OUR PEOPLE OUR PRIDE – Kirina Van den Abeele (Communications Senior Specialist)
Every month we put one of our employees in the spotlight. Simply because they deserve it. This month the lights shine on Kirina Van den Abeele. Proud member of the Marketing and Communications team and Employee of the Quarter within the category “passion”.
Name: Kirina Van den Abeele
Employed since : 1994
Function: Communications Senior Specialist
I started in a department that doesn’t exist anymore, the accounting desk. The team was small, there were only four of us. Our job mainly consisted of answering customers’ questions about invoices over the phone. I then moved to the ‘Change’ department. Here I worked as the secretary of the change director, but I also supported the project managers.
After that I followed a course of different functions within various departments. I worked in Telesales and Fieldsales, among others, and was even a supervisor for a while. The last change was from Telesales to Communications. That was a huge change. For years I worked with numbers and suddenly I had to focus on letters…. But I learned so much! Now I can proudly call myself Communications Senior Specialist.
Congratulations, you have been named one of the employees of the quarter. Did you see that coming?
No, I did not expect that at all! I must say that this is a really nice surprise and I am super proud to have been elected. I am so curious to know who nominated me. Unfortunately, I don’t know. In any case, I want to thank them with all my love and pride!
Employee of the quarter means you are nominated within one of our specific values (Can do, Passion, Speed or Right First Time). You were chosen for “Passion.” Why do you think?
History before DHL:
I graduated from secondary school with a degree in Modern-Languages and decided to jump straight into the working world. Much to the frustration of my mother, who wanted me to continue studying (sorry mom!). I got my first real job as a receptionist at the American company Culligan. They design water softeners and appliances for hospitals. Within no time, I had progressed to secretary. I followed up several projects and supported the various project teams within the company. My tasks also included designing and translating brochures, making powerpoint presentations and organizing business trips. After 3 years, it was time to start a new chapter, so I decided to join DHL Express.
How did you end up with us?
I always loved how the DHL vans drove around the neighborhood where I lived. In addition, I knew a lot of people who worked at DHL. I often went to cafes with them in the neighborhood and that was always a very nice, cool group. I still see some of them today and they have become friends for life. Not much later, a good acquaintance told me that DHL was recruiting new people. Without any doubt, I decided to go for it. Before I knew it, I had a job interview with the manager and directors. That went well and I could immediately start my new adventure.
What do you like most about your job?
At DHL there is a lot of variety in my work and you get many opportunities to grow. Creativity is very much appreciated. You have to have that quality within my job, because it is definitely not routine work! You can get tasks at the last minute and it’s up to you to learn to play with that and organize it. In the beginning that was a challenge, but within DHL you have the room to grow. I used to work very methodically, but at Communications I noticed that there are a lot of last-minute tasks. So I had to move around a lot with my schedule. In the beginning, that caused a lot of stress, but now I can handle anything! Keep those tasks coming!
It’s also nice that the different departments work closely together. It sounds cliché, but we really are one big family. I just can’t put it any other way. That feeling of belonging doesn’t stop at our office in Diegem, but is literally international. When I am on vacation, I always want to take pictures of my colleagues abroad. Another fun moment was when I was on vacation in Kenya. I then stopped by a DHL office to say hello to my colleagues there and got to send an email to the “Belgian DHL’ers” from DHL Kenya. If this doesn’t describe the family feeling, I don’t know what will.
What is your best DHL memory?
Mon travail est super varié et les possibilités de progression sont nombreuses. La créativité est très appréciée. Il faut avoir ces qualités dans mon travail, car ce n’est certainement pas un travail de routine! On peut vous confier des tâches à la dernière minute et c’est à toi d’apprendre à gérer le stress. Au début, c’était un vrai défi, mais chez DHL, tu as la possibilité de te développer et d’apprendre. J’avais l’habitude de travailler de manière très planifiée, mais chez Communications, j’ai remarqué qu’il y avait beaucoup de tâches de dernière minute. J’ai donc dû apprendre à rapidement réorganiser mon planning. Au début c’était super frustrant mais maintenant je gère!
The Eurocup is a very cool memory. It is an international soccer competition event where all the European DHL Express divisions compete against each other. There are even very professional cheerleaders who provide the good atmosphere. It’s actually three days full of fun, laughter and celebration! It is super pleasant to get to know your colleagues from other countries in an informal way. It was a unique experience and I would definitely like to do it again. But that Eurocup, that’s nothing compared to our local staff parties, where everyone knows each other. The memories we made there are unforgettable. On the picture above you see me with Maarten Van Baelen (Telesales supervisor). I am lucky enough to have been able to organize all of these myself with the Comms team. And, I can already tell you that we will definitely be partying again at the end of this year. YES!
What makes you so proud to work for DHL?
If I didn’t love the company so much, I wouldn’t have been working here for 25 years. Outside of work, I also carry that DHL pride with me. If I hear something about DHL on the radio, I immediately turn up the volume. Not to mention the gripping promo videos DHL puts together. I always think, “WOW, I’m really part of a global company!” I can’t help but be super proud of that.
Do you also want to be part of the most international company in the world? Take a look at our career site.
