I’m Adel El Asla, BT Digital Product Manager. I work in the Transformation & Production team within Group Corporate Affairs and I’m responsible for BT’s corporate website and the array of applications that support it. My responsibilities include digital strategy, user experience, technical delivery, stakeholder relations and budget management. We have a big digital footprint, so there are a lot of interesting areas to oversee!
Who are you and what do you do?
What did you do before joining BT and/or the Corporate Affairs team?
I started my career in BT as an Apprentice. The apprenticeships are excellent, and I was able to develop, meet some great mentors and progress into a Project Management role early on in my career. I then decided to take on a part-time degree in business/marketing and that resulted in my next big move into the Openreach marketing team, promoting the company’s broadband and fibre rollout initiatives. Most recently I’ve taken a leap across to the world of digital and I’ve been working on a number of exciting transformation projects within the company.
How did you decide on a career in Corporate Affairs?
Corporate Affairs has a unique role to play within the business, strengthening the company’s reputation, objectives, and commercial interests. I’ve previously worked in traditional Business to Business (B2B) and Business to Consumer (B2C) environments, so the opportunity to move across to Corporate Affairs, work with new stakeholders and take on a completely new challenge appealed to me greatly. The scope for growth and development, and the level of exposure to people across the business was another deciding factor.
What do you love about your role?
I love the fact that every day is different and presents a new challenge. The diversity in my role and the impact we have on the company, our customers and our external stakeholders is a real motivation. There are so many bright and amazing people in BT, and I’ve been able to learn so much from them. There’s also a healthy work-life balance and a genuine focus on the wellbeing of people, which is an important factor to me too.
Has the pandemic affected your role/workload?
There has definitely been an impact during the pandemic, and we’ve had to manage a number of critical updates and operational demands during various points in the year. I’m lucky enough to work with an awesome bunch of people and we’ve been able to support each other during those challenging periods. We’ve also adapted, embraced new ways of collaborating and built stronger relationships with each other, which only strengthens us as we move forward.
What would you say to someone considering a career in Corporate Affairs?
Go for it! It’s a really interesting area to work in and it has a wide range of opportunities. It also thrives on a diversity of thought and people, so get that application in!
