Learning never stops. After finishing two degrees in Business Management, South African project manager Carmen Visser joined Projective Group in the Netherlands and went on to pursue a number of other certifications. “I like to learn and have knowledge across various subjects, so that when a new project or assignment comes along, I can say: I know something about this, lets dive deeper.,” says Carmen.
Carmen Visser loves to learn. Her academic journey began with a degree in Business Management at Nelson Mandela University in South Africa, where she’s from. She then went on to complete her Honours in Business Management. After completing her formal education, Carmen pursued several certifications such as her SAFe certificate, her PSM I (Scrum Master) certificate and various Prince Foundation certificates.
Reading an article or a book or doing a training is great to get a foundation, but the way you really learn is by asking experienced mentors and learning from how they do things.
Switch to Projective Group
In January 2022, Carmen made the switch from The CRM Team in Sout Africa to the Dutch branch of Projective Group. There, I’m currently working on a big KYC migration project for a large international bank. What we’re doing, is migrating the clients from the one branch to another and I am part of the Front Office team who liaises with the relationship managers. That means dealing with client onboarding activities where KYC analysis needs to be performed,” Carmen says. Coming from a more IT-related background, delivering tailored software applications for clients , the move to the financial side has broadened Carmen’s knowledge some more.
I like to have knowledge across various subjects so that when a new project or assignment comes along, I can say I know something about this, lets dive deeper.
A steep learning curve
“I do not have a KYC background, so I’m learning a lot on this project, which is something I really like,” says Carmen. “It’s a steep learning curve, but very interesting. Combining trainings from the Ministry of Compliance on anti-money laundering, financial economic crime awareness and sanction regulations, and with an in-depth onboarding at the client, where they took us through all their processes, has been tremendously educational. I like to have knowledge across various subjects so that when a new project or assignment comes along, I can say I know something about this, lets dive deeper. So learning about about the world of KYC for this project has been a good way for me to learn more.”
Continuous learning
At Projective Group, we encourage learning and development a lot. So naturally, Carmen also had the chance to follow extra trainings since she became a Projective Group consultant. “With Projective Group I’ve done my Scrum Master training, my certified SAFe and my Prince2. I’m also taking Dutch classes, and I’ve done my Product Owner exam. So yeah, in the two years I’ve been here I was able to do quite a few exams and certificates,” says Carmen.
There are a lot of mentors here to look up to and to learn from.
Out of all of these, the SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework) has been the most impactful for Carmen. “On my first assignment when I arrived in the Netherlands, I was an Operating Model specialist within the agile transformation of a very large organisation. Before, I was used to working with much smaller development team. A few developers, one Scrum Master, one Product Owner… There were no talks of Tribes, nor Squads. This transformation was totally next level. It was a huge endeavour, for which they used Agile at scale. To navigate this, I really benefited from my SAFe training.”
The value of mentors
But learning and development is more than taking a few courses here and there. That’s why at Projective Group, we put a lot of focus on coaching and mentoring as well. “I’m part of the Transformation practice at Projective Group, more specifically the Delivery Excellence capability, which has been Projective Group’s bread and butter from the start. That means that I am fortunate enough to work with a lot of senior people with heaps of project management experience. There are a lot of mentors here to look up to and to learn from, and I find that’s actually the best way to equip yourself, to learn from others. Reading an article or a book or doing a training is great to get a foundation, but the way you really learn is by asking experienced mentors and learning from how they do things,” says Carmen. “My mentors have been a great asset to me, actually. Whenever I have an issue and I don’t know how to approach it, my mentor will help me to take a step back and think about it.. These people will always be here to help me, support me and motivate me where they can, and for that I am very grateful.”
Conclusion
For a Project Manager, learning never stops. After gaining significant experience in an IT-related domain, Carmen Visser switched to financial services. As Carmen says, reading books and doing trainings is a great way to get your foundations, but the best way to really learn, is to work alongside experienced professionals and learn from them. That’s why at Projective Group, we combine tailored training programmes with elaborate coaching and mentoring efforts.
About Projective Group
Established in 2006, Projective Group is a leading Financial Services change specialist.
We are recognised within the industry as a complete solutions provider, partnering with clients in Financial Services to provide resolutions that are both holistic and pragmatic. We have evolved to become a trusted partner for companies that want to thrive and prosper in an ever-changing Financial Services landscape.