| Written by Mark Buzinkay
Say hello to Sebastian, who is my guest today.
Mark: Hi Sebastian, thank you for joining us and talking about your job and your experiences with Identec Solutions.
Sebastian: Hi Mark, thanks for giving me the opportunity!
Mark: Welcome! As always, I ask my guests first to tell our readers where you live and how this place looks like.
Sebastian: Sure. I live in Lustenau near the city center, enjoying a nice little flat. The place is very close located to some grocery shops, pharmacy, banks and other services for daily needs. I also like the short distance to our company building. If the weather isn’t to bad, I ride my bike to the office. In summer-time at least. My dad gave me his old city bike, I think the brand is KTM. It's good enough for short distances. We have a car and bike garage in the basement at the office and I use our Crew Companion transponder as access key to get in.
Mark: You probably work yourself on these Crew Companion tags. But tell our readers a bit about some interesting aspects of your career.
Sebastian: Well, I graduated the HTL (technical school) in Bregenz in 2008. After that, I completed a 6-month internship here at IDENTEC SOLUTIONS, before doing my civil service at the Red Cross. I started studying at the University of Graz, but soon I realized I preferred to work again started looking for a job. Guess what, my former boss called me and asked me if I am interested to work again - for IDENTEC SOLUTIONS. Ha, I work here for almost 12 years now!
Mark: You impressed your former boss! What exactly do you do at IDENTEC SOLUTIONS?
Sebastian: My department is called Operations/Production. I am responsible for our products, beginning with the incoming inspection (for instance the quality check, swap into stock, and writing incoming inspection reports) and ending with the shipment to our end customers. This includes special configurations, assembling of hardware, delivery notes, invoices, and packing of the products. We also do the RMA (return material authorization) process here. It is part of the process of returning a product to receive a refund, replacement or repair during the product’s warranty period.
Mark: You mentioned you work for IDENTEC SOLUTIONS for 12 years now. What do you like the most about your job?
Sebastian: I am definitely very happy about the working atmosphere here at our department. First, the variety of tasks we are confronted with. Working never gets boring here. And we have some gaming enthusiasts in the company too. Someone brought a gaming console to use the breaks playing Mario Kart, and everyone participates in a competition race of four. Watching them shouting and cursing is as much fun as playing.
Mark: Talking about work – do you have a guiding principle?
Sebastian: Hmm... I would say: “quality before quantity”. Products of excellent quality will make our customers happy, and they will buy again. You sell bad quality only once.
Mark: Yes, that would be very short-sighted! At IDENTEC SOLUTIONS, we have five core company values – Visionary, Open, Responsible, Leading and Global. Which one is for you the most significant and how do you live it?
Sebastian: The most significant value for me is being “responsible”. We are responsible for the quality of our products and must make sure that they are operating 100% at our end customers’ installations. With high quality, optimally operating products, which are installed on different sites, it is also easier to acquire new potential customers. Also in our personal lives, there are many situations where we encounter responsibility. Taking care of a child/a pet or properly finishing a difficult task in the office are just some examples where I deal with responsibility.
Mark: I see. My second last question is: “What is the most rewarding part of your job?”
Sebastian: For me it is to experience in how many different industries we work and that we can make the life of our customers much easier and safer, for instance our tags for miners. I’ve never been in a mine or other installations of our customers, but our Sales guys show us pictures from products in action. We sometimes get the chance to visit our suppliers and see how the production of our components works and how new equipment is tested.
Mark: And finally, a few words about your favorite things in your private time.
Sebastian: In my free time I love to spend time with my daughter and see her grow up. I am an active person and do some sports like running, fitness, sledging, ice skating, and playing soccer. Hiking is maybe my favorite activity. I like secluded places with not to many people around. The less the better. Here in Vorarlberg you have a wide range of such places. There is a nice trail up to the “Zitterklapfen”, but do not try to go up on a weekend. It’s a very narrow, sometimes unsecured ascent. The more famous ones like the Piz Buin or the Wildspitze (in Tyrol) can get busy when the weather is optimal, despite you are crossing glaciers to get to the top!
Mark: I guess you’ll have to visit our office in Kristiansand, Norway and take a ride further north for almost empty landscapes and untouched mountains! Thank you very much for our talk, Sebastian, and enjoy the mountains wherever you are!
Sebastian: Thanks Mark!
