How did Ana, a young medical doctor, change her career and became our Head of Communications?

Ana graduated from medical school, becoming our only in-house doctor. She leads our Communications department, which means she is in charge of all communications and marketing activity at Q. This traveling fanatic with a more-than-interesting resumé is an extreme extrovert and only 25. Her story truly represents what Q is and how it is always possible to achieve your goals.
 

Ana is always wearing a smile, even when working! She loves building a positive environment around her.

Why did you join Q, and what has kept you here?

I joined Q two years ago while studying in my final year at medical school in Zagreb. The tech world was a passionate hobby, but I always thought my career would start and end in a doctor’s white coat.

I worked many different student jobs in various industries and decided to apply for my last job at an IT agency. I'd applied to hundreds of different positions and companies, but Q was the only one I got a response from, which made it even more special.

First, I was offered a position as a Business Development Associate, which I accepted. When the date of my graduation came, I thought my story at Q was over. But to my surprise, it was just starting.

While I was waiting for hospital residency applications to open, I was already a member of the Q family and was very connected to Q's people and environment. That was pretty obvious to everyone, so I was extended an offer to stay.

I stayed in the Business Development team at first, but soon I became a Product Owner on one of our internal projects. This project grew to be one of the three largest projects in Q, so my daily tasks, knowledge, and responsibilities grew exponentially.

Q was forming the Marketing and Communications department, and I was offered to become a Head of Communications. I have never thought this would be my career path, but I accepted it and never regretted it once.

I can't imagine working on anything or anywhere else. What keeps me here the most are my friends, the dynamic of work, the freedom to express my opinions and ideas, and equality among workers, no matter the position or seniority. Q has helped me develop as a person.

What is the favourite part about working for Q?

My favorite part about Q is that everyone has their voice. Here, it doesn’t matter how old you are, what your background is, or where you come from. Everyone has a place in Q.

And if you want to grow and succeed, the only thing it matters is how good you are at your job and how willing you are to learn. Everyone has a chance to show their best selves.

What have you gained from working at Q?

The biggest value I got was management and organizational skills, problem solving, and experience with multidisciplinary teams. And from a personal perspective, I acquired many friendships and formed into a better person with more self-confidence!

Ana loves traveling, especially to warm tropical countries! She took her chances and tried surfing in Bali.

What’s your next step, or a few goals you’d like to accomplish in life, or while with Q?

Well... One of my biggest goals is to get a Ph.D. and to try out scientific research. I’d also like to be able to more easily get up early in the morning, live outside my home country for at least a few years, learn one more language, and read more books. Not necessarily in that order :).

I’d also like to get back to creating music. I used to play the piano, and I attended music school for 10 years, which I also graduated from. One of my biggest passions was composing, and now I’d like to get back to it and try producing my own music.

Before working at Q, what was the most unusual or interesting job you’ve ever had?

Wow, I’ve actually had some weird and crazy jobs before Q! One of the most interesting ones was working as a gamemaster in a Children’s Escape Room because I love children and believe it takes a special level of patience to survive being locked in a room with 20 kids :)!

How do you define success in life?

I think success means making a difference in the world, on any scale possible. For me, it means always to keep asking yourself "Why?" and "How?"; keeping that childish curiosity. It also means always doing the best you can and never giving less than 100% of yourself.

Ana and her teammates, preparing for a game of paintball - Team building, 2019.

What is the best vacation you’ve been to?

Definitely Indonesia! I was in that beautiful country for almost two months. I visited a small city in Java, Malang, where I lived with a local family and worked in an Emergency Room as part of a students exchange program, after which I traveled alone through Java and Bali.

It was my first encounter with Asia, and I fell in love. Since then, I have visited Vietnam for another month and would love to take a few more months to explore the whole of SE Asia. I don’t know what I loved more - people, mentality, food, culture, or incredible nature!

If you had to eat one meal, every day for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Without a doubt - Pho!

If Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would you like to see cast as you?

Definitely Jennifer Lawrence. She is dorky, strong, and smart, but mostly because it would mean we would have to spend a lot of time together so that she can get into my character more, and I know that we’d have the time of our lives!

What's your motto or personal mantra?

My favorite motto is Parkinson’s Law - work expands to fill the time allotted. So I believe it is not impossible to manage everything because there is not enough time; I just think you have to bend that time and control it better to fit the things you need to do ;)

Want to know more about Ana and the Communications team?

Ana has grown into a full Q member, and she is an excellent representation of our three core Q values - Be Fast, Do More, and Be Kind! She is always here to answer your questions, so don’t hesitate to reach out. Or at least if you need some medical advice ;)