Young engineers build their dreams at CEMEX
Many passionate young individuals aspire for personal and professional growth from early on in their careers, to be able to build their dreams of becoming high-flyers in their chosen industry in the future.
Such mindset for excellence is present in Louise Nicholle Chan (22), Rostum “Tomi” Hermano (22), Randolph Cruz (24), who are engineering graduates from the University of the Philippines Diliman, John Ismael Arogo (20) from De La Salle University, Jeremiah Madrid (24) and Oscar Samillano (23), both from Mapua Institute of Technology.
These “millennial” engineers were newly hired by building solutions leader CEMEX Holdings Philippines and were immediately given the opportunity to learn and develop through the company’s Global ELO program, a year-long training at the CEMEX Monterrey headquarters in Mexico, the birthplace of the company.
It will be their first time to live far from home, but the participants are nonetheless looking forward to the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to enhance their skills on safety, quality, production, and maintenance, and sharpen their capability to strategize and innovate while learning firsthand about the global cement manufacturer’s operations in its heritage country.
The program will also expose the trainees to different maintenance or expansion projects in other countries where the company operates. The globalized training is one of the ways in which CEMEX promotes a culture of learning and development, an inclusive work environment that encourages innovative thinking and teamwork among counterparts around the world.
“I’m excited to meet new friends and work with colleagues from other countries. It’s a good platform to get a global perspective of company operations,” said Nicholle, who initially shared how anxious she had been to join a male-dominated industry. Now, with two months at CEMEX’s operations, Nicholle affirmed that it has been an interesting and challenging work environment where she felt empowered.
For Tomi, he saw the program as a venue where he can assess the division that best fits him which is either in production, quality, or maintenance. Aside from academic prospects, he is equally excited to travel and explore Mexico. “I’m looking forward to see the cement plant in Monterrey, and get exposed to Mexican culture, its sights, and the street food,” he revealed.
Randolph echoed Tomi’s excitement and also shared his family’s reaction when he first told them that he was chosen for an international training. “They were really happy about it and said that I should grab the opportunity,” he said.
Ismael added that leaving their families behind to learn abroad inevitably causes anxiety, but such an opportunity should be held with both hands. Ismael has foreseen himself growing at CEMEX since before he joined the company two months ago. True enough, the Global ELO program, he said, is a good first step in his career. “This is going to be my first time to live on my own, and in a foreign country. We will definitely learn to be independent.”
At present, the young engineers are learning to speak a little Spanish through the Duolingo mobile application. They will miss the Philippines for a year, but they are eager to start building their dreams to become successful engineers, backed by a diverse range of world-class skills and expertise.
Sending six of its young engineers to the CEMEX Global ELO program is the first for CEMEX Holdings Philippines, fueled by its vision to help hone Filipino youth’s potential and develop them into high-caliber professionals.
CEMEX’s Global ELO program now has 10 generations of trainees since it began in 2005, with chosen participants coming from Mexico, Colombia, Panama, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Brazil, and Spain. This year, the United States and Egypt together with the Philippines will send their pilot batch of young engineers to participate in the program. More information about the company is available at https://www.cemexholdingsphilippines.com/
