Marinela Gačpar: Enjoying the constant action as project manager

You will see Marinela lead client presentations in a way that seems like a breeze. Then she will handle tough questions without breaking a sweat. Known for her problem-solving skills and her knack for reconciling different interests, Marinela Gačpar is a project manager par excellence.

A graduate of FOI in Varaždin, she’s been in business and tech for 20 years. Her role is far from easy. It requires strong focus on clients, the definition of requirements and close collaboration with teams. Add to this a deep dive into the business and on-site work with clients during software implementations, and you’ll get an idea of the kind of professional she is.

Marinela finds her work truly fulfilling. She stands out for her responsibility, dedication and expertise. But to be able to do all that, relaxation is a must. She’s been practicing Ashtanga yoga every day for seven years. And as a mom of two pre-teens who play football, she often spends her weekends at the field watching their games. 

From a technical role to project management

Marinela joined Emil Frey Digital in 2017 as a project manager. Before that, she had worked at a telecommunications company for 15 years. She had gained experience in team leadership and operations.

- Operations manager is very close to what we now know as DevOps. Although that role didn’t involve coding, it gave me technical knowledge to better understand what happens beneath the surface of a software system, she said.

She refers to that as her first "real" job. Admittedly, it took her some time to fully understand what was expected of her and what it actually meant to communicate effectively with colleagues and clients.

- These are skills and knowledge that you build over the years. From that perspective, my five years at EFD can seem short. Today, people move from one company to another faster. When I was starting out, things were different. There weren’t many opportunities in IT, and the employment conditions in most companies were not what they are today. I had great colleagues and working conditions in my previous company, but after 15 years in the same company doubts started creeping in. I started questioning: Was it time for new challenges?, she said.

Project management is not for everyone

Being a project manager means you are the one ensuring that things run smoothly. For that you need knowledge, detailed planning and full grasp of all project phases.

- This is something you hone through experience. There isn’t a book that will make you a good project manager, especially not overnight. I think not everyone is for this role. My coworkers also recognise how demanding it can be, for example, to implement software in the client's country. You need to understand things deeply, present clearly, “get” the mindset and expectations, and solve problems as they arise. And you need to do this quickly. If there’s a language barrier, it will not make things easier, she shared in a recent conversation.

Switching gears: From telecommunications to the world of cars

Marinela decided to change the job after getting an unexpected opportunity to join a young company that had recently become part of the Swiss Emil Frey Group, the largest car distributor in Europe.

- One day, I got a call from EFD. They asked if I wanted to join their company in a position similar to the one I had in my previous company as the head of the Customer Care department. I went for the interview, liked the job description and accepted the offer, she said.

Marinela joined as the 39th employee. At that time, the company worked from small office in Ana’s Street (Anina). It was a huge leap - from telecommunications to the world of cars, two very different industries with completely different ways of working.

She was introduced to the early version of INSiDE, which was then known as Lead Management. She learned the essentials in the first month or two. It didn’t take her long to become independent and start working on projects.

Her first major one was the development and implementation of GDPR solutions in the Croatian market.

- We worked on it in coordination with the German team. Each side had their view of the solution and provided their input. I was the one who clarified all the input with the team and shaped it into requirements for our developers. We had to reach a consensus to make the solution work for all the brands that we represent, she said.

Still, it took her a while to start feeling fully confident about what she does. In project management, confidence is something you cannot do without.

"My first conversation with a client? I had a feeling that we didn't quite understand each other :) I think I didn't get what they were asking, and I wasn’t sure that what I was saying was correct and that they understood me."

Today, Marinela will discuss complex stuff and steer conversations with ease. When needed, she will pull an answer out of her sleeve. - It took me five years to build the knowledge and confidence I have today and to feel that that's the real deal.

Managing implementations in Central Europe

Marinela manages implementations in Central Europe, which includes Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic.

- Just today, as we are doing this interview, we've launched our solution into production in one of the countries. We've received many requests, and new ones continue to come in. We will process, develop, and deliver them, she explained.

Fit-gap analysis is a crucial step in project preparation.

- It allows us to understand what our clients need that our system doesn’t already have. In the initial conversations, we showcase what our system can do and identify any gaps. Many times, you will not get all the answers right away, because clients themselves will not always be sure how their users (dealers) will use the system, and that is perfectly fine, Marinela explains.

Before the rollout, projects at Emil Frey Digital will go through several phases. One of them is User Acceptance Testing (UAT), which happens about a month before going live in production.

- We deliver everything we've developed to the client and give them a month for testing and feedback. After that, we put the solution into production. That's when the 'hypercare' phase begins. In this stage I collect all change requests, send them to the team for analysis, and include them into the standard development plan, she said.

At one point, it was not uncommon for project managers to juggle multiple projects at the same time. EFD is moving away from such practices because it's nearly impossible to dedicate adequate attention to each of them.

- This year, I am focused on two new projects, devoting some 80 percent of my time to them. The rest of my hours go into backing up clients to whom we've already rolled out solutions. My colleague Valentino is gradually taking on more of that responsibility. Once we've rolled out a solution in a country, he'll take the lead in tackling new requests and ensuring they're a success. Our organization is in the process of adopting the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), we will see how these steps will fit into our future work.

The thrill of being in the middle of things

- I enjoy the constant action at work; it keeps things interesting and challenging. You shouldn’t let work become just checking tasks off a list. I like being in the middle of things. As a PM, I have to keep analyzing, looking ahead and stay informed. It's a kind of adrenaline rush that drives me forward. Every time I start a new project, something new comes up – I meet new people, learn how to communicate with them, and how to get to the bottom of what they need.

Traveling to clients’ locations is an essential part of her job. In Marinela’s words, it can be demanding, but it's important. And it certainly adds dynamics to her job.

"You shouldn’t let work become just checking tasks off a list.”

I asked Marinela about her biggest challenge in daily work and which was her favourite project.

- My biggest challenge? It’s when we're not all on the same page. Sometimes, it’s far from easy to unite different perspectives, but it can be done. Speaking of projects, I can’t really single out any one as my favourite. Each one brings something new. They've all been interesting and dynamic, especially the recent rollouts of the sales module in INSiDE, she concluded.