I love working under pressure, it’s what makes my job fun! – Ilan Guiladi | KraftPowercon

Hi Ilan! Tell us about your professional background.
Before joining KraftPowercon in 2012, I ran my own consulting business where I supported numerous companies with everything from project management and purchasing to contract negotiation and sourcing of suppliers. KraftPowercon was actually one of my clients back in the day, which is one of the reasons I’m part of the company now. Before my consulting days, I spent many years working in purchasing-related roles in the telecom industry, mainly as a Purchasing Manager.

How would you describe your role as Head of Sourcing at KraftPowercon?
As Head of Sourcing, I manage the global purchasing division at KraftPowercon. It’s my responsibility to develop our sourcing and purchasing strategies and to find, evaluate, and manage our global network of suppliers. I collaborate closely with my international colleagues in Shanghai and Pune. We utilize each other’s networks and work together to find the right partners for different endeavors. I also manage the day-to-day operations at our Purchasing Department in Surte.

What’s a regular day like for you?
They usually start very early with me sifting through my ever-growing inbox, which generally contains a plethora of urgent matters that need my immediate attention. Either production has a problem with a shipment, or we’re lacking components, or a supplier has postponed a crucial delivery – each day is a new surprise! After that, I tend to whatever challenges the day has in store while juggling meetings back and forth. It sounds intense, and it is. But I wouldn’t want it any other way. I love working under pressure. It’s part of what makes my job interesting and fun!

Did the COVID-19 pandemic affect your department in any way?
From a purchasing perspective, we didn’t suffer too much. From time to time, deliveries got delayed when our suppliers had to shut down due to staff shortages on their end, which was a direct result of COVID-19. The biggest challenges for us started when the pandemic slowed down at the beginning of 2022. Right now, the entire world is dealing with massive shortages of electronic components, which naturally affects us too as a power supply company.

How have worked to overcome these challenges as a department?
We’ve been able to overcome most challenges by making accurate forecasts of which components we need ahead of time. By also breaking down our orders into smaller batches, we’ve been able to continuously ship crucial deliveries to our customers and avoid disruptions in production. At the end of the day, all companies are in the same boat right now. Material and components are hard to come by, that’s just the reality of things, and our customers know this. The most important thing is to keep a close dialogue with our suppliers and customers and to plan ahead.

What do you like most about working at KraftPowercon?
I’ve worked at many global industrial companies throughout my career, so I know a thing or two about how the corporate world works. What’s so refreshing about KraftPowercon is that we are a very agile organization, free from slow-moving bureaucratic processes. Requests or decisions don’t have to pass through several instances for approval, which is especially important for my department – as we’re often pressured for time and forced to act quickly. Furthermore, we have a great company culture. We’re very supportive of one another and do our best to help our colleagues when they need it.