Name: Zina Agović
Place of Birth: I am from Bosnia. Because of the war in my country in 1992, I fled to the Netherlands.
Date of Birth: 24 January, 1975
Studied at TU/e: 1996-2002, Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences
Current position: Senior Director Human Resources at Philips Professional Lighting Solutions Europe

How did you achieve your current position?
I have followed the path that allowed me to learn the most and contribute to the organization I work at, which brought me in my current role. Before joining Philips I also worked at TU/e as a Policy Officer for International Affairs. At Philips I worked as an analyst at the strategy department, Strategic Buyer, and later as Director Strategic Sourcing. Then I moved to HR, where I held several positions: Head of HR at Philips Lighting Headquarters, Senior Director Talent Management for Finance, Marketing, Operations. All those jobs focused on Global Lighting. And now I’m the Senior Director Human Resources of Professional Lighting Solutions Europe. Thanks to the network of people I got to know during my studies at TU/e, I was lucky to be approached for different job opportunities, so it hasn’t been too difficult to find a job.

How do you reflect on your time at TU/e?
 It was a great period where I had plenty of opportunities to learn both from my studies and from extracurricular activities (An exchange visit to Helsinki University through Interactie, being chairwoman of UniPartners Netherlands, a Faculty Council student representative, and a buddy for visiting Erasmus exchange program, among many things). It’s been a lot of fun and I had the opportunity to get to know a lot of fellow students from TU/ e and other universities.   

What are your plans for the (near) future?
In any next career I will follow the path from which I can learn the most and where I can make a contribution to the organization I work in.

What advice would you give current students?
In order to find a job, make sure you have talked to and visited as many different companies as possible before deciding where you’d like to work. But also make sure to stay true to yourself about what you do and don’t like to do in a job. It will help you in your job search. Talk to friends who already have a job or are also job hunting, as their advice can be very valuable.