Factorial life 2014 2 en preview

Pyotr Gavrilov

YOU NEED IMAGINATION TO GET RESULTS

Pyotr Gavrilov Director of the commercial vehicle department Alexander Tsvetkov: Our business is a team game.

I like players that provide assists

Valery Tatischev: The one who gets the most balls is the winner

Nikita Polyakov: A faulty engine is humiliating for mechanics

Ekaterina Savosina: It’s hard to knock me off the saddle

Olga Kolchina:

This year the Day of Health was a complete success!

â„–2 (4) 2014

▪ Publisher ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

№2 (4) 2014

Zoya Suslova Editor in Chief Yulia Kolbeneva e-mail: kolbenevay@mail .ru Designer Olga Kolchina Photographer Pavel Suslov Approved for print 01.12. 2014

CONTENTS:

▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

CONGRATULATIONS FROM PARTNERS . .

EDITORIAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

ACHIEVEMENTS: WIN A TRIP TO LONDON . . . . . . . . . .

PROS: PYOTR GAVRILOV . . . . . . . . . . .

IT’S GOOD TO VISIT: A WARM MEETING IN EUROPE . . . . . . .

ON THE EDGE OF THE EARTH . . . . . . . .

EVENTS: CONGRESS OF HOUGHTON DEALERS . .

BLITZ INTERVIEW: ANTON OSINKIN: ABOUT MYSELF, COINCIDENCES AND MYTHS. . . . . . . . .

WE GROW AND LEARN . . . . . . . . . . . .

VIEW FROM THE OUTSIDE: TRETY PARK .

CALENDAR OF SIGNIFICANT DATES: NIKITA POLYAKOV. GREETINGS! . . . . . .

A STRONG WOMAN: EKATERINA SAVOSINA: A GIRL WITH CHARACTER . . . . . . . . . .

SPORTING CHARACTER: ALEXANDER TSVETKOV: I CAN STAND UP FOR MYSELF . . . . . . . .

SUCH DIFFERENT INTERESTS: IGOR SHKIRMAN: I WANT TO BE A POET AGAIN . . . . . . .

WE ARE TOGETHER! DAY OF HEALTH . .

ARGUMENTS FOR: WHICH NEW YEAR’S SUPERSTITION ARE YOU WILLING TO BELIEVE MOST? . .

. 3 . 3 . 4 . 7 . 8 . 9 10

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CONGRATULATIONS FROM PARTNERS

Dmitri Filippov, Head of the department for B2B sales of lubricants for North West Russia and Belarus

Zoya Suslova, President of NWA holding

DEAR COLLEAGUES!

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very manager dreams of working with professionals. This year will go down in the history of the development of Factorial as successful, including thanks to your professionalism. The team had to overcome many obstacles, but succeeded in maintaining stable and reliable relations. Thank you friends! We are the best, and will be even better in the new year.

Let’s celebrate the traditional New Year’s Eve in a magical, thrilling and joyful way. And then the simple words “Happy New Year!”, said with particular feeling, will not just be a banal phrase, but a sincere greeting to your close friends and relatives.

On the eve of the most magical celebrations, may all your wishes come true. Let all your ideas appear and may the coming year be filled with pleasant events, joyful meetings and exciting discoveries! Happy New Year!

DEAR FRIENDS!

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t is clear that the coming year 2015 will require that we use innovative approaches to business development in new difficult conditions. Nevertheless, it will be a wonderful opportunity for us all to mobilise our forces and unleash business potential to reach new heights and search for new and interesting opportunities. Working together with industry sector leaders, which include Shell, by regarding the development of the market for high-quality lubricants in Russia as a global priority, our partners and consumers will, undoubtedly, overcome any difficulties and strengthen their own market positions.

I would like to wish a Happy New Year to the successful Factorial team, one of the oldest distributors of our products, and all consumers of Shell lubricants. We wish you health, happiness and peace for your families, enjoy the New Year holidays and express yourselves brightly in the New Year 2015!

EDITORIAL Yulia Kolbeneva, Editor in Chief

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ear friends, I am sure you remember our recent discussion about new year superstitions that deserve to be trusted. You can read the thoughts and revelations from our colleagues in our traditional Arguments For column.

Now, let me tell you a story about Father Frost who didn’t believe in himself.

The people whose doors he knocked on Looked at him anew, They didn’t believe in him one bit, And he didn’t believe in himself...

There were no fairy tales that winter, Nobody asked for magic, And only the dog followed Father Frost with his pity and love.

He didn’t need proof, He was not afraid of condemnation.

And Father Frost understood this was a friend.

He felt a kinship with the dog.

By leaving idle speculation, Listening to the distant voice of childhood, Learning from the dog’s generosity, We will return the magic.

Ian Lloyd, Distribution director for Europe and Sales director for Eastern Europe Houghton

DEAR COLLEAGUES!

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oughton wishes you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. This year, the company celebrates its 150th anniversary of working successfully work on the market for industrial metal working fluids. We have set ourselves ambitious development goals, where the fast growing Russian market with its huge potential will play a major role.

We wish your company, growth, success and prosperity in 2015. I am sure that your team of professionals will enable you to look to the future with confidence and to achieve outstanding success.

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ACHIEVEMENTS

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Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.

Napoleon Hill

WIN

A TRIP TO LONDON In spring, Shell distributors received the following proposal from the company’s Russian representative office.

“We invite you to take part in an exciting competition “Win a Trip to London” for sales representatives of distributors in the Commercial transport sector.

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actorial transport employees have taken part in all types of competitions. But this time, the conditions were unusual and the prize very attractive – a five day all-inclusive trip to London. It is not just the trip that caused excitement, but the chance to take part in the World Championship heavyweight driving challenge contest among Shell distributors.

The commercial vehicles department got down to business, and from 1 April to 31 July (the length of the competition) the department’s sales representatives, without slowing down, sold Shell products. In accordance with the competition’s terms and conditions, only sales to vehicle companies were accounted for and only a certain range of synthetic polymer products – engine, transmission oil, etc. The results were pleasing. Factorial was more than a worthy competitor and was only beaten by a Moscow distributor. Two representatives from each of the best four companies were sent to London. Pyotr Gavrilov and Valery Tatischev went to England on behalf of Factorial, as they had the greatest sales volumes during the competition period – 10 and 4.5 tonnes respectively.

The employees could only guess at what they would be doing in London. The only thing they were told in advance was to take their driving licences with them. But, of course, nothing was said about any special preparation. However, all the participants in this gathering of distributors were in the same position, nobody knew what awaited them in the United Kingdom.

“Gathering” is like a word from our youth. It is probably the word that best reflects what happened this September in London. Representatives from the best Shell distributors

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from all over the world (India, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Argentina, etc) gathered here to take part in the Championship for driving heavy machinery.

There were as many teams as countries. Each team member had to go through all the tests included in the Championship programme. A track in Surrey, where the hugely popular Top Gear TV show films its famous test drives, was selected for the competition.

Most competitions included the ability to handle construction machinery. Obviously, nobody expected high professionalism from the participants, just good reactions and fast thinking. For example, goods needed to be lifted using a loading truck and moved to another clearly marked place. This only seems a simple task. The ability to handle the machinery was assessed and flawless compliance with safety rules was tested. There was also a competition on knowledge of the theoretical foundations of Shell technology.

PYOTR GAVRILOV vehicle company department director: I had never driven a loader, excavator, truck, nor even a tractor before. And then, I found I had some unknown reserves.

I was best at driving trucks, we had to perform different manoeuvres, for example, reverse precisely between flags.

It was difficult, of course, but interesting. But I didn’t do very well in the virtual competition thought up by Shell developers. In fact, it was the same competition, just in electronic form, like on a tablet. If I was 20, I’d have definitely shown them!

VALERY TATISCHEV senior manager of the vehicle company department: I liked the excavator competition best. We had to fill the bucket with plastic balls from boxes and put them in a barrel. The one who gets the most balls is the winner. I can say that I managed this task well.

Although the Russian team tried their best, unfortunately for us, the Chinese won all the prizes But, in the end, we were happy with everything. After all, the most important point of the trip took place.

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P.G.: We spent a lot of time with our colleagues from other countries. We talked about different things, including production. There was a memorable farewell dinner organised by the Transport Museum where prizes and diplomas were awarded to the contestants.

There were lots of representatives from Shell’s head office and there was a dignitary on every table. We even have a photo of Valery talking to the company’s vice-president.

V.T.: Actually, the conversation was not about business. The vice-president had been to Saint Petersburg and was very impressed by our city. I told him that we really liked London, an interesting tour of the British capital had been organised for us. We had a nice chat.

P.G.: In general, we were very well looked after in London, at the highest level. We stayed in a great hotel, visited museums... We were very impressed by the tour of Buckingham Palace. We watched the changing of the guards ceremony, when guards come out of the palace gates on foot and on horse. A lot of people come to watch this beautiful spectacle every day.

In our free time we just walked around the city. There were pubs literally on every corner with centuries of tradition and a corresponding interior and menu.

Pubs are very popular, they are packed in the evenings, despite a pint of beer costing about 450 roubles in our money. Nevertheless, we tried beer and traditional English ale.

We walked along the famous Piccadilly, where you can find all imaginable and unimaginable luxuries.

Shops selling diamonds, fur, incredibly expensive cars, the Russian Caviar House, we saw it all with our own eyes.

The city literally smells of money, just imagine: you can see more Porsche 911 sports cars there than you can see Lada’s in Russia.

At the same time, everywhere there are traditional English red telephone boxes, red cabs and double-decker buses.

But, of course, the greatest part was the gathering of distributors for the first time, which took place with great originality.

Factorial is a company of professionals.

Among the experts who know the “best way to make a garden” is Pyotr Gavrilov, the commercial vehicle department director.

PROS

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S

olid managerial experience (16 years as head of the industrial department in a large company) clearly helped Pyotr Gavrilov when, one year ago, he was appointed head of Factorial’s commercial vehicle department. It was at this time that the company underwent major structural changes and the “transport” team was significantly refreshed. As Pyotr recognises, it was not easy at first.

In December 2013, the department’s backbone consisted of five quite experienced managers. But Vladimir Sudkov was soon made head of the purchasing department and Igor Shkirman went to lead the regional department and practically left sales. Now Igor manages the work of our branches in Veliky Novgorod, Cherepovets and Pskov. Gradually, four new managers joined the team, two of them straight after graduation, so without managerial experience. But, as is well known, experience can be acquired. Just recently we took on another two employees.

So the department is growing, developing and, by the way, is coping really well with the plans.

Pyotr Gavrilov supports democratic training methods.

He tries to guide, but not force his working formula on the young managers. For example, the manager will definitely say if a mistake was made during a cold call, but, in general, gives the sales representatives the opportunity to develop independently. The head of the department believes that “You need imagination to get results”.

Pyotr Gavrilov is also involved in sales, he manages five VIP clients bringing 20% of the department’s profit.

This year, the commercial vehicle department, together with the technical department, launched an initiative to test Shell Rimula R5E 10W-40 semi-synthetic engine oil on Lenstroykomplektatsia CJSC mining machinery in Kamennogorsk. The tests were very successful and showed that the switch to Shell Rimula R5E 10W-40 would help LSK save over one million roubles a year.

Another striking success was the department winning a prize in the competition held by Shell among its distributors.

High figures for the sale of synthetic products to transport companies allowed Pyotr Gavrilov and Valery Tatischev to take part in the international gathering of distributors in London.

“We are not going to stop at what has been achieved”, said Pyotr Gavrilov, “we have a lot of work and good prospects ahead of us”.

“There are a number of ways to plant a garden, and the best way is to let a gardener do it”.

Karel Charek

IT’S GOOD TO VISIT

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In our previous issue we talked about how a new Houghton product, metastable emulsion, was presented in May at the Cherepovets company Severstal.

This product is intended for use on a four cage cold rolling mill.

Our German colleague Stefan Konrad gave an interesting presentation describing the experience of introducing a similar product on similar equipment in Germany. The trip to Cherepovets had a continuation.

ThyssenKrupp AG – is one of Germany’s largest industrial conglomerates, founded 17 March 1999. The conglomerate was formed from the merger of two companies: Thyssen AG and Friedrich Krupp AG Hoesch-Krupp.

ThyssenKrupp AG is the largest global producer of high-alloy steels and metal working machinery.

The group is the world’s largest producer of stainless steel, lifts and escalators.

A WARM MEETING IN EUROPE Maria Malik-Tkachuk, Houghton department director Factorial

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he idea behind the May presentation of Houghton was the fact that Houghton has successfully implemented its products with equipment at the ThyssenKrupp AG plant in Dortmund which, like Severstal, is a metallurgy plant (the process cycle is wider at the Cherepovets plant).

The thought arose to show the German plant to Severstal specialists, so that they could see with their own eyes how innovative cooling agents work and get the opportunity to learn from international experience.

We discussed this with Houghton head office and in September organised a visit to the plant, including a meeting in the company’s offices. Together with two specialists from Severstal, Pavel Antonov, head of the department for flat rolled products, the rolling and annealing shop and Nadezhda Mikhailova chief specialist for cold rolled steel technologies, we flew to Dortmund.

The tour of the German plant was very detailed, even our guide seemed to be a little tired. Nadezhda and Pavel showed interest in literally everything, they asked lots of questions and tried to gain practical experience. I should mention that the ThyssenKrupp cold rolling mill was installed by SMS Demag. This is the company that will install the exact same equipment in Severstal. This is not a quick job, the mill is huge, about the size of our entire office. Work is expected to take at least one year. In the future, we plan to carry out similar trips and exchange experience in Dortmund regarding hot-rolling processes.

In addition to the plant, we were shown Houghton’s laboratory, whose scale and equipment as well as the innovative analysis methods particularly impressed Nadezhda Mikhailova. Obviously, we wanted to learn as much as possible about how cooling agents are studied and analysed, especially water soluble ones, in particular the metastable emulsion that we had presented. By the way, according to the plan, this product will be poured into the Cherepovets plant at the beginning of next year. We hope that the successfulexperience of using metastable emulsion in Germany

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will be transferred to Severstal. The Cherepovets specialists were also interested in the fine details of servicing the fluids, as a competent service is a vital production component.

As for our reception, we only have good things to say about it. Representatives from England and the Czech Republic came to meet us. Christian Weichert, sales director for Houghton Russia made a warm welcoming speech, everyone smiled and was friendly.

One of our joint dinners was particularly memorable as it coincided with Nadezhda Mikhailova’s birthday.

Not much was said about sanctions, just in passing. All parties hope that our products won’t fall under the sanctions.

It was very nice that our visit turned out so well. Severstal specialists (you could call them our strategic partners) certainly highly rated the trip to Germany organised by Houghton and Factorial.

ON THE EDGE OF THE EARTH VORKUTA is a town on the river of the same name in the Komi Republic. It is situated in the permafrost zone. The name comes from the Nenets language and means a place full of bears.

It is the third largest town in the world above the Arctic Circle. As Vorkuta is only 180 kilometres from the Arctic Ocean coast, it has a subarctic climate.

Maria Malik-Tkachuk, Houghton department director

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n this town which is frost free for only seventy days a year, we have begun to develop a new business for us, organising the work of mining dealers there. In mining this means field development..

In the near future, we plan to hold a Houghton presentation in Vorkuta. Our task is to introduce the coal miners to Houghton products and offer them solutions to the problems they face there. The main discussion will be about fire-proof hydraulics. The project is very specific, interesting and, we hope, promising.

The Holiday Inn Congress Centre is considered to be one of the main business complexes in Saint Petersburg. That was where Factorial held the first congress of Houghton dealers from 20-21 November.

Olga Syulderkina, Commercial director Factorial LLC

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oughton today occupies 13% of the technical fluids market in the engineering and metallurgy segment, while it has ambitious plans to take 25% of the market by 2020. Russia is one of the key regions for development.

Factorial has received the right to represent Houghton in Russia with the authority to create and develop a network of dealers to promote and develop Houghton in Russia. Currently, 22 companies in Russia have Factorial dealer certificates. Their directors were invited to Saint Petersburg at the end of November.

The Holiday Inn conference hall hosted the Factorial team and its Partners who sell and promote Houghton products in Russia. An important part of the congress was the report on the year that was ending. It was noted, that the strengthening of the dealer network for promoting Houghton products led to an increase in sales volumes greater than double that of 2013.

Other important points were the creation of a corporate website for promoting Houghton products in Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Belarus – www.houghton.su. The website has a special section for dealers, where they can place orders, get online technical support and advice, get training, find required technical and marketing materials, etc.

The presentation of the Partner program for 2015-2016, which described the goals and tasks for the development and promotion of Houghton in Russia as well as the new pricing policy, was received with great interest. There was a very lively round table discussion with the Houghton representative, the sales director for Eastern Europe Christian Weichert.

Unusual entertainment was organised for the evening, a visit to the modern Grand Maket Rossiya museum. The guests loved it!

The second day was dedicated to a technical seminar on Ariana Industrie sales, cooling agent equipment as well as Schulke products, which are used in engineering and metallurgy for cleaning cooling agents.

EVENTS

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The congress of Houghton dealers held in November was an event which will, undoubtedly, help the development of this brand in Russia.

CONGRESS OF HOUGHTON DEALERS

Maria Malik-Tkachuk, Houghton department director Factorial

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s is well known, Factorial has been one of Houghton’s platinum distributors in Russia for several years. This summer, at the suggestion of our company, new rules for distributors were adopted which are designed to strengthen Houghton’s position in our country and to manage relations between platinum distributors.

This new policy gave us the opportunity to hold a congress of Factorial dealers who are small Houghton distributors.

Our plan for the congress was to introduce a number of innovations in planning and pricing to the dealers. To be honest, we were slightly concerned, as we didn’t know how our partners would react to the innovations. But the reaction was fantastic. The dealers did not hide their interest in what they heard, they actively took part in debates to fully understand the situation. There were a lot of questions, in particular about discount policy and the pricing policy in general. It was good to see that several of the innovations proposed by Factorial were revised and improved directly during these debates. We are open for dialogue, because it is important to understand real problems which are found on location. Every dealer is unique, it cannot be any other way in Russia. There are areas with very developed industry where our largest representatives work, and there are areas with few industrial enterprises where we do not expect high turnover from our dealers. Nevertheless, all our dealers are equally important to us. Now, we are assessing how the dealers performed last year. It was announced at the congress that the dealer certificate is a document confirming compliance with the company’s high demands. It is simple: if you comply, you have a certificate. And vice-versa. Nobody will automatically renew this certificate.

We are currently drawing up the plans for 2015, general and individual for each dealer. These plans describe the work scheme, including reporting rules. This will all help us make our business even more profitable for all participants.

ANTON OSINKIN:

about myself, coincidences and myths

Anton Osinkin, 1С software engineer Factorial LLC ▪ Anton, computer science wasn’t even taught in schools when you were a child. How did you get into this profession?

ANTON OSINKIN: I studied at the Leningrad radio polytechnic on Svetlanovsky Square. Until 1960, the college was on the territory of the Svetlana factory. Of course, I wasn’t there then, but even during my studies you could feel the connection with the factory. Most graduates found work at Svetlana... I qualified as a software engineer after college, at the Leningrad Polytechnic Institute. I have worked as a 1C software engineer since 2009 and for the last year on the territory of the Svetlana factory.

▪ When did you realise you could be a software engineer? А.О.: I understood that I was good at programming in college, therefore I went to the institute to study this subject.

▪ What is the peak of a programmer’s career? Or, in other words, what is your maximum goal? А.О.: There are no limits at all. 1C software technology is developing, new versions of the 1C platform are released with new features. So, while I am still interested, I will keep up with 1C. ▪ They say that it is best to communicate with a software engineer using the formula: minimum of words, maximum of information. Is this a myth or is there some truth in it? А.О.: I would say that it is important for a programmer to understand what the user really wants. If the goal is clear, then the way to achieve this will be clearer and correct. But, how this information is delivered is of no importance at all.

▪ How do you respond to questions like: “What are you doing now?”, “Will it help?”, “Please teach me so that I can do it myself next time”? А.О.: To be honest, I am very rarely asked such questions.

They want an end result and not many people are interested in how I get there. I try and answer questions about my work in as much detail as the other person needs to understand my thoughts.

▪ Do you get annoyed by people who are computer illiterate? А.О.: No, it doesn’t annoy me. I am always willing to share my knowledge. I am disappointed when I feel that the other person does not want to expand their skills and just doesn’t listen to what I am trying to explain.

BLITZ INTERVIEW

Q: How many programmers does it take to change a light bulb?

A: None, that’s a hardware problem!

In chess, draughts and a number of other games, blitz is a very fast game.

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AND LEARN

WE GROW

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The tradition of holding external training seminars has proved very successful. In September, Factorial employees attended such a seminar in the town of Borovichi, Novgorod Region. It was organised for the region’s production, construction, timber and transport companies.

Pavel Lyashenko, Factorial regional representative in Veliky Novgorod

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actorial held its first seminar in September in Borovichi, the second largest industrial producer town in Novgorod Region. The Novgorod branch faces a clear challenge to develop sales in Novgorod Region and to develop a significant market niche. The region has a lot of potential, but in terms of large-scale marketing events it is difficult, as many plants are quite far from Novgorod, not to mention Saint Petersburg.

The decision to hold the seminar in Borovichi was taken for the convenience of the customers. Companies invited by partners are not located too far from this town. We were pleased to see regular customers at the seminar: Nebolchinskoe Quarry CJSC, Setnovo LLC, Borovichi Truck Service LLC, AS LLC and Uglovsky Lime Plant JSC. Other participants included partners from Valdaysky, Khvoyninsky and Lyubytinsky districts. In addition, the seminar was attended by major Novgorod Region companies, such as Borovichi Refractories Plant JSC, Elegiya LLC, Borovichi Construction Material Plant CJSC, Pesky Lespromkhoz LLC, Novevroscheben LLC, SPK Levochsky, Spetstrans LLC and Mezhdugorodnik LLC. Our speaker Vladimir Pavlyushnev had a specific aim, to introduce the advantages of Shell products to potential regional clients. As the seminar participants listened with great interest and asked plenty of additional questions, we can say that the aim was achieved.

Vladimir Polukhin, the deputy director of Borovichi Truck Services LLC, did not hide his satisfaction at the business meeting. “We had already sent our employees to Factorial seminars in Saint Petersburg. The result was clear to see. Therefore, we sent five of our employees to the training in Borovichi. I had planned to listen to the first part of the seminar on engine oils and then leave, but I actually stayed until the end as the information was very interesting and Vladimir presented it in a very clear and simple way”.

The seminar in Borovichi not only strengthened existing relations, but also laid the foundation for working with new clients.

This year Factorial has mastered and begun to successfully use a new kind of training seminar.

In the first week of December, Factorial organised a whole series of internal webinars for Houghton product sales representatives.

Konstantin Sedov, Factorial Houghton department technical specialist

Georgy Machulsky, Executive director Factorial LLC

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eeping up with the times, our company joined the business community in using a webinar service. The webinar audience is significantly expanding. One person can be in the conference hall while somebody else can be hundreds of kilometres away.

The advantage of webinars is that we can provide the audience with instant access to materials, the chance to ask questions and receive technical advice without additional investment and equipment. This is the technological effect of webinars: as well as answers to questions, the audience instantly receives presentation files and other documents (upon request), while the acquired knowledge can be literally applied within an hour.

The introduction of webinars has a significant economic impact. Firstly, we do not have to rent premises for a large audience. Secondly, it is not necessary to greet and provide accommodation for guests from other towns, and employees do not have to be taken away from their work. And thirdly, money is saved which is usually spent during seminars on welcoming guests and organising buffets and coffee breaks.

There are lots of positive points, but there are also some difficulties. Webinar services are usually not free, and if free services are used for broadcasting, the sound may be delayed, images freeze, etc. This happened in our first webinar. However, we are in no way prepared to abandon this practice. Currently, we are testing several webinar platforms to chose the one we will use in the future.

A webinar or web-based seminar is a type of web conference, seminar or presentation organised using web technology in real time. Webinar participants use their computer, regardless of their location, and are connected by an internet web application. A key feature of a webinar is its interactivity, the ability to demonstrate, display, receive and discuss information.

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talked to managers from the industry department in the conference hall and our virtual audience included sales representatives from our branches. We immediately decided that there would be several webinars, after all the lads need to master a lot of subjects: cooling lubricants, non-flammable hydraulics, liquids for hot stamping, for cold forming, hardening liquids, preservatives and cleaning fluid. Today we discussed all aspects of cooling agents. As our sales representatives already have general knowledge, the theoretical part was quite short. The main emphasis was to give sales representatives some technical tips to help them promote the products. In particular, I talked about an important instrument, testing, which has to be correctly organised and properly done. In my opinion, today’s webinar turned out exactly as we had planned.

Igor Kochergin, head of Factorial’s industry department

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n November, we, the sales department heads, took part in a webinar organised by ASU XXI vek. The webinar was useful, we heard lots of interesting things on how to organise sales in a modern company. The speakers suggested dividing the work of the sales departments into three parts: phone calls, active search and service. A lot of arguments were provided, which were hard to disagree with. The proposed interaction plan for employees can be adapted for any company. The speaker told us in great detail about call centres. Apparently, this process has been perfected in ASU XXI vek, they know how to properly organise phone calls and how to control calls. But, you shouldn’t forget that it is only one part of the plan. The webinar was, in general, interesting. Now we need to digest the acquired knowledge and implement something in our company.

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VIEW FROM THE OUTSIDE

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TRETY PARK JSC IS THE LARGEST PRIVATE TRANSPORT COMPANY IN SAINT PETERSBURG AND THE NORTH WEST Its main business is public transport minibuses. The company also provides services for the recovery, diagnosis and repair of vehicles, provides vehicles for delivering goods and buses for outdoor advertising.

No major public events in Saint Petersburg — elections, visits of heads of state, meetings of the Interparliamentary Assembly — pass without the support of Trety Park vehicles.

More than 500 buses were provided every day during Saint Petersburg’s 300th anniversary celebrations

Mikhail Bogdanov, first deputy general director Trety Park JSC

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he desire to provide our vehicles with high quality lubricants for 5 years led Trety Park to work with Factorial, which fully complies with the high levels that we demand from our suppliers.

Shell products are attractive to us because of the combi-

nation of fundamental factors — price and quality. For example, MAZ-103485 and Golden Dragon XML 6125 CR buses, which we use on all public routes, only use Shell lubricants.

Our partnership with Factorial makes us confident that all our orders will be fulfilled on time. In addition, we attach great importance to the speed of reaction to our comments and requests. Therefore, we have found a reliable partner in Factorial. Our partnership is an important link in the chain of events which allows us to put the right number of buses into service on time. All the required components supplied

by Factorial (about 9-10 tonnes of lubricant per month) are always available, requests are fulfilled quickly, so disruptions in putting transport into service do not happen.

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Igor Sibirev, chief engineer Trety Park JSC

MAZ-103485 buses. Mercedes-Benz OM 906 CA Đ•uro 5 engine.

Allison T325w automatic transmission. Shell lubricants used exclusively

Igor Aliev, Purchasing department Trety Park JSC

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good supplier is one you rarely see. Factorial, have always understood us and understand at a glance, therefore unusual situations do not arise. All operational points are resolved quickly and professionally. For example, last year, the question arose of whether Factorial could get a certificate for its product which we planned to use in Allison transmissions. Factorial reacted immediately and managed to get certification from the automatic gearbox producer. Then we started to use Shell oil in the gearboxes as well as the engines.

At the moment , Trety Park is testing Shell Rimula R5 E. We are trying to study the properties of this product, to increase the interval between oil changes. If everything goes well (and we are pretty sure it will), then we will increase the service mileage of our buses. By the way, we have already agreed that our fleet will only use Shell products from the new year.

Golden Dragon XML 6125 CR buses. Cummins ISLe290 Euro 4 engine.

Allison T325r automatic transmission. Shell lubricants used exclusively

CALENDAR OF SIGNIFICANTХ DATES

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NIKITA POLYAKOV GREETINGS!

THE BEGINNING

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went to a school of physics and mathematics, and then I entered the physics department at Leningrad State University... I reached the student “equator” and understood that pure theory was not for me and I left the university and went to the Leningrad Higher Naval Engineering College. I became an engineer, specialising in gas turbines. I got a first class degree, which allowed me to choose where I worked, so obviously I chose the Northern Fleet, the most efficient unit.

CLEVER MECHANICS FOR A “CLEVER” SHIP

Н NIKITA POLYAKOV: I must admit that I didn’t feel any major changes in me or my life because of my jubilee. It is too early to look back and, probably too late to build ambitious plans.

▪ EDITOR: Let’s look at the symbolism dictionary, which states that the word jubilee means a return to the beginning.

JUBILEE IS AN ANCIENT HEBREW WORD MEANING THE YEAR OF FREEDOM It came every fifty years after seven cycles of seven years. In this year, sold and pledged land was returned to its previous owner, slaves were freed and debts were forgiven.

The 50th year becomes scared and begins a new era.

This era began for Nikita Polyakov on 15 September 2014.

ur anti-submarine ship Smyshleny (which means clever) spent nearly all its time at sea. As a mechanic, I was responsible for the operation of everything on the ship, water pumping systems, fuel separation, hydraulic systems, refrigerators, etc Imagine the Atlantic Ocean, in the region of the Western Sahara, the water is + 36 °C and our refrigerator breaks down. This is a huge refrigerator, which stores five tonnes of meat, not to mention all the other items of food. I felt responsible for the 300 personnel on board and started to work on fixing it. Five hours was spent bleeding the evaporating batteries, pumping alcohol into them with a needle.

You should have seen what came out of these batteries — dirt, oil, shavings, rags. But the meat was saved!

There were even more difficult situations, for example our 3rd main engine broke down on the high seas. Of course, we could get to port even on one engine, but, firstly, there needed to be some power reserves and, secondly, in combat conditions all four engines should work. In fact, a faulty engine is humiliating for mechanics. Usually, three sailors would repair the engine in six hours. However, the replacement of the pump regulator and the pressure rise protector did not help, the engine wouldn’t start. I had to replace the nozzle unit. This is a very time-consuming operation, because you have to put 10 nozzles along the whole diameter of the gas turbine. Each nozzle is unique, therefore, they need to be installed very accurately. In the end, it took three days to find and fix the defect, and we hardly slept during this time. When we finally heard the distinctive sound signifying that the engine had started, the excited shouts of the sailors covered the roar of the turbines.

WHAT IS IT LIKE OVER THERE?

I

n 1994 ships from the USA came to Severomorsk on a friendly visit. Of course, I didn’t miss the chance to talk to our American colleagues. It was interesting that their service lasted three months, after which a person is considered disqualified and cannot work until they have undergone psychological rehabilitation. Moreover, the mechanics did not perform any repair works on board at all. The commander of the bilge group told me about their difficulties, “We had a serious problem, there was a dripping leak in the fresh water supply at the stern cabin.” “How did you deal with such a difficult problem?” I asked the American with a sarcasm which he didn’t catch. “We recorded the fault and

17

told the maintenance company when we reached port. Then specialists came and repaired the leak”.

Actually, a dripping leak is such a simple problem that it is even a shame to talk about it. Given that I had only about two-three weld points a day and the total length of the ship pipeline was about 12 km.

WIFE OF A RED OFFICER

B

efore the great Patriotic War, there was a line in the work record book: Wife of a Red Officer. I married Anna a year before finishing naval engineering college. And my wife gave me a daughter, Olga, when I graduated.

Straight after this great event I went to sea. Anna is a real sailor’s wife, especially as she is a shipbuilder. So the Navy Day is our main family celebration. My father-in-law is also a gas turbine engineer, a former chief designer at the Lenin Nevsky factory. During my service, I often consulted him on the specifics of operating ship equipment. And now my daughter has become a professional 3D designer. She found herself, she works with online publications and her work is in demand abroad and in Russia. Moreover, Olga has a very technical mindset, almost from birth I taught her not to believe everything but try and understand, for example, what electricity is. She learned it.

FROM THE FLEET TO INDUSTRY

A

fter the Smyshleny I worked as mechanic for two years on the anti-submarine ship Vice Admiral Kulakov, which was being repaired in Kronstadt. In 1995, the country began a campaign of moving to a contract army. I was a captain-lieutenant and had nearly reached my military pension, but I felt pessimistic about service in the fleet, which was not funded at all at that time, and I weighed up all the facts and decided to leave.

The next few working years were closely associated with Shell. Overall, I find working in industry very interesting. I

assume that we should work towards making our products more competitive, not only in the domestic but also the foreign market.

The model that I implement is as follows: Products supplied by Factorial, just like services, are the result of long development by Shell and Houghton. Their design is very innovative and helps to extend the product’s life and reduce costs which are indirectly borne by production. So we became involved in the general state production process. By increasing the quality of produced parts and reducing production time, we will make the products competitive.

And if most companies now operating on the market work exclusively on reselling (essentially speculation), then Factorial will be focussing on something else.

There is not a single company in the world created to buy Shell or Houghton products. They are created to produce gas or steam turbines, generators, etc. But there are a whole range of products in the industrial process, including different lubricants and cooling agents. We are experts in this area and try to take this information to the producers.

LAZY INVENTOR

I

would be bored working on the same machine and doing the same work. It is not interesting to endlessly use something someone else invented, even if the invention is ingenious. It is much more interesting to create something yourself. I guess, I feel that I am an inventor. Of course, you can invent something just like that if you have the freedom, material and time, but even so.

I like what Bill Gates said: “I choose a lazy person to do a hard job. Because a lazy person will find an easy way to do it.” I am not ashamed to admit that I am lazy. Laziness is the mother of invention, it motivates you to think of something unusual, a beautiful solution and, just as important, simple.

The simpler something is, the more beautiful it is.

A S T RONG WO MA N

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▪ Maybe you don’t have many reasons to get annoyed and angry?

EKATERINA SAVOSINA: A GIRL WITH CHARACTER

T

en years ago, Ekaterina Savosina began her working life working at a petrol station. That is quite a coincidence. Of course, this ambitious girl didn’t want to stay at the petrol station long, she had completely different goals.

Moreover, as well as a diploma from the National Open Institute of Russia she has a specific type of character. She has an inner strength which is almost impossible to break. That is why Ekaterina, who appears so delicate, is seen as a strong woman by those around her.

EKATERINA SAVOSINA: Responsibility and punctuality are probably the main features of my personality. These qualities make me appreciate and rationally allocate my time.

▪ And what about balance?

E.S.: Unfortunately, I can’t remain calm in all situations, I can sometimes get angry. Even so I don’t rant and rave. In any case, nobody has seen me cry at work and I hope nobody will.

E.S.: Well, you can always find a reason. I think it all depends on experience. When I worked in Dakar Autocentre, I spent several years getting into conflicts. That was really hot!

It is not easy to listen to complaints. All customers are different and each require a different approach; I had to listen, understand and calm the situation. Once (for some reason I remember this) a customer shouted down the phone for 40 minutes and then, lowered his voice and asked for my surname. Of course, I had presented myself at the beginning of the conversation, but without losing my calm I repeated: “Lebed” [swan] (that was my surname then). Suddenly, the customer started laughing, it turned out his surname was also from the animal world — Kasatkin [a type of swallow].

So, the conflict came to nothing. I then worked with this customer for more than a year. I experienced several such stress tests, therefore, it is hard to knock me out of the saddle. To be honest, Factorial is a much more peaceful place to work.

▪ How did you end up in our company?

E.S.: I was looking for a job and, as usual, I sent my CV to various companies. I had a few offers of job interviews, including one from Factorial. When I saw the Shell logo, I felt something inside and remembered my first job. At that time, I honestly had no idea that Factorial was a distributor of such a famous brand. But, I went to the interview. I don’t know why, but I decided immediately that I wanted to work here. After all, I don’t live close, and I wasn’t given a managerial position, but the office atmosphere seemed very comfortable and I was happy with the questions I was asked in the interview because of their precision and professionalism.

▪ Katya, do you know that your line manager Georgy Machulsky really appreciates your professional qualities?

E.S.: I haven’t particularly thought about it, but I don’t have any plans to disappoint the management (she smiles).

▪ What did you find hardest in your new job?

E.S.: The situation in the sales support department was quite tense. Misunderstandings and problems arose with other departments. For example, they didn’t get required information in time. At the end of my probationary period, I was asked to manage the sales support department and within six months we had raised the department, as at that time it was difficult to work here. The department’s team changed. We had to completely review contract works, write regulations, set new rules, teach the girls to think about their work, to understand what they are doing and what they are responsible for. Our 1C software engineer Anton Osinkin helped us a lot with a program of changes that made the department’s work much easier. Now, everything is relatively normal, everything is in its place. However, there is still work to be done.

▪ Discipline, responsibility, decision making skills... these are rarely something you are born with. So, you managed to teach them by example?

E.S.: This is probably down to my parents, who, one day when I was seven, took me to the swimming pool. My sporting childhood began with regular training sessions, competitions and a lack of free time. I was a professional

Georgy Machulsky, Executive director Factorial LLC

E

katerina joined our company’s sales support department at the end of 2013, she came with a good track record and experience of working in a similar job. It was clear even during her probationary period that she was interested in the department’s work. Katya suggested practical ways of improving work, which definitely helped the department.

Her suggestions led to changes in how the contract recording system worked and new rules were introduced by type of work. I would describe Ekaterina as a disciplined, punctual and responsible specialist. If necessary, she will come to work at 7 in the morning and stay until 8 in the evening. It is clear that she is not motivated by salary and bonuses, I am often the last person to hear about her work. If I give Katya a job, I can be sure that it will be done on time and to a high quality, without any alterations or comments. It is easy to work with Katya, there are no impossible questions for her. She is always willing to look for and to offer solutions.

Katya not only sorted out how the sales support department worked. I can see how she tries to help sales department managers. She trains employees hired in the sales department, explains the principles of placing orders, order fulfilment and realisation, working with the 1C database, the product range and counterparty cards. After this training, the sales managers have an understanding of the relation between the purchasing, sales and logistics departments and develop the skills for working properly with our database.

synchronised swimmer for ten years. Almost every day.

But this is all secondary, the most important thing is that I still enjoy swimming and am teaching my daughter to swim, I have been taking her to the pool since she was one month old. At six months, Sofia could already swim under water and now she is six years old and it is time to teach her swimming techniques. The trainer says that Sofia is good, but I am not sure that I want to get my daughter into professional sport, it is very hard work and requires some sacrifices. Although, it definitely strengthens your character.

▪ Katya, you don’t give any reason to doubt your strength of spirit and character. Surely you admit to at least one female weakness?

E.S.: You know, a lot of people say that it is difficult to say no. But I have a different problem, I have had to learn how to say yes. Not in the sense that I don’t like helping people, but I often give the impression of someone who is difficult to approach. I discovered this “feature” when I was growing up. For example: the person is quite friendly, but their look stops people from approaching. This is me.

I fought against this look for a while and told myself “Katya, everything is good, let’s look at others with kindness”.

I think I achieved quite good results. Anyway, my colleagues aren’t frightened of me. Or maybe they are afraid to admit it (she smiles).

As for weaknesses. If I do have a weakness it is because I am a Gemini. I clearly feel that there are two people in me.

People close to me know not to offer me a choice. Probably because I always want to make the right decision and take a long time. By the way, when I need to take a really important decision, I don’t hang around. That is what happened when I decided to work for Factorial. I have never regretted that decision.

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SPORTING CHARACTER

20

Y

ou say that a person with a sporting character will stubbornly go towards their goal and overcome difficulties they face with honour. I like to think that this is about me.

In my childhood, I dreamed of being like my older brother, a master of sports in Sambo. I also started doing this sport, but then I broke my arm. While I was recovering, the lads I was training with got better than me, but I didn’t want to be an outsider, so I gave up Sambo. I am sure that any healthy person should do some sport, and I thought the same when I was a boy. Well, then I entered the Alexander Nevsky Military Patriotic Club. The main disciplines were military, we learned how to disassemble pistols and machine guns. Then, these skills came in very useful when I was at college, I was the best student in the civil defence classes.

From my club life, I particularly remember the unarmed combat lessons. We went to military units in Leningrad Region to show off our successes. Another interesting sport, which is considered a national entertainment, is Russian fist fighting. I always fought with pleasure and, by the way, I never had a broken nose.

ALEXANDER TSVETKOV: I CAN STAND UP FOR MYSELF

▪ FACTS: Fist fighting has existed in Russia from

ancient times. Common names of Russian fist fighting moves: in the loaf, on the nose, full width, in the soul, break the hoops, give a pie, swirl, right on the ear, under the heart, from the shoulder.

I don’t fight now, but I am sure that if I had to, I could stand up for myself and would not let a friend be offended.

So I am very grateful to my trainer Mikhail Lalochkin. And the lads were just what were needed! I remember one fighter (not from our club, it was at a competition) who could hold a thirty kilogram weight for three minutes with his outstretched arm. Maybe it’s not a Guinness record, but I have never seen anything like it.

I can also boast of something. Imagine, there are two guys, standing three metres apart and throwing a sixteen kilogram weight to each other. I can tell you, not every athlete could do it.

That’s about the same weight as my twins Fyodor and Yana who I throw with great pleasure!

I will do all I can to make my children sporty. I can use my example to show what you should aspire to. But, in fact, sport is sport and my main hobby is my family. I get up at 6 in the morning during the week and the day starts. I take the children to nursery. I try to spend all my free time with my family. When Factorial announced a Day of Health this summer, I immediately decided to take the whole family to the park. Although I didn’t take part in any competitions, my wife, the kids and I had a great time in the fresh air, that was my Day of Health.

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I have to thank my wife, she understands me and always supports me. Katya knows that Thursday evening is sacred to me. This is when I play indoor football at the Alekseev sports centre. It was good to discover that there are so many football fans in our company. A friendly group of Factorial employees went to the sports centre for about four months: Valery Tatischev, Volodiya Nikitin, Sasha Sudnikovich, Lyosha Blinov. One day, Sasha Tokarchuk came and showed us how a professional plays. And Irina Kharchenko was a great goal keeper!

It turned out that Lyosha Kurchenko played really well and he was upset when the company subscription for football was changed to the swimming pool. But I wasn’t upset, I am happy to go to the pool, and I still play football, but with my friends and not my colleagues.

You know, our business is also a team game like football.

For example, if the purchasing department doesn’t work well, without a warehouse, we can’t trade properly. I like players that provide assists. Everything that depends on me, I try to do well. In general, I always try to achieve maximum effectiveness. Whatever the result, it can and must be improved. Therefore, I always set myself new goals, like an athlete who wants to beat another record. And just like an athlete, I have highs and lows at work. I believe that if it takes off you need to develop it, but if it falls, stop. Well, if nothing happens, you need to get moving. For example. In July at the half year reporting meeting, I stated my goal of achieving a monthly margin of one million roubles. I remember, Zoya asked me if I would take responsibility for my words. I can say that I was not ashamed to look management in the eyes.

In September, I had the highest gross shipments in our department – 53 tonnes of products. And the margin was 1,000,200 roubles. I didn’t slow down over the following months. I think this is the right attitude towards work.

Anyone who doesn’t try to improve themselves will not stay in the company long. I have new goals ahead of me.

Yes, I should mention another hobby which my grandfather taught me — hunting. I go hunting for hares. A hare maybe doesn’t sound as impressive as a bear or even wild boar. But, one day I saw another hunter hold a wounded hare by the ears and another came closer to photograph the prey. The hare kicked its legs and made the photographer fall over.

▪ FROM THE EDITOR:

Alexander did not delve into the hunting theme, probably because Vladimir Pavlyushnev, who was present during the conversation, noted: “Sasha, if you were a real hunter, you’d be filling us with your stories.”

But it was already clear. Alexander Tsvetkov does not like telling tales, for him the word “said” means the same as “did” And his friendliness, sociability and sense of humour are all advantages for a sportsman.

SUCH DIFFERENT INTERESTS

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IGOR SHKIRMAN: WANT TO BE A POET AGAIN ▪ What was your favourite subject at school?

History.

▪ Your favourite writer?

There are several: Dostoevsky, Vonnegut, Dovlatov.

▪ What is your favourite place to visit?

I also have a few: from old Riga to a remote village in Novgorod Region.

It is quiet in your garden, Only drops after the rain.

The midday heat is your enemy today, And rainwater is your friend.

The sun, bright grass, The barks of a spaniel and dew.

Your feet are wet, A funny absurdity, But wipe the drops from your face.

Just let it live in silence, It will only flower in summer.

You will see your laughter today in a dream, But don’t interfere, your heart is singing.

This moment will quickly pass, And sorrow will come closer.

We will talk this evening about The coming autumn.

But now we will drink tea.

Igor Shkirman

O

ur colleague Igor Shkirman has a good literary turn of phrase, rhymes easily and even adds creativity to technical information. These are quite unusual skills for a sales manager. Igor does not hide where the “fire wood” comes from.

▪ Igor, where did you study after school and why did you chose it?

I.S.: After leaving school, I really wanted to try and get into the journalism faculty at Saint Petersburg State University.

However, it was 1993, when everybody was selling something, my parents persuaded me to take up business professionally.

So I entered the Saint Petersburg Institute of Trade and Economics.

▪ So did journalism remain an unfulfilled youthful dream?

I.S.: Not completely. There was a time when my main job didn’t take up much time and I was employed as a freelance reporter for Pushkin District administration Tsarskoselsaya Gazeta. They published five of my articles.

▪ What made you write your first poem/story? When did it happen?

I.S.: I wrote my first poem when I was five, it was a satire on the US president Jimmy Carter, I don’t remember what it was about. It was probably a child’s reaction to watching the news.

▪ Are you a poet?

I.S.: Probably not. I used to be.

▪ I can remember a couple of lines from a song by Victor Tretyakov: “Believe me, I used to be a romantic, / But now I’m a cynic”. Are these words also about you?

I.S.: You know, I managed to be a cynic. Now I want to write poems again, but it hasn’t happened yet.

▪ Do you think you are better at writing stories or poems?

I.S.: Maybe both, in the last few years I haven’t had enough time, or more likely, inspiration.

▪ What does a creative person need to feel inspired?

I.S.: Such a flow probably comes during life changes, changes for the better, the appearance of clear and desired goals. By the way, the period of stagnation has given way to a desire to grow at work as well as in my everyday life.

▪ Does a developed imagination interfere with or help in everyday life?

I.S.: A developed imagination can hardly get in the way :)

WE ARE TOGETHER! DAY OF HEALTH

FACTORIAL IS A TOUGH NUT ▪ Orekh Norwegian Park – the largest rope park in Russia, close to Saint Petersburg in the village of Orekhovo. The park has eight different routes, 130 stages, zip wires and rope bridges, up to 200 metres long. The varying difficulty of the obstacles makes the park accessible to people of all ages and level of fitness.

Olga Kolchina, Head of the Advertising and Marketing department

T

his year, Factorial’s traditional Day of Health was held at the Norwegian Park. We have dynamic easy-going people, so the idea of a sporting celebration was very successful. We were helped to organise it by our trusted warriors Volodya Nikitin, Valery Tatischev and Lyosha Blinov.

We had a report-back meeting the day before and most employees were ready. And on the day itself, everything turned out wonderfully: the weather was fine, the park was fantastic and the program was interesting, we were the only ones there, and the lake and forest with blueberries were close by. It was beautiful!

We gathered about 65 of our employees, including family members. Many brought their children and grandchildren, some brought their whole family. Unfortunately, there was nobody from the warehouse. The barbecue was a collective creation. The table was covered with snacks and coffee in just ten minutes. People were asking what they could do to help and then got down to work. One person washed, another chopped and the third put it on the table. Overall, it was a dream and not a team.

This year, the sport’s program was the real deal. Anyone who managed to complete it should be really proud. Always moving on ropes above the ground, at 8-10 metres up, that’s no mean achievement. Following tradition, we split into teams, but now, probably, nobody remembers which team won as there wasn’t a competition as such. Everyone earned points themselves. By the way the Blue Berets were the best.

That was their name.

We went along the routes on our own, the instructors just showed us how to use the safety equipment and gave us safety instructions at the very beginning. I managed to do the first green route, which was very easy. Then there was the blue route, where on about the third section the thought entered my head: “Oh dear, who is going to get me down from here?” I told myself that if others had managed it, then I could too. I must admit, I really wanted to go down the zip wire to the barbecue area and to experience the feeling of flight. Unfortunately, I had to get off earlier at the emergency descent. What reassures me is that only a part of the team decided to go on the blue route, and only a few people risked the red one. All this sporting fun lasted about two hours, but we didn’t notice the time.

Overall, this year the Day of Health was a complete success! It is not surprising that everyone wants to repeat the “banquet” next year.

Alexander Tokarchuk, financial director

S

ome of us tried the red route, the hardest after the black extreme route. I had been to the Norwegian Park before, so I knew what to expect. That time I had managed, although with some difficulty, to do this stage. Now, despite being quite prepared, none of us had the strength to do the red route. At some point we were just hanging from the rope and couldn’t move. You could only get down at a specific place, but we couldn’t even get that far.

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WE ARE TOGETHER! 24

DAY OF HEALTH

Alexei Blinov, logistics director

I

n front of me on the rope was a nine year old boy, Dasha Shevchenko’s godson. Fyodor was small and light and very brave: “I can do it, I don’t need any help!” But when the boy did not have enough weight to reach the next section, I had to literally push him forwards, speeding him up. My hands and neck were covered in bruises. Pavel was watching us from below and in the end said: “Lyosha, go in front of him and pull the child”. But Fyodor wouldn’t let me. He had to do it himself! This probably tired me out faster than I expected. And my strength left me on the red route. I hung there, grabbed a tree and thought: “That’s it, I could just fall!” But, for some reason, this hasn’t put me off the idea of doing it again. I only regret that I wasn’t prepared enough.

Fyodor Kovalyus, godson of Darya Shevchenko

T

he best part was going down grabbing onto the rope. It was cool – down I went, wheee! I went on the green route three times. But the blue one was quite difficult. I am not very tall, and actually small, so I couldn’t grab the rope and a nice man helped me all the time.

Alexander Tsvetkov, vehicle company department manager

L

yosha Blinov was lucky with Fyodors that day!

After he was taken down from the tree, he carried my son Fyodor on his shoulders! I would have happily taken part in the competitions, but I couldn’t leave my family on their own! My wife and I took our twins for a nice walk around the Norwegian Park. Maybe next year, when the kids are a bit older, they will be able to see what their dad is capable of! I like how our company relates to children. When we got to the park, everybody began to play with Yana and Fyodor, Tatyana Mikhailovna was especially good with the kids.

Elena Nikolaeva, warehouse manager

M

y impressions from the sports celebration were wonderful, and my grandson Dima was very excited. He went on the child’s route and I watched after him. You couldn’t find better entertainment for a seven year old boy.

As for me, at first I wasn’t going to take part, but when I saw it with my own eyes, I thought that I could manage the easier route. Next time, if the event is repeated, I will definitely risk it. When it was time to leave, Dima was even upset. We had to promise him that we would come again.

WE ARE TOGETHER! DAY OF HEALTH

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26

IT IS SAID THAT EVERYTHING COMES TRUE AT NEW YEAR, EVEN THINGS THAT FAILED TO HAPPEN DURING THE WHOLE YEAR.

WHICH NEW YEAR’S SUPERSTITION ARE YOU WILLING TO BELIEVE MOST?

Anonymous

5%

2%

19%

IF YOU SLEEP ON NEW YEAR’S EVE, YOU WILL SLEEP AWAY YOUR HAPPINESS AND THE WHOLE YEAR WILL BE UNSUCCESSFUL: o sleep through such a ▪ Tholiday is stupid, to miss so many happy moments... I don’t know about the whole year, but the fact that it is bad to sleep on New Year’s Eve is obvious.

IF YOU CELEBRATE NEW YEAR IN A NEW DRESS OR SUIT, SUCCESS WILL SMILE AT YOU ALL YEAR: really want to ▪ Ibelieve this.

But, I wonder if you celebrate New Year wearing braces, will success be as strong as iron?

HOW YOU CELEBRATE NEW YEAR IS HOW YOU WILL SPEND IT: he most awaited moment is the ▪ Tringing of the bells officially declaring the start of the New Year. So how you prepare for this moment, how you celebrate it, that’s how the whole year will be. is best to celebrate New Year with ▪ Ityour family, because your family will be with you all your life.

▪ This is based on personal experience. sceptic’s opinion: ▪ A As life has shown, a good New Year’s

tested this superstition ▪ Ionhave myself, it is confirmed 75% in practice.

Eve does not guarantee the rest of the year will be good. And vice-versa.

13% IF YOU HAVEN’T PAID OFF YOUR DEBTS BY NEW YEAR, THEN YOU WILL OWE MONEY ALL NEXT YEAR: habit of living without ▪ The debts and the strong desire to pay off all debts to start the New Year with a clean sheet. is a very practical ▪ This and motivating

superstition.

Like in the books of Max Frei: you need to pay off your debts on the last day.

think that if you start ▪ Isomething new, amazing

and interesting, you have to finish all old things and get rid of all problems.

After all, it is not a pleasant feeling to be a debtor.

believed this until ▪ Irecently.

But after I had

paid off all my debts over the year, I struck it out.

sceptic’s opinion: ▪ A It is very dubious and dangerous for a company employee to provide goods without prepayment.

30%

31%

IF YOU DRINK CHAMPAGNE TOGETHER WITH THE ASH OF A BURNED LEAF WHICH YOU WROTE YOUR WISH ON, THE WISH WILL COME TRUE: ▪ I’ve tried it, it works!

I DON’T BELIEVE IN ANY SUPERSTITIONS: is the architect of their own fortune, and ▪ Anoperson money, champagne, debts or sleep will interfere or help.

we carry out this ▪ When ritual, we are uncon-

sciously forming our goal for the next year, so we are creating a promise.

most important ▪ The thing is to drink the

champagne while the bells are ringing, then your wishes will definitely come true. Even without ash.

is the second year ▪ This I’m choking on burned

if you believe in a good superstition, then it ▪ Because, will never come true, while a bad one definitely will.

I have broken these superstitions and nothing ▪ Because happened. get a high mark in scientific communism, when ▪ To we used to study it, you had to study atheism and

the subsection of folk myths and superstitions with all their consequences.

whole life depends 90% on yourself, and only ▪ Your 10% on circumstances which depend 99% on you. doesn’t matter where or how you spend the ▪ Itholiday, including what you ate or drank. The most important thing is your mood.

me, New Year is a time to look back, set some ▪ For goals and it is an opportunity to take a small break

paper.

ARGUMENTS FOR

from work.

Traditionally, we publish the most interesting answers from respondents.

27

GEORGY MACHULSKY: 31% ▪ I would paraphrase the famous advert and say: However many wishes you make , the result is the same: I didn’t wish for this but it happened!

IRINA KHARCHENKO:

OLGA GOLUBEVA:

13% + 5% + 19% + 30%

13% + 5% + 2% + 30%

▪ I think that everyone subconsciously believes a little bit in superstitions. I think that these superstitions encourage us to pay off debts, dress well, lay the table and invite friends.

And of course make wishes under the sound of the bells.

Oh yes, the whole country listens to the wishes of our president! You can believe in superstitions, but it is better to aim for something better. And everything will come true!

▪ I believe that you should settle all your debts, buy a new dress with the rest of your money and welcome New Year in this dress with money in your pocket. And you must have champagne and the ashes of a wish in the glass while the bells are ringing. Then the whole year will bring success and luck. It’s true, I do it every year!

VALERY TATISCHEV:

ALEXANDER TOKARCHUK:

30%

31%

▪ I used to live in the Urals, so I celebrate New Year twice, once on Urals time and once on Moscow time. So I will always have two whole wishes! I make a wish and wait for it to come true. However, without ash.

▪ I think New Year superstitions are far-fetched and meaningless. They are not related to any philosophical processes like, for example, weather superstitions.

I only believe in mathematical or physical proof.

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