Agile goal setting with Santosh Sharma
Today we are featuring Santosh whose current role is pivotal in driving flydocs’ new approach to agile goal setting.
Meet Santosh Sharma, our Project Manager.
We had a conversation with Santosh to learn more about his current role, his biggest highlights and what he would like to see implemented at flydocs.
What is your role at flydocs?
I am a Project Manager and my role is to facilitate the OKR methodology, which is a goal-setting methodology driven by outcomes. Additionally, I also keep teams aligned with the new approach to our company strategy and assist them with their projects.
How does your role enable collaboration across the business? In what way does collaboration make a difference in how you serve your customers?
I feel my previous job role in the Product Support team and now in the OKRs team have both allowed me to collaborate with internal and external clients to bring tranquillity to work. Both these roles have been instrumental in closing the gap, allowing me to collaborate and work closely with different departments, teams with a very diverse group of people.
Being a part of the OKRs, I have found find a great connection between collaboration and transparency which has led to the empowering our employees, who understand their role in the business and also helps the business in understanding the needs of employees.
What makes flydocs your People Partner of Choice?
The opportunities flydocs has given me, the trust my managers and leaders have shown in me has allowed me to grow maturely in the organisation and as a person.
How does your role contribute to flydocs becoming the Asset Solution Partner of Choice?
In my previous role in the Product Support team, my team and I were responsible for quick query resolution and to solve any problems faced by our clients, which fed into the client satisfaction and contributing towards becoming the Asset Solution Partner of Choice (ASPOC).
In comparison, my current job role requires me to collaborate and align with all the stakeholders contributing to ASPOC and facilitating teams with working together to become the ASPOC.
Can you tell us about your most memorable highlight at flydocs?
I remember being very nervous when I had to present at our very first offline Townhall meeting India in 2019. I had to speak about the new Agile culture and to introduce the pilot Agile teams to our organisation globally. I spoke to some of my colleagues for advice on calming my nerves, and what stands out for me is our CEO Andre Fischer telling me that “this kind of opportunity does not come again and again. We believe in you, so go for it”.
I overcame my fear and even though I spoke with a shivering voice, hands and feet, that was the best thing that happened to me. I have since gained a lot of confidence in public speaking and regularly present to our organisation globally.
What has been your biggest lesson during your time at flydocs?
Do not be afraid of any new opportunity coming your way. Just grab it. It is the experience that matters. The rest will be history. No work is too big or small as it’s the learning you receive along the way which matters the most.
What was your favourite project, initiative or assignment you were part of during your time at flydocs and why?
My favourite project was building the Product Support team. It was the first major task that I had taken up and had its own different set of challenges. All the lessons learnt from this project have helped me during the introduction of OKRs in the organisation.
If you could choose one theme to turn into a book about flydocs what would it be? If you can choose only three words to describe flydocs with, what would it be?
Book Type: Biography, Book Name: The Actual Daydream
Words that describe flydocs for me: Flexible, Challenging, Innovative
Not quite three words, but more three phrases to describe flydocs for me would be ‘dream job’, ‘flexible culture’ and ‘diverse teams’.
What would you like your legacy at flydocs to be?
My legacy would be the person who created a whole new team from the ground-up in the Product Support department.
I would like to be remembered as the person who facilitated the OKR culture into flydocs, especially because OKRs encourage collaboration. The methodology asks us to get away from our siloed nature and embrace the contribution of other teams as well.
Finally, I would like to be remembered as a person who was agile and flexible enough to fit in different shoes when the organisation needed him.
How do you balance your career at flydocs and life outside of work?
I have a simple rule: Give everything in the 8 hours so that I do not have to take any work home. I also have my notifications switched off for Outlook on my mobile and have not installed any other MS Office apps on my personal device.
When I’m with family and friends, it’s their time so they get my full attention. When at work, they do not call or message me unless it is super urgent.
Interestingly, this is where the employee wellbeing and work-life balance initiatives offered by flydocs supports this balance.
Remote working is more prevalent now more than ever. What are some lessons you have learnt about working remotely?
That I can prepare tea and be on a call with colleagues at the same time.
On a serious note, my mind is mentally at ease in the comfort of my home and I am able to enjoy my work more.
What makes the perfect workplace for you for career progression and career satisfaction?
A perfect workplace is where I get new opportunities, new shoes to fill and new challenges.
If that means I can change my job profile from an AME to Technical Records Engineer to Product Support Executive to a Project Manager then I am all in. This is a perfect workplace for me; where my strengths are recognised, and I am given opportunities to showcase and build new skills.
What makes you YOU?
I am a different person with different people, so not sure how to respond to this one, let me give it a try. I am a kid in front of my parents, crazy with my siblings and friends and humble with strangers.
I am not sure if I have achieved everything I want in my life yet, but one thing is true, I am much better today than I was yesterday. I am kind of getting more awesome day by day!
What is going to make this your best year yet?
When I have everyone in the organisation aware of the company strategy and our OKRs. I would like to see people starting to think about where and how they are contributing to and aligning themselves with our objectives.
Look out for our Employee Stories series on our website and social media pages.
If you would like to be part of the flydocs family, have a look at opportunities available to join our growing team by visiting flydocs.aero/careers