- Job title: Sr. Manager WWCC Center of Engineering
- Years at VMware: 8 months
- First job: My first “paying” job was working at a small souvenirs and clothes shop for the summer when I was 17 years old. The challenging part was selling wool winter clothes to Russian and Nordic people during their summer vacation, which quickly developed my sales skills.
- Fun fact: I watch many sports, one of my dreams was to watch a big soccer final live. Back in 2019, a friend of mine and I had the unique “last-minute” opportunity to buy tickets for the Europa League final in Baku, Azerbaijan. We’ve traveled all the way to Istanbul by car, caught a flight to Baku, watched the game, and returned the same night. We’ve been there in less than 8 hours. Maybe my quickest visit to a foreign country.
- Favorite social distancing activity: I am a big fan of Bulgarian folk dances, usually practiced in big groups. So, at the beginning of the pandemic, we tried to practice it via Zoom with a bunch of friends. It was a hilarious experience, watching ourselves and dancing at the same time.
Tell us about your career journey to date?
In my career so far, I’ve worked in small to mid-size software development companies. I have experience being part of and leading teams globally, in R&D and PS organizations, where my team’s contribution was clearly visible, utilizing various tech stacks and practicing various methodologies.
How is VMware different from any other tech company you have worked for in the past?
Entering VMware and Center of Engineering, my passion for realizing the value and bring innovation to the customers accelerates in the fast-paced multi-cloud environment we live in today. The key differentiating factors I would pick, comparing to any other tech company, are:
- the countless opportunities for professional growth
- the fantastic team I work with every day. I am honestly amazed and thankful for being part of such an engaged, respectful and supportive community of great professionals and human beings.
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
My 1-year-old son. Then, my desire to drive the business further and enable my team to grow. It’s a great pleasure and one of my leadership challenges to facilitate their progress and guide them to build expertise via the exciting projects we tackle day-to-day.
What has been the biggest lesson you have learned as you moved upwards in your career?
Sharing is caring—simple quote with a lot of context to think and do about. While progressing in my career, I was mentored and guided by great professionals. I appreciate the unique chance I had, and I desire to return that investment to the people I am working with.
What makes the team you lead so effective?
First, their passion for automating and optimizing everything they touch, and second, the great collaborative approach of all of us sharing ideas for further improvements, which we implement iteratively.
If someone reading this was coming to interview with you tomorrow what interview tips would you give them?
Lately, I see many people sharing with the candidates to be themselves, being authentic. This is a great tip, but doesn’t provide much concrete guidance, especially to more junior candidates. Being a hiring manager, I expect to hear what you are passionate about and its relation to the position. Motivation is the engine under the hood driving all of us to progress and be better than yesterday. So, my tip would be to be prepared to share yours.
Could you see yourself working for a manager like Rusi? Check out the open positions in his team:
Lead Cloud Automation Developer
Senior Software Engineer with Java, C#, JavaScript, or Python and back-end knowledge & experience
