Beyond the new office project - welcome to Budapest ONE!

I just wanted to summarize my thoughts and feelings regarding the new office project at Corteva, so that it won't be so fleeting, and the glory and pride can soak into my veins well, for the last time. Now, a little rest and then let's find another challenge!

From time to time, big projects come into my life. Do they choose me? Certainly not, I choose them. Or good place and good timing? No matter. The point is that the password: don't give up! My last 8 months were totally dedicated to the moving project. I was more than serious about it and handled as my 4th child after my 2 sons and husband, but in some cases before them. I would have changed that period with anybody with pleasure. With ANYBODY. But I'm afraid, no applicant could have been found. I was often wondering during the project, how many of the colleagues would have done the whole procedure with the very same conditions. Endurance, patience, deep breath (several times) were needed. No delegation and everything must be done in time. These were the keystones of my concept. If someone asked me if I would do it again, my reply would be: with the very same conditions definately NOT, but using the experience gained in the meantime YES. Although, the last months required self-sacrifice (and still not sure that it will be remunerated or not), basically I'm happy that it is over and managed to close it successfully and in time. And the good thing is that I do feel myself not less but much more.

What was challenging in this project that it was very complex, stressful and under huge time pressure. All these can be considered as complicating circumstances of its own but besides these, many additional complicating circumstances arose for me personally:

- I was completely newcomer at the company.

- I arrived from a widely different company culture and size.

- My new manager had to leave the company at the very beginning (not by choice), so I stayed completely alone.

- Due to the organizational change my position was also cancelled (on paper) and the receptionist's as well. Somehow I got the receptionist's job on the top of my original job and the moving project.

- After moving out from the old office we could not move in to the new one immediately as the termination date of the old one was quite different as the readiness date of the new one. So a temporary office and a temporary storage were needed in between.

- The different size of the two office were also challenging. To move out from an area of 1347 sqm and move in to a less than half size (544 sqm) requires much effort, mainly if you are thinking in a green way and do not want to distroy or waste anything.

I always had the feeling during the whole project that I found more ally outside the organization than inside. As it turned out in the end, speaking with those contractors personally who were involved, all had a headache to achieve the goal. Therefore, I was overjoyed to find such professional partners who I could rely on every time from the very beginning till the very end. My endless gratitude is for the very best PM (project manager) Zoltán for coordinating the whole and standing up for Corteva all the time. Many thanks for the best architect company DVM for providing such high level specialists like the architect girls: Tímea, Eszter, Viki - they did such a great job on our office to make us happy with the result. Many thanks for the excellent fit-out managers Márk and Zsuzsanna who also always gave me helping hands. 

To see the layout lines come to life was gorgeous. To know this project mine is inestimable. 

 

Somogy adventures by day and by night

Right after the official opening of the new office, I decided to have a short break with the family and found gateway in Somogy county. Why there? To see the stars. But why there? Because Zselic is the less light polluted area of Hungary. And this is so romantic.

Zselic is a hilly woody area between Somogy and Baranya county, going South from Lake Balaton. Nature: flora and fauna. These are what we always need. We chose Kaposvár (chief town of the county) as a center of our rallye. The accomodation was a good choice, again; a lovely gallery apartment we adored. Even the approaching road is "singing" about the stars thanks to the grooves carved in the asphalt; it is a Hungarian hit song that everybody knows by Republic, Roadway #67.

 

On the first night we went to the Zselic Landscape Protection area that hides many natural treasures - the night sky is one of them. The area became internationally recognized in 2009 when the title of Dark-Sky (or Starry Sky) Park was awarded by the International Dark Sky Association, as first in Europe. The Zselic Park of Stars offers unforgettable experiences about nature and the universe surrounding us. We could see even by naked eye the wonders of the sky, such as the Milky Way and the view of zodiacal light, phenomena which are not at all or only barely visible from light pollution in most areas. Here, we can see ten times more stars like anywhere else, because the light pollution is very little. It was a very special exprience. The observatory is well inside the forest, so you have to drive a few kilometers after turning from the main road and there is no light at all, of course. Just pitch black everywhere as far as the eye can see. Even at the parking area of the observatory. Even the observatory looks like it is closed. Darkness is a must when man wants to study the sky with stars and planets. We also could see several satellites. They were moving fast, steadily, looking and moving much different than an airplane or a fallen star.

...to be continued...