Looking for best candidates
India impressions
It is known that quality construction workers lack in the market for a long time. With the opening up of the labor market, many of our builders are engaged in projects in Western European countries, Russia and the Middle East. There is also a lot of construction in Serbia and market has been active recent years, and big challenge is finding quality and experienced construction workers.
As company that believes in steady progress and providing highest quality service, we decided to step outside our region and open the door to engineers, craftsmen and workers from India. We made this step by guiding the idea that every high-quality individual with a desire for progress should have opportunity to gain experience and apply knowledge within their profession, and we have not mistaken ourselves.
After careful selection of the most reliable agency for employment we will work with, Damir Lunic, Managing Director of the company, and Dr. Tatjana Knezevic, psychologist and Director of HR, Legal and General Affairs, went to India in April to conduct selection process. It was very interesting experience and step in the environment completely different from ours. The images we have captured in the memories are contrasting: luxurious hotels and restaurants, immense poverty, unhygienic living conditions, overburdened cities, unbelievable traffic jams, rivers and cows, unusual architecture, crowded streets ...
Diversity created by rich culture and merciless gap between rich and poor, have created a clear picture of number and diversity of the Indian people. The wide variety of differences and fact that the selection is planned in some of the poorest regions of India (Utar Pradesh) in the towns of Chandigarh, Punjab, Gorakpur, Mumbai, Delhi, has announced that this will be a very challenging, dynamic and vivid experience.
Powerful image of the first day of our work in Chandigarh, a city in the northwestern part of India, designed by the famous architect Le Corbusier, of more than two hundred Indians in a typical sitting position on the floor of a large training center store, cordially waving their hands together with Namaste salute and waiting patiently for their chance to show their input and get the job. Our hosts from the agency surprised us with a warm welcome, excellent organization and pre-selection of candidates, in accordance with our request to present only the workers with architectural experience in the Persian Gulf, on some of the most significant projects in the last decade.
Selection of future associates was carried out after thorough preparation, with great care and respect. Mr. Lunic’s expertise and experience has enabled a reliable check of the knowledge and practical skills of engineers and craftsmen through a series of practical tasks that have occurred on the face of the training centers of our hosts in each of the cities. On the second day we received more than 800 people in front of the training center in Punjab! Each of them had the opportunity to show themselves in front of the unscrupulous attention of the scorer. The assessment of personality and intellectual abilities relevant to the job they deal with was based on Dr. Knezevic's expertise in the field of psychology and HR management, and strengthened by support of younger associate Dr. Tanvi, our host's younger sister, who studied psychology in Delhi, and received PhD in London. The challenge was to standardize results and to adequately interpret the cultural differences and other factors that could hinder quality assessment. After testing and talking to the candidates, a fundamental and patient analysis made a shortlist of 250 candidates with really great results. It sounds almost unlikely that in these ten days in six cities of India was evaluated competence of more than 1500 candidates!
The opportunity to work in Modulor has been given to the best candidates, after which the process of approving their stay and work in Serbia has begun, which is quite complex and lengthy as well as providing conditions for quality life and work.
One of the biggest impressions is degree of desire of these people to get a job that for them meant a hope for salvation from difficult conditions of life and opportunity to earn the money necessary for the basic needs of their family. It was really hard to see them and tell them they were not chosen, because their sadness and disappointment would become big.
Reception of foreign citizens was organized with the respect of specificity of their culture and customs. Smallest attention was devoted in their approach to everyday life and to enable adaptation process that recognizes their needs and respects dignity. Through group discussions and workshops we presented details of our two cultures and gradually explained two very different worlds. Through openness and acceptance, we have established mutual respect that set a strong foundation for further relationship and cooperation.
We will present experiences of Rupesh Bhaskar Kamble, architect from India, who is already part of our engineering team:
"I landed at Nikola Tesla Airport on January 22, 2019. It was my first visit to Serbia and Europe in general. That day was extremely cold, even -2C degrees. For the first time in my life I saw snow. It was one of the most memorable days in my life, since I'm coming from peninsula where snow never falls.
In Serbia, I like the people most - they are very kind and ready to help. People are very liberal, more liberal than from all the places I've been before. Approach in life and relationship between people creates a certain amount of warmth and spontaneity that I have not experienced in India or Dubai. Of course, I must mention magnificent center of the city and streets full of life, Kalemegdan, but also a moderate climate that is extremely pleasant for life.
I would recommend everyone to visit Serbia at least once! "