A Day in a Life: Jan Hendrik accompanies projects from A-Z

Even close friends or family often have no clue what we do at work. At thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, we have many exciting professions that are very well worth a closer look. Welcome to a day in the life of Jan Hendrik, Project Manager at thyssenkrupp Marine Systems. In his day-to-day work, he and his team are responsible for accompanying and coordinating a project from beginning to end.

The everyday work of a project manager

Jan Hendrik has now been working at thyssenkrupp Marine Systems in his hometown of Kiel for several years. He is currently working as a project manager on two projects.
The typical tasks of a project manager always depend on the respective project: "At the beginning of the project, we record and analyse requirements”, explains Jan Hendrik. “From this, we derive work packages, and plan required capacities and budgets, and coordinate deadlines," he continues. The be-all and end-all is the communication with all stakeholders. What else is particularly important for the project manager? A real team as a basis. Because without a functioning, well-coordinated team, major challenges are harder to master.

The use of skills at Marine Systems

Many engineering degrees are a good basis for being able to do such a job. Jan Hendrik himself is a trained industrial engineer and considers his technical background to be very valuable in his job: "As an industrial engineer, I am in the best position in the project business. Technical understanding makes it possible to better grasp and evaluate problems." Project management education as a basis is also an advantage to be able to do everything operationally: "In some customer projects, this is even explicitly required," says Jan Hendrik.

To Jan Hendrik, it was quickly clear that he wanted to become a project manager at thyssenkrupp Marine Systems. A big factor in his decision was the quality of life that the port city of Kiel on the Baltic coast offers. But above all, it was the company and the specific tasks, that persuaded him: “All the exciting and innovative products that Marine Systems had to offer were what convinced me to join tkMS”, Jan Hendrik recalls. “Here it is possible to immerse yourself in all areas of the value chain and manage exciting projects every day", the industrial engineer continues enthusiastically.

The future of project management

How can we imagine the future of project management in light of digitalization and the rise of artificial intelligence? Jan Hendrik is convinced: "We will continue to rely on our own, social and collective intelligence for a long time to come". Nevertheless, he also sees very clear advantages regarding the use of artificial intelligence in everyday work: "AI could help deal with large amounts of data, for example, to detect deviations from the plan early on. It could warn when budgets, capacities or delivery dates are threatening to get out of hand."

Already today tools are supporting Jan Hendrik and his team in their daily work. He sees clear advantages in this process optimization that emerged during the Corona crisis: "Appropriate tools can provide support and projects can be handled effectively, even if some team members have never met in person."

Tips for young professionals

For Jan Hendrik it is above all the ability to positively shape interpersonal cooperation what makes a project manager. His tip for young professionals: "Start early with small projects and change jobs or at least roles within the company", he says. "In my eyes, interdisciplinary or even better cross-sector experience pays off in many places in the project business."

Would you like to become part of our crew at Marine System in Kiel as well? Then take a look at our vacancies on our careers page.