Meet Agata Madaj – MEU R&D Biscuit Product Development

Friday, June 16, 2023

Please tell us a little about yourself.

Agata Madaj, I am Polish, leaving with my family in Wroclaw. Professionally, I am leading Pastry & Waffles R&D Product Team and Bakery Pilot Plant. By education, I am biotechnologist and also hold Master in Economics.

Personally, I am wife and a mum to two adorable boys (2 and 5 years old). I love being active and travel to explore new places, cultures, and food.   

When did you join MDLZ? And why did you choose this company?

MDLZ’s portfolio has many iconic brands within the snacks world, which provides a unique opportunity to work with a very diverse product portfolio. Exposure to new technologies and consumers groups, were main drivers for joining MDLZ.

It happened back in 2016, that was a year of ground-breaking ceremony for Wroclaw Technical Centre. Need to admit, it`s been very exciting and interesting journey from Day 1.

What is your current role and what makes it exciting? 

Currently, I am leading team of R&D product developers and, in parallel, I am managing Bakery Pilot Plant. My team is based across three countries, and we oversee pastry & waffle products, among others 7Days croissants. 

Work of a Product Developer is about designing and crafting new products, making it even better and making sure that consumers will get amazing sensory experience with every bite.
Seeing product on the shelf, seeing we`re providing consumers right snack at the right moment it`s the most exciting part of my work. For me, as team leader, is even more rewarding seeing my team grow every day. 

What personal qualities or skills have made you successful in your position?

Beside technical curiosity, which is very critical in our Technical Centre, perseverance, being able to switch quickly from details to big picture, business acumen, stakeholders understanding, very good soft skills and agility helped me to be where I am right now. 

Among these qualities, agility should be emphasised. We are living now in so called VUCA world, even more than ever, hence agility and being able to quickly accommodate is one of key qualities to make each of us successful regardless of position. 

How has your career developed at MDLZ? 

Learning new things every day and facing various types of challenges is fundamental part of our development and growth. What is great in MDLZ, is that company provides these opportunities enabling us to advance in many areas.

Within those years I got experience of manging bakery products under brands like Oreo, Milka, belVita, Lacta, Lu, Cadbury, 7days. It has given me great range of experience (global, regional, local products, different technologies, unique ways to build and execute strategy) which shaped my career.

What kind of project, assignments have you done outside of the traditional career moves that helped you further your career?

Definitely going extra mile and showing you are capable to do more than is in your scope, helps to grow the career. For me, going for areas, like Pilot Plant Management, being Intellectual Property champion and being curious about out of R&D areas, has significantly helped.

How do you describe company culture? 

Openness and inclusivity - this is how I`d describe the culture in MDLZ. We see those behaviours among our colleagues and leaders. It fosters cooperation, our growth and, ultimately, company growth.

What is your view on working from home, a hybrid model and the way MDLZ handles this? 

First of all,  I need to highlight that I am really proud to work in company which embraces trust. Possibility of working from home is sign that our leaders trust us and are assured we`ll be delivering output of our work regardless of location.

Hybrid model enables each of us to customize our work styles and helps in managing day-to-day activities. Personally, as mum, I am leveraging this model a lot. It significantly helps in overcoming many logistic challenges every parent if facing.

And finally, why do you continue to choose MDLZ?

I want to stay in Mondelez as I know there are still many growth opportunities, challenges in front of me. Also, values which company is representing are in line with my values.