Aina Kosevic: How work-life balance made me stronger

Aina Kosevic started as a Team Leader at Etteplan in Stockholm January 2022. Shortly after, in March, she got a new challenge; to supersede her team manager who was going on paternity leave. During her interview at Etteplan Aina had expressed her goal to become a team manager one day, but she never believed that it would come true that fast. “That’s why Etteplan is a great company, they really listen to their employees and create an environment where you get to challenge yourself and to grow both personally and career-wise”.

In creating a trusting environment, Etteplan makes it easy for their employees to express their goals which makes them able to handle more difficult tasks, Aina says. “As a team manager this is something I’m trying to create. I think it’s important to have a team manager as a support person, in that way we help our co-workers to develop and create new solutions for our customers because they feel like they have the freedom to think of different solutions” she explains.

Aina has always felt a strong call to become a team manager. To work with people and to help them to grow is something that she finds really enticing. But for Aina the most tempting aspect was the chance to develop different work processes and to make them more effective. Aina started off as an expert at our Technical Documentation unit and is now a team manager for one of the bigger customers in Stockholm. “We have pulse meetings with our team, which is a way to plan, organize and manage our organization. The most important part about this is that everyone has a voice in creating it. I think that involving the team made everyone get onboard quite fast. This has made us stronger than ever, and it makes the actual work a piece of cake!”

Aina explains that Etteplan is known as a company that values work-life balance and that it is something that she really appreciates. “Without that freedom I wouldn’t be able to work as a team manager. As a mother of two, it’s great to have an employer that gives you the freedom to plan your days as you want to."

"I’m able to be a full-time mother, and a full-time manager and I never have to have a bad conscience.”

She continues to explain that a lot of people tell her that they didn’t have the same possibility when they were raising their children. “I think it’s something really modern and Etteplan is always fast to get onboard new trends and to create a dynamic environment for their co-workers”. In creating opportunities for work-life balance, Aina says that she’s noticed an increase of motivation in her team. “For me to be able to take care of my kids and to be able to play with them for an hour after picking them up from pre-school, without feeling stressed, makes me more focused to bring great results in my work. I find inspiration in spending time with my kids and I’m glad that Etteplan has noticed this way of working. I think as a woman in my position, this is something really attractive for a employee to have” she says.

“I’m thankful that Etteplan saw the potential in me before I did, it made me believe in myself even more than before. I will always be grateful for that, because it made me grow both personally and as a mother. I feel stronger and more comfortable in myself” Aina says and smiles.