From Kopřivnice to Heidenheim – Stepping out of the Comfort Zone

Sarka Hatlapatka, Senior Manager Digital Delivery
Sarka Hatlapatka has always been drawn to different places around the world. As a student, she ventured to Japan and the USA. Later, she started her career at HARTMANN, in an international work environment. Now, she lives with her husband and her three-year-old son in the Ostalb region. “We really like the area,” the friendly young woman says with a warm smile. They enjoy it so much that they don't see themselves relocating anytime soon.

Sarka grew up in the industrial town of Kopřivnice in the east of the Czech Republic, where she also attended school. "Kopřivnice is comparable to Heidenheim," Sarka explains, "with about 20.000 inhabitants, and 40.000 in the district overall." She graduated school there and then went on to study at a prestigious university in Silesia under the Erasmus exchange program, earning her bachelor’s degree in Tourism Economics.

At the age of 21 she was passionate about exploring more of the world. A work-and-travel program took her to a three month-long summer camp in Maine, on the East Coast of the USA. There, Sarka gained her first international experience, supervising children and teenagers from many different countries and improving her English. “Being so far away from home alone was challenging, but it was a really great experience,” Sarka still enthuses.

Back home, she pursued a master’s degree in Marketing Management. Once again, she stepped out of her comfort zone – this time heading to Japan. Sarka didn’t just want to learn the language, but to also immerse herself in the culture and the Far Eastern country. She lived with a Slovak classmate in the quiet suburb of Tokyo. "Japanese is a quite complicated language," Sarka explains. "But I wanted to give it a try. With my basic knowledge, I was able to get by reasonably well." She met many interesting and helpful people during her six-month stay in the Far East, traveling across the country alone or with friends.

After returning home, Sarka completed her studies in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic. After that, she was eager to put what she had learned into practice. Her goal was always to find a position in a company with an international reach.

At HARTMANN, she finally found her professional home. She was accepted into the International Graduate Program (IGP), for HARTMANN a main pillar in attracting and retaining talent and young professionals. The International Graduate Program includes getting to know HARTMANN, building a network within the company, and working on various challenging projects with a strategic focus in a self-selected area of expertise. The young professional is supported by a mentor and can participate in selected trainings. The IGP has been in place since 2012 with currently eight and a total of 67 participants to date. The program lasts 18 months and includes three to four different assignments within a department, including an international assignment. For graduates with excellent academic records, this offers a good opportunity to expand and deepen their knowledge in a specific field. Sarka also got to know various HARTMANN locations and the company itself thoroughly. It became clear to her: she had found exactly what she was looking for.

Her first position at HARTMANN after the IGP was again in her Czech homeland, which is one of HARTMANN's core markets. She worked in Project Management, focusing on e-commerce. But significant changes also occurred in her personal life: Sarka got married and became a mother.

One and a half year ago, the family moved to Heidenheim. “We feel comfortable here,” Sarka says, “we enjoy the nature and we live close to the forest. We go on beautiful bike rides, travel, and like hiking. The region is just great!” In Heidenheim, Sarka is involved in a globally oriented project in information technology, for which she had laid the groundwork in the Czech Republic. In this project, the global HARTMANN B2C shop named HARTMANN Direct, she is the responsible IT Product Owner and Project Manager.

Sarka summarizes her very exciting journey at HARTMANN as follows: “I am very happy that HARTMANN offers this possibility for international mobility. It gives the work a certain dynamic and makes it more exciting. I hope that employees will continue to have this opportunity.”

Based on the interview of Sarka Hatlapatka with the magazine of the IHK Ostwürttemberg. You can read the full interview in German here.

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