Blake's story
Our Benefits
11
years at Signify
3
business functions
4
roles
>500
customers served
Accumulating lighting knowledge
Before I joined, I knew the Philips brand quite well, both through my grandfather who was in radio broadcasting [where Philips is a household name for audio devices] and as Philips had just taken over Genlyte. Looking at all of the consumer brands, Philips always stood out as a premier electronics brand. That's what got me interested in joining the company. Over the years, I held different positions and worked on a broad range of projects. Those projects ranged from illuminating a 42-story building in Hawaii to the Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago. I also provided unique light recipes for elephants to light recipes for crops in greenhouses.
“Throughout my career I always felt supported and trusted by my managers. They really believed in me and allowed me to do what's needed to be done on a daily basis.”
Translating research into higher crop yields
What stands out to me is our ability to help our customers by creating value that goes beyond lighting. I come from a family with 163 years of heritage in farming so I know it’s not an easy business to be in. We are one of the few companies in the world that can translate the knowledge on light and growth recipes from our research center in one part of the world – Eindhoven, the Netherlands – to help American farmers improve their crop growth predictability, quality and yields. So, at the end of the day, we are helping the world to eat and be healthier. I’m very passionate about that.
Key advice: learn from your peers
As a company that operates across the world, Signify employs so many different people that you can learn from, starting with your direct peers who may have accumulated a wealth of experience. So, my advice is for people to never give up seeking advice, from peers as well as other colleagues.
Read other stories
Curious about how a trainee can become the Head of Systems Center MET? Read on for Elena’s Story.
Eager to learn how it is working in a large corporation? Read Emilia’s story who started as a marketing intern and now is a full-time employee.
Do you have the eagerness to learn and grow? Read how Krzysztof enthusiasm led him to his third promotion, as a Logistics manager.