Deeksha Ruhil

What do you enjoy most about your role? 

I joined Kingspan in August 2022, mostly working on the admin side of Salesforce dealing with daily challenges, and what I enjoy is being able to collaborate with all the different divisions as a part of global team. It is never boring – there is always something to learn, solving problems and developing skills. 

As a CRM system, Salesforce allows us to bring the data from all aspects of the business into one place, whether it’s leads, quotes, sales, maintenance plans etc. The way we can segregate things means that we can make sure that people don’t get overwhelmed with all this data. It’s a managed process and we can automate different aspects for the different divisions, helping to make their jobs easier and making sure that the user has a good experience.  

What makes you proud to work for Kingspan?

When I first got my job interview, I went and looked at the Kingspan Group webpage, and the thing that impressed me was the Planet Passionate initiative and the fact that real progress was being achieved. It made me interested in working with the business. I’ve never worked for a company that cares so much about its employees – there’s a lot of diversity and it’s very humancentric. It’s so important to have that touch, not just developing people professionally but also encouraging them to grow personally.

When I open my laptop in the morning, I’m always happy to start work. If you can say good things about your company when people ask you where you work, it gives you a sense of pride, and I definitely have that here.  

What professional qualities are helpful in your role? 

It’s most important to have an open mindset. When I’m helping people in the business to arrange data and process it, it’s not about what I want to achieve, it’s about listening and understanding what they need and then helping to guide them to the best solutions. You need to be adaptable and ready to change what you thought you were going to be doing.

To do this well you need to have effective communication skills, especially since you’re working across different divisions, keeping the super users updated about what they need to know. It’s challenging, but a little bit of challenge is always good.

Having technical capability and a process mindset is also important for using Salesforce. 

What’s the best piece of career advice you’ve received?

When I was being interviewed for this job, I mentioned that I had previously made a huge career change, from an architectural background into digital. Louise Foody, our Director of Digital, gave me a great example of the way that Steve Jobs had switched his career focus at different stages, culminating in a well-known quote of his: 

“A lot of people in our industry haven't had very diverse experiences. So they don't have enough dots to connect, and they end up with very linear solutions without a broad perspective on the problem. The broader one's understanding of the human experience, the better design we will have.”

Essentially, no training or experience is a waste of time, even if it doesn’t appear to relate directly to the job you are doing now. I trained as an architect, and that training helps me to understand some of the issues we are dealing with as a construction product manufacturer, even though I am approaching them from a different direction.

How could someone get started in your division of the Kingspan Group?

There are lots of different aspects of digital to get involved in, whether it’s CRM, project management, integration. If you’re enthusiastic about digitalisation, and can offer industrial and communication skills, there will be a place for you. It does require a level of technical knowledge or ability, but you don’t necessarily already need to know Salesforce – if you think you could do it you should just give it a try!

That’s the great thing about working for Kingspan, even if you don’t have the certifications yet but are eager to learn, you get that chance. I did the Salesforce course, but more importantly I got a lot of amazing support from my team, and that’s the best thing about working here.

What does the future hold for Kingspan?

The way Kingspan is working already, across so many countries – caring for the planet, setting the highest standards – I don’t see any other company doing what we are doing. I think there will be more growth and more of the same commitment.

We grow a lot by acquisition, and that brings its own challenges when it comes to Salesforce, which is why that open mindset is important. We try to be patient and to convey that we are here to support not to pull down. First, we hear what people’s plans are, then we make the processes to enable those to happen.

I think we will continue to see that investment in people. I had a career break when I had my child, and right from day one when I started with Kingspan I felt supported back into work, that my decision to take a break was respected and the value of the time I spent raising my child was acknowledged, not judged. This approach is really empowering for women.

We are also encouraged to always learn and stay up to date, to gain new certifications. Your personal and professional growth is considered to be important, and there are always things to support your physical and mental health. It’s a really good working environment.