Beatrice Elsabbagh promoted to KTL SHEQ Advisor

Tell us about your journey with KTL?

I joined KTL in January 2020 as Project Coordinator. This was less than a month after relocating to Ireland. Before relocating to Ireland, I lived in many places. I was born in Romania, and I lived and worked in Qatar, Egypt, and Dubai for many years. While in Dubai, I had a family member who worked for KTL, and she mentioned there was an opening for a Project Coordinator - I was successful in the interview then left Dubai for Ireland in December 2019 for my new role!

What specific skills or qualities do you believe played a significant role in your promotion?

As I made the transition from Project Coordinator to SHEQ Advisor, I believe that the following helped with my career advancement:

· My ability to communicate information to the right people.

· Great teamwork with no issues.

· To search and deliver solutions when a particular problem arises.

· A determination to learn quick and cement my knowledge base in a new industry.

How has KTL supported your growth and development?

KTL management have been super supportive from the very beginning. Since I started, I’ve met some of the most talented and smartest people, I’ve ever had the pleasure to work with.

When I decided to go down the path of Health and Safety, I got great advice on what course I should do that would be best for me given that I have not been to formal school/college in over 10 years! Not only was I helped with figuring that out, but KTL funded my Managing Construction Safely Certificate - Nebosh qualification and I am extremely grateful. I will do my best to repay with good results as a SHEQ team member.

As you transition into your new role, what are some of the key responsibilities and challenges in your new role?

Being new to the Health & Safety field, I've come to understand that the responsibilities and knowledge involved go beyond just identifying process faults. It's also crucial to take the responsibility of rectifying those faults and finding the right approach to integrate new processes into the larger engine of all the crews working at KTL.

I've learned that it's perfectly fine to ask questions and seek out advice from the team who have the experience and knowledge. It's natural not to have all the answers when starting a new role. There's a wealth of information that I still need to grasp, but I've been assured that it will all come together in due course. So, I'm embracing patience as a virtue that will benefit me along the way.

What advice do you have for other employees who aspire to grow and advance within KTL?

• Don’t be afraid to give it a go.

• If you really want to grow and advance with KTL, set your mind on what you want and create a plan.

• If you have a course in mind that would help you reach your goal, check with management and together you can find a way to get that ball rolling while still doing your current role.

Can you share any memorable experiences or projects from your previous position that have helped shape your journey with KTL? My first two days at KTL will always sit in my memory.

After my induction and meeting the team, I was told that I could take a break, which I did!

What no one knew was that I was panicking a little bit internally due to the whole situation - new environment, new people, new information.

In my mind, I thought I was supposed to learn all that I was shown in a very short amount of time. In my head I thought this was impossible. I went outside and there I met our CEO Alan Hanamy and we greeted each other.

The next day at the same spot, I met Alan again and he asked me if the day before was my first day at KTL. I responded affirmatively with a yes, to which he replied, “You did not run away, so this means you’ll do great things at KTL,” and the rest is history!

I believe that meeting Alan on those first couple of days, his words calmed me down more than any other words spoken to me when I first joined!

The funniest part is that despite seeing his picture in the company induction material, I did not retain his face so at the time I had no idea who I was really talking to! Many months later I realised it was Alan 😊.

What are your goals and aspirations for the future, and how does this promotion align with those ambitions?

I chose the path of Health & Safety a little over a year ago and I hope to continue this path in the long term. The goal is to reach as high as possible; I know that it needs time, patience, more knowledge, and even more experience but I am embracing all of that and looking forward to the future. As well, I hope to continue my journey at KTL alongside the SHEQ Team learning from them.

To find out more about KTL careers visit: https://www.ktl.ie/careers