Staff Spotlight: Adina Faiman

Adina has been part of the European Innovation Academy for the last 2 years and hosted students from all over the world at the events in France, Italy and Portugal.

I have been in 24 countries all together but the most memorable experience has been spending a night in a bedouin shelter in desert in Israel. We spent the evening singing around a huge camp fire and slept in a tent under the stars. At dawn we had a walk on camels. It was an amazing experience of being immersed into a different culture and lifestyle.

I can’t even describe how much how I have grown while working in European Innovation Academy. Our team applies the same approach that we teach our participants, working in EIA has taught me to think like an entrepreneur, be independent in my work, be innovative, think large, have ambition, adapt quickly and not to be afraid to test new solutions.

European Innovation Academy creates a learning environment where students learn first and foremost about themselves and their potential. They learn about how to interact with people from different cultures, how to present their ideas, how to lead a team, how to cope with time pressure and how to have fun while doing it.

So when I hear stories about how EIA has helped them to launch their startup or get employed in a world leading company, I know that what they have gained is the tools to achieve whatever they want.

I guess I would choose the program in China because it is a completely different cultural and economical environment that I am used to. The program will take place in Shenzhen which is a very rapidly growing region and has been called China's most innovative city. So I am very curious to see how does this new and modern city look like and how will that impact the creativity of our participants.

Our team goes above and beyond to provide the best experience to all of our participants. A great example of that was when our CEO was hanging mosquito nets on the windows of the accommodation place where our participants were staying a couple of years ago and our president went to pick up some students in the airport because they had some transport issue.

The proudest moments for me are always the first and the last day of the program. The first day because this is when I can finally see hundreds of excited students who have arrived from all over the world and everything that we have worked so hard has finally come together. And the last day because I see a happy people who have achieved and grown so much during three weeks but are sad to leave our program. It is very satisfying to think that me and my team have created something that people will remember for the rest of their lives.

I would say that in order for a company to be successful, each team member should understand clearly what are the company’s goals, what is it's larger purpose and align it's activities accordingly. It takes smart and passionate leaders to communicate it properly and create a team of motivated and driven people.