Could you tell me a bit about yourself?

I was born in Jordan, then moved with my family to Canada in my late teens. I gained my degree in Computer Science there and started my career. I worked for various tech companies before joining Miele Canada 11 years ago. I love to travel, meet new people and experience new cultures. And I am fortunate that during my career with Miele, I have been able to have so many culturally rich experiences.

Can you tell me about your Miele career?

As a Full Stack Engineer in Canada, I was tasked with full system integration and development. Co-ordinating the outsourcing of procurement agencies to help us on development projects. I was there for six years and gained lots of valuable experience in terms of skills development, business acumen and understanding of the layers of processes and the way they work together.

Then Head Office at Gutersloh in Germany offered me a Business Process Manager role managing projects and working on the rollout of the ERP system. Working with those markets currently using the system and at the same time supporting the roll out into new markets. This was both challenging and fascinating, as you had to know a bit about everything.

I was there for three and a half years, before Miele established Miele X in Amsterdam to spearhead the business into the digital realm. I joined in January 2021 and am now IT Rollout Program Lead.

Why did you choose Miele X?

Miele X was created to expand Miele’s pool of resource and expertise. I thought this was an extremely exciting move by the business, and a great opportunity to live and work in a diverse global city.

Amsterdam is somewhere where we can attract and have access to great talent from a wide variety of technical and cultural backgrounds. Although Miele was established in 1899, they have always focused on innovation and recognised that diversity of thinking, skills and experiences is vital to continued improvement and success.

What do you do on a day-to-day basis?

Miele has traditionally relied on the solidity of the appliances and engaged in the technical aspect, but mainly focused on business-to-business, dealers and backend systems. We recognised the need to streamline our brand image from an international perspective, so that when you go to any Miele website across the world, it looks the same, ensuring our consumers get a frictionless and premium experience wherever they are.

I am leading the IT rollout of SAP Commerce Cloud to our international markets. We have an ambitious roadmap to get all the international markets onto the SAP Commerce Cloud. I manage the IT stakeholders, taking the business requirements, the market’s fiscal and local requirements and translating them into a deliverable that we can see on the website and system. The objective is to synergise our efforts and streamline the brand with a central website, that has the bells and whistles that you’d expect in terms of SEO, SEA and analytics.

It involves a lot of juggling. Managing the integration across all the subsidiaries, ensuring we communicate effectively across teams and making sure all requirements are translated and tested. Now the website is live in 12 global markets, by next year it’ll be 20 and so on until we are live in all 50 Miele markets. It's interesting to speak to markets that are outside of your area and learn a lot from how different markets have different ways of doing work.

Where’s your favourite place to live in the world?

I think I carry a piece of every country with me, they’ve all had a profound effect on me in different ways, so it’s difficult to choose a favourite! Germany was such a great experience and Canada has a special place in my heart. However, I’ve been in Amsterdam for six months, and I'm growing to love it and can see myself calling it home. It's extremely diverse, multicultural and tolerant. People are extremely curious and interested to get to know you. They're interested to know your story and want to almost encode your story to the overall fabric of the society. They're willing to learn. And they're willing to listen to the ideas. It’s a beautiful place that I can’t wait to explore more.

What’s the best thing about working here?

The culture is second to none. It’s so diverse, we have over 40 nationalities here. All digital experts who work together and learn from each other - professionally and culturally. We’re always looking for better ways of doing things. We all have a say and our voices really do matter. That's why opening Miele X in Amsterdam has been so successful. Because it gives the entire team access to this diversity of thinking and the creativity that comes out of it. It's a great thing to see. Not many cities can say that so confidently. It's very natural here, it happens very smoothly and we have a lot of fun together. It’s very supportive, as well as being entrepreneurial, dynamic and exciting.

What’s next for you?

I’ve been here 11 years and I’m so passionate about seeing the business succeed. We have a clear focus on business-to-customer and the direct-to-customer sales. And making sure our website is available and ready and accessible in all 50 Miele markets. I would like to see that grow and the company grow within it. Because when the tide rises, all boats rise with it. I'm a firm believer of that.

So being part of Miele X’s growth - especially in the direct-to-customer area - is something I am eager to continue playing my part in. That’s a long-term plan, which I’m sure will morph and change with its success and we grow as a team. I’m also keen to start travelling to the new markets again and building face-to-face relationships with them. We’ve rolled out the website in the US and now we’re looking at South America, so I’m looking forward to that.

What would you say to someone who was thinking of joining Miele X?

I’d say go for it! They invest in you here and have a way of working that is unmatched. The diversity we have is a powerful mix. We all learn from each other and are constantly growing. It’s such a vibrant and exciting team to be a part of. If you want support, you’ll find it here. If you want to develop your career, you’ll find it here. If you want to live in a city that has something for everyone, you’ll find it here.

What’s Next? You decide.

At Miele X, we’re proud to employ people from all over the world from a variety of different backgrounds. We’re always looking for new talent to keep the team at Miele X growing and learning. Join us. Take a look at our current vacancies.