, never stopped anyone from getting involved and sharing their opinions and suggestions. It gave me the confidence to take up new tasks and I started seeing complex tasks as a bonus. I saw it as an opportunity to challenge myself and polish my soft skills further.

This environment gave me a lot of positive vibes and because of this, I started achieving good business results in just two years. I am extremely proud of this since I felt that my efforts and struggles had finally paid off.

Being in the High Voltage Products Business Unit, I was exposed to many sales and after-sales solutions in the power industry. Everything must be on point, fast, informative, and competitive in the power industry. Good customer engagement is essential, so that they can be updated timely on the latest products and solutions to receive our full support.

To women out there, don’t be afraid to try and take on challenges if you want to start your career in the power industry. It does have a place for us to fit in and change the stereotypical working perception in this industry. I can truthfully say that having us women in the workplace will add a lot of value by contributing our thoughts and support, including adding a bit of cheerfulness along the way.