Ljubex International has 32 years of experience in the import and sale of bearings. It has a professionally trained staff for technical support, foreign trade and internal movement, among which there are many women. Right now, the commercial department has even more women than men
Based on her rich business experience and enviable past results, our guest Tamara Stančev points out that a happy worker is a good worker, and that a company where the workers are happy is a successful company. She likes the approach that people should do things they believe in, that are in line with their interests and values.
You have worked in different departments and industries, and in corporations, and now you are in a small family business. What was your driving force?
Always and in every position, there were only two desires – one to learn, the other to create. In my opinion, these are the only desires through which you grow – every time you learn something new, you are greater for what you have learned.
Every time you create something – it is a part of you, of your greatness. By creation, I don’t necessarily mean the creation of material things, because intangible things are equally valuable, such as the atmosphere at work, understanding for younger colleagues, completing tasks, creating opportunities even when at first glance they may not exist… We often chase after “big” things, when in fact the big thing is how we approach things, how we do them and how we deal with them.
You are currently in the mechanical industry, which, the uninitiated would say, is no place for women. Your example disproves them…
I think that every woman in every industry needs to remain a woman. To not accept stereotypes, assessments, evaluations… To believe in herself, to be consistent with herself, to believe in her knowledge and skills and to bring that fine note of doing things casually and with style. That gender division has been overcome. Men are now just as good in industries that perhaps were once reserved for women, women are just as good as men in industries that were reserved only for the stronger sex.
What you say and what you do is what represents your work and your company, and the quality of that does not depend on gender, but on your attitude towards work and customers
When you appear in high heels and with a bun to talk about some massive steel products that weigh several tonnes and arrive in Serbia in containers or trucks, it may be unusual at first glance. However, what you say and what you do is what represents your work and your company, and the quality of that does not depend on gender, but on your attitude towards work and customers.
And, here’s a fun fact… In our company, in the commercial department, there are currently more women than men, and all of them have been in this industry for more than 18 years.
What principles do you apply when working with people?
For me, the most important thing is that the people in the team are happy. Because I like to be happy and I like to come and go with a smile wherever I go, that’s why I like that kind of atmosphere. I believe that happy people work better, that their brains work faster, because they are not under pressure, that they approach tasks with more enthusiasm and so the results are better.
Maybe a good example of that is reading books… Remember how much we struggled to read certain texts when we knew that we had to, that someone would question us, and then how many books we read after school. At that time no one told us that we had to, but we did it because we wanted to and because we believed it was good and would bring us something good. I like that approach, that people should do things they believe in, things that are in line with their interests and values, and we, as managers, should make it possible for them.
Foto: Wannabe Media Studio