The KONGSBERG patriot

“Most of all, I’m looking forward to finishing school and getting started with something that is useful for more people than myself,” says the 24-year-old.

And not least, he is looking forward to moving back to his hometown, which he loves so much. Here he has both family and friends, he can play golf and most importantly; he can play football for the club closest to his heart, the local football team Kongsberg Idrettsforening (KIF). At the moment, he is exercising hard to be admitted a return to the A-team, where he has played for many years.

“I can't let down a club that is struggling,” he says and smiles.

In his first three years in Trondheim, Magnus studied economics and investment analysis. Now he is working on a Master's thesis focusing on Business Analytics, mainly concerning analytical subjects looking at the big data, with a bit of finance on the side.

Attractive summer job
Magnus has always imagined that he will be working at KONGSBERG when the time is right. After working four summers at a grocery store in Trondheim, he decided to make the most of his last summer vacation during his studies; go home, try something new and establish contacts with a view to future job opportunities. That turned out to be a wise decision.

The summer job he was offered within Supply Chain at Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace became a stepping stone into permanent employment. During six weeks, he had the opportunity to get to know the company, the department, the people and the tasks, and at the same time practice the theoretical knowledge from his studies.

The work he did covered an actual need. Magnus was given responsibility for collecting basic data to increase the data quality related to export control when receiving goods for storage. The main task was to put fundamentally important information into the system, and the work he did is today part of the purchasing tasks.

“It was very exciting. I saw how important both export control and purchasing are for everything to go smoothly. The purchasers are the first step in the entire production process, and form the basis for everything that happens afterwards, and I like to know that my work is valuable for others,” says Magnus.

Although the main task as a summer student was related to export control, he also worked closely with the purchasers and gained a good insight into the fast-paced everyday life of a purchaser and saw how important it is that all necessary papers and documentation are in place.

The working environment he will be a part of consists of a good mix between experienced senior purchasers, and some younger, newly hired. The combination is not accidental, but established to exploit the advantages of both experience and fresh theoretical competence.

“It seemed like a very motivated and outgoing group, and a good composition of people which I think will suit me very well. It seems like a group of colleagues you can joke around with, and that's important,” he says with a sly smile.

Magnus will also have the opportunity to become part of the Young@KDA network, which is an offer for young employees who wants to get to know more people at their own age, across divisions and departments. It is a popular initiative, where employees under the age of 35 regularly gather for various social events. And even though Magnus already has a network in the city, he doesn't want to miss the opportunity to get to know even more people.

Kongsberg patriot in a double sense
Being new to the job market, there are three things that stands out as most important for Magnus; a safe workplace, a good working environment and development opportunities. Now he knows that Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace checks off all three.

“I have always known that a job at KONGSBERG means a safe workplace and that there are endless opportunities to take on new challenges and to develop in such a large company. Now I also know that the working environment is great, so I'm really looking forward to coming back and getting to know even more people,” says Magnus.

As a true Kongsberg patriot, he happily tells his fellow students why they should do like him and apply for a job at KONGSBERG.

“To most of the people I talk to, it’s probably the amount of possibilities that are the most attractive, in addition to the working environment. I also tell them that Kongsberg is a great city - not too big, but not too small either, and with a lot to offer both summer and winter,” he says. “And although you may not be able to boast that the nightlife is on par with the big cities around the country, it is very easy to know where to go to meet nice people,” Magnus says with a smile.

Hopefully he manages to convince someone to move southwards with him. In Kongsberg there is room for both more citizens and more purchasers, to name a few.