Dragana Vujinovic, Client Experience Manager
In this interview, Dragana not only shows us her professional side, but also gives us an insight into what drives her as a person and what two elements have never changed in her life.
1. Welcome to qohubs - Some companies would have liked to have you with them. What made you decide to work for qohubs?
Making meaningful and connected relationships has always been important for my personality. It is the basis and essential driver for my engagement in something.
I have known Dijana and Viktor for many years, following their innovative and socially responsible work, and my relationship with them was the initial decision factor.
Furthermore, only the thought that I could be part of such a story on a mission to make the world of work a meaningful place made me very excited. I strongly believe that organizational change cannot fully succeed without individual support. The qohubs platform provides a safe environment for individuals to have interactions and meaningful conversations, to reflect on it, and to "go back to the world" with new insights, learning, and experiences (and maybe question marks to further think about and discuss in future interactions). Being part of such a process makes me feel like contributing to something meaningful in the wave of changes.
2. You have been working in HR for a long time. Certainly, the topic of "organizational culture" has come up again and again. How important is this topic for you, and why?
I have been working in HR for the last 15 years in different environments, experiencing different organizational cultures and seeing how the same employee can perform entirely differently in different cultures. For me, this topic is of great importance, and at the same time, it is complex.
Why important? Because the culture of organizations affects how employees in their working environments interact not only with each other, but with all other aspects of the organization. Consequently, it influences how the organization communicates with the rest of the world.
Why complex? Because building organizational culture cannot rely only on one person, party or department. It involves all parties in the organization. Furthermore, interactions between them are also crucial in the whole process. As all of them are essential parts of the process, interruptions in only one aspect can lead to obstacles in shaping the desired culture.
In today's environment, with global challenges and new working models reshuffling the way we work, focusing on organizational culture is becoming even more critical.
3. What do you see as a challenge for companies to adapt quickly to the new and fast changes in the market?
We experience change daily, but with different intensities; as humans, we have different reactions to it. Resistance to change is a natural human phenomenon, and I would say that many employees still have resistance to adapting to change.
One of the primary reasons for this in organizations is a lack of clarity and ineffective change communication. Some questions to which employees often miss clear answers are why change is needed and how it will affect the current state. Due to poor change communication, employees experience stress, leading to lower performance and slowing the organization in adapting to the new.
Another often reason is change fatigue because organizations implement multiple big change projects simultaneously. This approach often overwhelms employees, which then results in apathy.
4. When people don't see meaning in their work, it leads to frustration or even worse. What does meaningful work mean to you?
Since I started my professional career, this question has always been with me 😊 And I would say that the answer to it varied in different stages of my personal and professional development. But two elements never changed: meaningful work needs to be purposeful, and I need to have the possibility that with my work, I can contribute to creating positive changes in our environments.
5. One fun fact about you?
I collect coins that I find on the street. I still believe they bring luck.😊