Employee Spotlight: Áine Kenna
In the third installment of our #TalentedTeamwork series, we sit down with Áine Kenna, Delmec’s Sales Development Manager. She tells us what she enjoys most about her job, how rewarding it is to help connect communities – and why she’s hanging up her dancing shoes for now.
At Delmec, synergy shapes success, and that starts with our people, who work together every day to make our company the globally-recognised industry leader that it is. For this staff spotlight, we talk to Áine Kenna, who takes us through her busy working life as Sales Development Manager at Delmec.
Having completed a business qualification, Áine chose to follow in her father’s footsteps by pursuing a career in the world of manufacturing. Moving into telecommunications, she joined Delmec four years ago, and quickly found her niche in sales. There, she helps clients expand their portfolios by providing on-the-ground support and design services. “The key objective for all people working in the telecoms industry is connectivity, and balancing demand versus fulfillment,” she says. “No matter what part we play, it’s all working towards the end goal of connecting people around the world.”
For Áine, no two days are ever the same: “We work with our clients to support them in fulfilling ever-growing demand. That could mean assisting with BTS rollout, urban and rural solutions, structure swap-out or rectifications, and maintenance programs – as well as many more developments to come.”
Her work means that while she’s based in Carlow, Ireland, she’s often on the road or in the air to attend conferences, meet clients and arrange site visits. “I count myself lucky to travel with my job. It’s given me the opportunity to see some beautiful places, like Dar es Salaam in Tanzania – the landscape, culture and people are amazing there. With Delmec offices all around the world, I’m sure I’ll be adding to the location list very soon.”
Every year, Áine and her colleagues travel to TowerXChange events for Africa, Asia, Europe and MENA. “These are key get-togethers for us, where we learn about important topics and pain points for towercos, MNOs or service providers. It keeps the industry exciting, with a regular flow of new developments to roll out and fresh challenges to overcome.”
For newcomers to telecommunications, this fast pace of change can sometimes feel overwhelming, but Áine learned early that every day is a school day in our sector. “The best advice I got when joining Delmec was to resist the temptation to learn everything all at once,” she says. “That’s still something I try to bear in mind, as our work changes daily. No one person is expert in everything, so I recommend that new hires learn from their colleagues, take any opportunity they can to get involved, and most importantly, have fun – if you enjoy what you do, it makes everything so much easier.”
At Delmec, we’re serious about our work, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a few laughs along the way. Áine is part of our social committee, so she helps to organise our charitable shoebox appeals and coffee mornings, as well as our annual Christmas hamper day – in full elf costume, no less! She’s been known to contribute the odd traditional Irish song to our Christmas party too, although we can’t tempt her to show off her hip hop dancing skills. While she won many awards for her moves in the past, she says she’s retired her split-sole sneakers. “Unfortunately, I am no Shakira!” she laughs. “I prefer to watch from the sidelines now, whether it’s dancing, football or hurling. Nobody cheers louder, though – I’m a lifelong fan of all things GAA-related.”
When it comes to motivation, Aine says that it’s her colleagues who inspire her every day. “It might sound cheesy, but honestly, I’m ‘proudly Delmec’,” she says. “I see a huge future for us within the industry, as we grow our diverse and talented team, partner with leading industry stakeholders, and constantly strive to provide the very best service for our global clients. It’s an exciting time to be part of the Delmec team.”
