Enthusiastic, headstrong, and a true definition of a “doer” – Karolis Usavičius, the Product Project Manager at JETMS is living proof of where a relentless can-do attitude can take you. Starting his journey with the company four years (and a bit) ago as a Customer Support Manager, Karolis showed eagerness to learn and worked his way up to his current role.
He remembers being headhunted and brought into his first position at the company. After showing his enthusiasm and willingness to take that extra step, he quickly was able to take on more responsibilities within the company. “Then, after one year, I was promoted to Senior CSU, which additionally unlocked the availability to become a mentor for newcomers and boost the Commercial department’s results,” he remembers. “I had to roll up my sleeves, but I was excited to help out the team to deal with the daily problems and fix them in a timely manner.”
Karolis describes himself as having “an achiever” personality, so every time he is trying to look for new possibilities to bring in more business, he is implementing a lot of new ideas, and “kaizen” approaches. “I was so willing to gain more experience in aviation during my first few years, that I joined the Technical department’s daily routine for three months at JETMS hangar to gain more knowledge in how the technicians are organizing aircraft maintenance,” he admits.
All of this hard work and can-do attitude resulted in his promotion to a Products Projects Manager role. Now, Karolis is responsible for high-value and long-term product project management, covering everything from A to Z – fully taking on the whole project management process across the product development life cycle. “Along with that, I proactively lead development team, prioritize and make decisions, plan releases, analyse features performance, develop products’ roadmaps, create active campaigns and much more,” Karolis adds.
Karolis’ colourful and creative personality really flourishes at work. The ability to think differently lets him see things from different angles – and that works wonders when he’s creating new solutions and new products. “Sometimes, solutions are very close – we only need to take a few steps back and look at it,” he shares. “Being open-minded, and optimistic about things is what really pushes me to give my absolute best in this line of work.”
His usual nine-to-five begins with sitting in a traffic jam for around 40 minutes, “In a perfect car and enjoying every minute of it!” Karolis notes cheerfully. “If you don’t look back at your car after you park it, you own the wrong car.” After this morning routine, he finds time to small talk with colleagues before diving full-on into analysing current campaigns, and their results from a sales perspective, as well as looking into marketing and financial results. “The numbers allow you to understand the upcoming demand and shape the need in the market,” he explains.
His day continues by visiting partners the company works on joint projects with, helping solve any existing problems in the market and filling the gaps with combined products between both parties.
Some of his most memorable moments with JETMS so far were business trips to China (three of them in total!). “It was hard work and dedication for weeks in the expo, and we paid several visits to our clients at the same time. It was new and unexplored territory for me for sure, in terms of the country and people. Once I was there though, I know that only the personal touch can make an impact and do changes in numbers. But all of these experiences would be nothing without knowing the hard work of our team in the hangars.”
One of the most current projects he has been working on is the nose landing gear overhaul project, and the whole project is supervised by Karolis. He personally visits the overhaul facility as well, not only to inspect the process but to get more experience every step of the way. “Fingers crossed that the estimation of it will get all the needed approvals and we’ll be able to go on a workation!”
But numbers aren’t the ones telling important stories – people do, and Karolis believes that wholeheartedly. “A good team – good colleagues – is probably the most important element in our day-to-day work. I’m so grateful for everyone from our organisation as every single one of them is willing to help you out in any way they can. I have fantastic colleagues, who I can boldly call friends – they really matter to me. Each one of them is truly filling my day with joy and I cannot be happier to be surrounded by them every day.”
The same can be said about the Avia Solutions Group family that JETMS is a part of. Karolis notes that working in such a family-like environment offers many opportunities both from a business and personal perspective. “It’s the same as sailing into the ocean. Once you’re out in the open sea, you can focus on your duties as well as your personal growth; it doesn’t matter if there’s a storm or a warm breeze, you know you will reach your destination without losing your focus.”
A true embodiment of the “can-do” attitude, Karolis has made strides in his career. However, he is still as eager to learn and soak up knowledge now, as when he was just starting out in aviation. He does feel as if he’s right at home in his position as Product Project Manager at JETMS, and is determined to continue bringing in achievements.
