- What challenge do you face at your workplace?
- If you were in business, what would your business be?
- Where do you see yourself in 10 years from now?
- If you had the luxury of purchasing a sports car, which one would it be?
- If you were to roam around the world and you were allowed just one more person along with you, who would it be ?
- If you were too hungry and too sleepy at the same time, which requirement would you first attend to?
- What does home mean to you?
- How do you define a comfortable life?
- You physique seems to be maintained. Any tips?
- How do you feel to be interviewed by Interview10?
JazakAllah khair for this opportunity. I will introduce myself before I go ahead with answering your questions, which I shall answer one by one in the same order.
My name is Syed Shahid Ali and I work as a Projects Engineer in Saudi Electricity Company- Eastern Operating Area’s Extra High Voltage Projects Department. In a nutshell, my work involves constructing substations to support & provide power to the Eastern Grid. I am currently constructing a Bulk Supply Point consisting of 380kV, 230kV, 115kV & 13.8kV power levels. I have 8 years of experience and not all of it is in this field.
Now, coming to your questions:
1. What challenge do you face at your workplace?
My challenges vary day to day as they stem from my need for perfection. If I had to be brief; Time is Money. Project Management in EHVPD involves overlooking the commercial, technical and various contractual obligations whereby maximizing profitability in terms of time saved, hours consumed and losing less hair (just kidding). You could further segregate it into prompt design resolutions, confirming timely material/equipment availability, adequate manpower, getting the right men for the job etc. to working on Change Orders, Force Majeure etc. Every day of 24months is precious. Example: Delay in initiating concrete design delays its approval which effects construction which further effects any material installation etc. It is like the stretch of dominoes falling one after the other.
Hence, my challenge would be to perceive and stop this fall before it happens.
2. If you were in business, what would your business be?
I would start with Manpower, move to Construction and then take it from there, keeping it halal all the way.
3. Where do you see yourself in 10 years from now?
Wiser, patient and on the rise.
4.If you had the luxury of purchasing a sports car, which one would it be?
The Lamborghini Veneno (blood red /gold).
5. If you were to roam around the world and you were allowed just one more person along with you, who would it be?
Someone who is street smart, loves the outdoors and has a strong stomach.
6. If you were too hungry and too sleepy at the same time, which requirement would you first attend to?
Sleep. Always. You can satiate hunger with water.
7. What does home mean to you?
Security & comfort.
8. How do you define a comfortable life?
No regrets if I die.
9. You physique seems to be maintained. Any tips?
Let your wife pick your clothes.
10. How do you feel to be interviewed by Interview10?
Unless I am missing something, questions 2-10 are very informal and not analytical. If you want Interview10 to be a give-and-take platform as described in the “About Interview10” page, you need to include more questions that make both parties analyze these answers and learn something new.
This was more like 'Coffee with Faheem'! I wanted to know more about how being a veteran Project 'Engineer', would help build steam towards having your own consultancy firm down the road? Say, in delivering substation projects. Or is it better to grow as a 'discipline' engineer (Design/Testing/Commissioning) if one was aiming at being the kingpin in the substation engineering consultancy sector? I ask this because of 2 reasons/trends:
ReplyDelete1. Technical expertise is becoming scarce as people are aiming at the easier way to money (Men doing M.B.A. in H.R. to target fortune 500 MNCs for a higher paycheck, yuck!)
2. . All new (2005 onwards) firms that provide engineering, or project management or maintenance services, particularly to the power/energy (oil and gas) sector; were setup by Engineering experts in their line! They hardly know good people skills, let alone project management! But they were impeccable in their science!
-Mohammad Adnan Tariq
Thank you Adnan for your valuable feedback ! Do visit this blog frequently to get helpful insights.
ReplyDeleteAbove interview10 questions were designed on purpose to be a general blend of professional and social preferences.