Engineer Londiwe Mngadi feels empowered at Schneider Electric

July 06, 2021

Londiwe Mngadi is a Product Application Engineer at Schneider Electric.

She started her career as a BTech: Electrical Engineering graduate from the University of Johannesburg who was born and raised in a small town in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. During her practical training, she was trained in electrical wiring, carpentry, fitting and turning, boiler making, automation and has worked in a sale engineering environment, where she was compiling proposals and interacting with customers as part of business development.

When asked what it feels like to be a Schneider Electric employee, Londiwe said 'empowered'. She explains why.

Encouraging employees to be empowered

Londiwe's journey at Schneider Electric started in October 2019 when she received a call from the HR team informing her that she had been shortlisted for an interview for the 2020 graduate program. "I was excited and nervous all at once! As an early career in South Africa, searching for employment can be a quite gloomy and discouraging process due to the high unemployment rate in the country," she explains.

Prior to sending her application, she had researched Schneider Electric and the first thing she found was the slogan Life Is On. "Those three words written in a bright green color really grabbed my attention," she adds.

When Londiwe presented her university design project (UPS System) to a panel of interviewers, she was anxious yet determined. As an Electrical Engineering graduate who is passionate about electronics and digital technology, Londiwe she could not see herself happy or content in any other company besides Schneider Electric.

"When it was my turn to ask the interviewers questions, I asked how they feel being Schneider Electric employees. The panel shared how empowered they feel and how Schneider as an employer is encouraging the employees to #DareToDisrupt & be #empowered – I feel exactly the same now that I am part of such a great company. Let me tell you why," she says.

Making her feel comfortable in her role

Londiwe's graduate program started in February 2020 with a memorable and exciting day at the office and everyone was welcoming. She joined the Buildings team where she was assigned to two buddies who helped her settle in and asked about her career interests so that they could give her the right resources to empower her and make her feel comfortable in the role.

"I was so excited to get straight into the work, but before I could do that I had lots of learning to do! Using the Schneider Electric online learning platform, which was available every day for all Schneider employees, I could learn everything from how to communicate effectively to how many communication ports a digital meter has – I felt truly empowered," she explains.

Adapting to new ways of working

Unfortunately, the exciting first few months in the office were short-lived as the COVID-19 pandemic hit South Africa, and life as we knew it came to a standstill. Employees were forced to stay at home, work from home and everyone had to quarantine. Londiwe was becoming anxious as she had just started to become accustomed to her new working environment and team.

"Sitting at home and not having any close contact with my team, not being able to shadow any of my colleagues made me feel disconnected for a while. To my surprise, I realized that I was a part of a very inclusive and collaborative team, and with the introduction of the New Ways of Working Policy at Schneider Electric that encourages working from home and prioritizing our mental health- I was able to continue to feel #empowered throughout this time," she adds.

"To say that I was excited when I was offered a permanent role in January 2021 would be an understatement. I could not wait to start my role in 2021 and to know that I was now officially a part of a truly amazing company. As we continue into 2021, with COVID-19 restrictions still imposed, I am so grateful to be a part of a company that puts its employee’s health and safety first, that promotes diversity and inclusion in everything they do and to continue to learn every single day in my journey here at Schneider Electric," she adds.