A few weeks back we had an Interview with Annette from generation 2011-2013. She picked up the Skype phone in Bergen, Norway and told us about her career path after EMTM. We found out that she’s an amazing storyteller. A note: Annette graduated in 2013. EMTM grows and evolves fast. If you have any questions you can reach us through our contact section. Interviewer: Anette, please describe your present function and responsibilities.
Anette: I’m a project manager for a product development project in tourism, but I function actually more like an executive director. However, since this is a government run project and since the Norwegian culture is very egalitarian we don’t have these fancy titles. I’m creating a pilgrimage route from a tourism perspective, that goes from the most Southern part of Norway all the way up to Tondheim. It’s a huge challenge, because the pilgrims arrived by boats, and so there is not just one route, but more a huge puzzle piece; land based, water based. Our targets are modern pilgrims, so we have to create something that is flexible. When I started the job I had no clue on how to tackle this big project. I had to design the whole process politically, strategically and how to implement the whole project with all the stakeholders. The project covers a distance of 2.500 kilometres and crosses five different county administrations and dioceses (you need to get the church on board for the authenticity of the project). Within these counties we chosen about 50 municipalities, so there are a whole lot of stakeholders who we want to collaborate with (around 200 people). This is a grass root project, whith the stakeholders for the stakeholders and where all the value is created on a local level, so I had to dig down from the high political hierarchy to the local municipalities and their citizens to create a tourism product from scratch into one big story. I had the build trust and respect between me and the municipalities and make sure everyone’s voice was heard. It’s a chaotic job, with not many guidelines to go by, and I've had to very quickly learn to trust my guts and build a vision that encompass with the hundreds of voices from all the 2500 kilometers. We focus on about 1000 years of cultural heritage from Vikings to pilgrims. In the end, the point of this project is to get people discovering the region and its rich culture and history - and off course food, through cycling, walking, kayaking and public transport to the smallest, rural places. Interviewer: Was it difficult to find a job after graduation? Anette: It’s never easy. It’s a job in itself to get a job. It takes dedication and you can’t just take any job, but in my case getting my present job was a coincidence of related events. First, In Denmark we all bought bicycles and when we moved to Ljubljana I got the crazy I idea to spent the summer biking to Girona. This totally changed my take on tourism, because during my Bachelor we focused so much on conceptual development and research, but here I found something in tourism that had given me such an amazing and intense experience. The world is just very different when you move at a top speed of 15 km/hour. So, in Girona I got super inspired and decided to write my thesis on cycling tourism. For my thesis, I thought the best way to interview people was on the Camino the Santiago del Compostella. After that in the summer I had an internship with European Cycling Federation. When then internship ended I decided to go back to Norway, because I actually knew little about tourism in my own country. I was lucky and got a job at my old uni and develop my own class on International Tourism Policies. Then this job turned up, with focus on every topic I had ever worked with, and the rest as they say, is history. It's amazing how things turn out. Interviewer: Do you incorporate values that EMTM teaches, such as sustainability, responsibility in your job functions? Anette: I believe that the arguments on sustainability are winning arguments, but I also live in a country that is fairly active on these aspects. We have a lot of projects that want to reposition Norway as a sustainable country. Therefore, the focus of my project is on slow tourism, which in essence is also about sustainability. We work to keep visitors in a small area and bring the local benefits. Interviewer: Would you enrol again in the EMTM programme, in relation to career development, and why or why not? Anette: Of course I would, in a heart beat – if I get all my people back. From a professional point of view, I have become much more competent. I also see that more students get an internship during EMTM, which is great. Most importantly, EMTM produces professional problem solvers that can navigate through chaos. Interviewer: Did you ever benefit from the EMTM network for your career? Does the EMTM network or ‘family’ as we call it really help? Anette: First of all, we have reunions twice a year so we definitely stick together. But it’s not just about the social aspect, because I also use my classmates professionally. There are some people in my generation that work, like me, in the public sector, so that helps a lot. The people from my generation are the first people I go to when I have challenges at work. We learn so much from each other, and this dialogue has continued years after EMTM. If I have issues I can't sort out or strategic plans that need a second opinion they are invaluable, and I think that this continuous sparring extends the learning. I don't think I would be at this point, professionally, if it wasn't for them. Interviewer: Are there things that could improve in the programme? Anette: What I miss is that I don’t really feel a belonging to something in tourism. Where do you go after studying EMTM? What do you do with the knowledge? It would have been great if we had a workshop that would focus on this. This would be useful, but that’s for any kind of social studies I guess. Also, in a professional environment, a very important thing is to know who you are as a person and what your abilities/skills are. After EMTM you have changed so much, so it would also be great to have a workshop on this, together with your fellow students who know you so good. I also feel that the English requirements should be consistent for everyone. Students and Professors. I can only speak for my self, but I remember there were some classes where I know I did not reach my potential due to language issues. One thing is knowledge, but you have to be able to convey that knowledge. Interviewer: Describe the most memorable moment that happened in the programme. Anette: I guess you don’t want to hear about love stories. Actually, where you are right now, in Spain, is quite amazing. In Denmark and Slovenia, you just think it will last forever, but when you come to Spain - which you have been longing for so long after the rain and cold - and you land in EMTM heaven and think you have still one year, you get to realize in October that it’s just a couple of more months together, which adds a sense or urgency off the love you have for these people. This means that you have to add so much more love very quickly. So, to come to the point, my December of 2012 was extraordinary full of closeness and love. I stayed in Girona during Christmas and a group of us hired a car for a road trip where we travelled to Toulouse, San Sebastian and Bilbao. We ended up sleeping in a farm at the day the Maya Calendar said the world was about to end. It was a crazy storm that night and in the middle of the night the door flew open. It was just such an apocalyptic beautiful day. Interviewer: Any advice for students looking for a job? Anette: EMTM is impressive. You have to remember that! Don’t under communicate that you have studied in all these countries and that you have knowledge of many things during the different semester. People are impressed of this, also in the professional world. Remember all of the processes you’ve been through during EMTM; the visas, finding a place, etc., which makes you very unafraid and that is amazing. You can spot an EMTM’r on a miles distance, because they are not afraid. They can pack up their bags any minute, to be on a plane and set camp in North Korea if they have to. We have to communicate the problem solvers we have become! Thank you so much for sharing your experiences and thoughts!
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