• Everyone is responsible for their own career path, was one of the messages to the interns
• The interns were introduced to the company and its values

You are the drivers of your own career development and you are responsible for it. This was one of the messages to the interns of member companies of the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria who visited the „Hewlett Packard Enterprise” Bulgaria headquarters. The company opened its doors for the next event of the young.LEADERS.talk series within the Council’s National Internship Initiative.

During the visit the interns received information about the company and the ways to manage their careers. They were welcomed by Maya Peycheva-Takeva, Country HR manager at „Hewlett Packard Enterprise”. She pointed to the company as a good example how one can work in Bulgaria but in international corporate environment. “In our daily work we are acting according to three values – partnership, innovation, action”, stated Ani Artinyan, HR expert. She and her colleague Georgi Yanakiev, manager “Work process and projects” gave important advice for career development. Yanakiev himself has changed many positions within the company which gave him the opportunity for learning and development.

“You are the drivers of your career development. The company defines the framework, the managers should support you but you are responsible for your career”, said Ani Artinyan. In her opinion the career path is not necessarily an upward movement and could be also a horizontal one. She also showed the career development stages – learning, doing, improving and moving.

Artinyan recommended to the young people to take time to analyze their professional desires, to discuss them with their families and friends, and always to look for feedback.

For over an hour the interns asked many questions, received individual answers and practical tips how to manage their careers. The participants thanked the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria for the young.LEADERS.talk meetings.

For the fourth consecutive year, the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria has been organizing the National Internship Initiative “Stay in Bulgaria”. The program is oriented towards the youngest professionals and will enable them once again to prove their qualities and skills, to get involved into the real business and to find opportunities for development along with suitable environment and a stimulus for their professional realization in Bulgaria. The initiative is under the patronage of Mrs. Eva Maydell, MEP.

In 2018 the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria launched its Young.LEADERS.talk series which takes place within the Council’s National Internship Initiative. Its purpose is to enable young people to meet their role models – political leaders, managers and young professionals who started their own careers as interns, as well as to visit some of the largest companies in Bulgaria.  In this way young people have the opportunity to get familiar with the business world and to learn how companies are organized and how they operate.