FINDING SUCCESS IN LIFE’S CHALLENGES WITH GARAM JUN

CURRENT POSITION: Crash Safety Engineer at Ford Motor Company

LOCATION: Ann Arbor, Michigan

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN DEGREE: BS and MSE in Aerospace Engineering

GRADUATION YEAR: 2014

ACTIVITIES AT MICHIGAN: Michigan Pops Orchestra, Campus Symphony Orchestra

MICHIGAN POPS ORCHESTRA INSTRUMENT: Cello

 Listen to one of GaRam’s favorite Pops pieces while you read about his Pops Life!

Kelly Compton, our Pops Life correspondent, talks with GaRam about his many different Pops experiences over the years and how he has used those life lessons learned to tackle brand new challenges at Ford Motor Company today!

KC: GaRam, how long were you in Pops? Tell me a little bit about your experience in the orchestra over the years.

GJ: I was in Pops for five years and first joined in Fall 2009. Then I joined the Board after my first year and was the Technical Director for the 2010-2011 season, the Executive Director from 2011-2012, the Operations Director (which included copying the music and taking attendance) from 2012-2013, and the Pops Librarian from 2013-2014.

KC: That’s crazy that you had so many Board positions! Which position did you find the most challenging and which was your favorite?

GJ: Both of those I’ll answer with the Executive Director position. I’ll start with the challenging aspect of it…I’ve learned that when you’re in a position of leadership and responsibility, you have to be able to navigate unexpected and uncharted waters. Sometimes you have to think positively and make best of certain situations. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t plan for things in the future, but there are scenarios that will come up that you would have never been able to plan for or predict. If I remember correctly, right before auditions started we had to hire an assistant music director as the music director was not able to conduct the auditions. I was fortunate enough to have already become friends with Matt and Anthony, who were conducting students and were already interested in joining Pops. After interviewing them for their skills and their fit to the orchestra, we hired them just in time for auditions. There were lots of other times when something unforeseen popped up and we had to quickly work to fix those issues. But working through these unpredictable events have helped me prepare for similar kinds of scenarios that I deal with now. It’s also so rewarding to overcome even just one of these surprises.

The Executive Director position was also my favorite because of how gratifying it was to see the happy faces in the audience after our concerts. Knowing how much the orchestra and the board put in to practicing, preparing the difficult repertoire which ends with a fantastic concert, it really made me proud and happy to be a part of that moment. I remember after one of my concerts, a parent and child came up to me while I was still on stage and asked “How do you become good at the cello?” I told him that first he needs to listen to his mom when she tells him to practice but it’s really about having passion for playing and to have fun while making music. And it made me so happy inside to know that the orchestra was having a real impact on kids and families who come to the concerts to enjoy fun and great music.

KC: Would you say that your leadership experiences on the Board have helped you since graduation as well?

GJ: I think I’ve experienced more of a subconscious benefit. Pops made me more mentally prepared for issues that might come up in the real world. I don’t think I’m consciously thinking of my experience in Pops when I’m working at Ford, since there aren’t a lot of parallels between cars and music. However, the four years that I spent working with the Board and five years with the orchestra and putting on concerts drove my personality and work ethic to a point where now it’s engrained in who I am. I’m willing to take on challenges at work because I know it will be rewarding to complete those challenges.

KC: What are some of your favorite memories from being a part of Pops?

GJ: In general, I always liked concert day preparations with the Board. Before the sound check and the concert, the Board would get together at 8:30 or 9am and get breakfast at Afternoon Delight, and then we’d head over to the theater, bring in the programs, the merchandise, and slowly we’d set up the theater; the orchestra seating, percussion instruments, videos, and piano tuning. Overall just prepping the stage and the venue for the concert was a lot of fun, you’re a part of the behind-the-scenes work.

For specific concert memories… 2012-2013 was my favorite! Elim Chan was the Music Director and we presented “Pops Takes Flight” in the fall and “Revolutionary Pops” in the winter. All of the repertoire for both of those concerts were fantastic; I loved playing music from Disney-Pixar’s Up and Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture. Another favorite memory was when Anthony conducted the Star Wars Imperial March with his Dark Vader costume and red lightsaber and Matt conducted “Star Wars Disco” as the encore to Pops in Peril. Having those two personalities in the orchestra, plus the music we were playing was so much fun.

KC: How did the Pops change over the five years that you were in it?

GJ: I haven’t given that much thought…I was actually talking with one of my friends recently about observing change in general. While you’re actively participating in something, it’s hard to see change happen since you’re so involved. It’s the same idea as watching a sibling grow; you don’t really notice that he’s grown 4-5 inches until someone on the outside sees him for the first time in a few years and makes a comment about it.

Honestly, not a lot changed about Pops over time! I get a limited exposure to Pops nowadays because they hired me as their stage manager, and even after being outside of the group for four years now, it feels so nostalgic but the same, being at Michigan Theater while they’re prepping the stage. The overall dynamic of Pops is still what Warren envisioned when he started the orchestra - that vision of “Pops Love.” That in itself has not changed.

I guess the one thing that changed while I was in the orchestra was adding snacks to the rehearsal breaks! I figured as we were such a social group, we could benefit from having snacks during rehearsal. Aside from that, people come and go, directors come and go, the pieces change, the number of antics or the kinds of antics change; those are all things that you would expect to change within an organization. The overall dynamic of Pops has stayed the same and in the same awesome way that drove Warren to start this all in the first place.

KC: What have you been up to since you graduated?

GJ: I graduated in the Spring of 2014 and then started working for Ford in September 2014. I got a position in their Ford College Graduate (FCG) program. I started off in Crash Safety as my home department and through the program, I got to rotate through a variety of departments to get exposure to different parts of the product development world at Ford. I had rotations in Body Structures and sheet metal, Thermal and Aerodynamic Systems, Restraints (which encompasses airbags and seatbelts), and Battery Structures. Part of the FCG program also required that I participate in a “launch” rotation. When Ford is ready to start building and selling a new vehicle, the company goes through the launch phase; re-tooling the plant if necessary, building pilot cars/trucks on the line which helps the line workers get familiarized with their new tools and parts, work through issues that occur when assembling the vehicle, and finally ramp up production to meet the demand. During Launch, product development engineers will travel to the plants and support the launch builds and troubleshoot issues and help transition the plant for the new product. For my launch experience, I went to Avon Lake, Ohio and helped launch the 2017 Super Duty truck. It was an intense time on the line, new issues coming up every day but it was rewarding to work through them and see the new truck being built on the line.

The FCG program lasted about 2.5 years total. After I finished the program, I went back to Crash Safety for a permanent position and have been there since May 2017. I started off as a CAE (computer assisted engineering) engineer evaluating computer simulations of crashes, in which I was helping to design the structure of the vehicles to achieve the legal safety requirements and the additional internal and external safety targets. After about a year, I transitioned into a role where I focus on the external safety guidelines and how to achieve the targets for those guidelines. On top of the legal safety requirements, each country or region has a set of Public Domain Guidelines (PDG) which dictate star ratings or other ratings commonly seen on window stickers or advertised on TV. I’m currently focused on understanding the changes to the Euro NCAP (New Car Assessment Program) which is the EU-28 PDG for crash safety. My job is to make sure the safety team is aware of changes to the Euro NCAP protocol and working towards meeting the safety target based on those changes.

I find my job really interesting and challenging, and I get the added benefit of knowing that my work could prevent serious injury or even save lives. That was one of the reasons that I came back to Crash Safety. I was on the fence between Safety and the Thermal and Aerodynamics Systems Engineering (TASE) group. The work I did with the TASE department was more in line with what I studied during my Master’s program. I focused on aerodynamics and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and had recently completed an internship at NASA using CFD to analyze airflow over ice-covered wings. I had more experience in that field, and with my aerospace degree it seemed like a better fit with my academic background. But I ultimately chose crash safety because of the added gratification of potentially saving someone’s life through my work and contributions to the company.

I feel very fortunate to have landed my first job at a reputable company and that I like the work that I do. I know it’s common for people to go to their 8am-5pm job and just look forward to the weekend. They’re trudging along in their work and really don’t want to be there (“The Office” is a great show that demonstrates this!). I feel like I don’t have that! Obviously the weekends are great, but I’m not miserable going back to work on Monday. That being said, though, I can’t predict the future so if a better or different opportunity comes up I’ll take it. For now, though, I’m very content.

KC: If anyone in Pops is thinking about pursuing a similar career path as your own, what advice would you give to them?

GJ: I’ll give the advice based on what I think I would have done differently if I had the opportunity to redo certain aspects of college. If someone wants into industry and they know it early in their college life, they should take advantage of internship opportunities. I only had one internship throughout my six years of studying at the University of Michigan, and that was at NASA, which really isn’t your typical industry. A lot of the work they do isn’t profit-driven; it’s more research-based and aims to enhance the world’s understanding of whatever topic they’re researching. I did research in an engineering lab for all of the other summers, and I feel that may have hindered my prospect of getting a job. Companies will say that they’re hiring for an entry-level position that requires a few years of experience, but how do you get those few years of experience if you can’t get an entry-level job? That entry level conundrum is easier to overcome if you’ve completed a few internships.  

Doing a couple of internships and performing well in them will put you at a higher standard when companies interview you. While a 3-month internship isn’t exactly a couple years of experience, it definitely gives you an advantage, even if the experience doesn’t directly correlate to what you want to do after graduation. During my interview with Ford they didn’t limit my answers to their technical questions to cars, I could draw on my experience in school and at NASA to answer the questions. They also asked me to give general examples of when I tackled tough situations and how that might apply at Ford. So, I don’t feel that it is necessary to find an internship that aligns with your dream job or field. Getting the experience is the important part!

If you want to put in a couple more years or even one more year, I would also recommend getting a Master’s. It’s more time and more money but it was worth it for me. Multiple coworkers have told me that having a Master’s will put me ahead for opportunities to work on critical projects. It opens up a lot of additional opportunities and your base salary increases compared to someone with a Bachelor’s going into the same position.

Finally, take advantage of all of the opportunities you can with regards to making connections. As cliché as it is, connections go a long way with getting a job!

 GARAM’S FAVORITES

• TV SHOW: The Office

• RESTAURANT IN ANN ARBOR: The Chophouse

• MIDNIGHT SNACK: Triple Big Mac. Not my proudest college moment(s)

• THING ABOUT HAVING A TWIN: The intense (and more recently friendly) competition

• PLACE IN THE WORLD TO VISIT: Iceland or the Mediterranean

• ROLLER COASTER: Millenium Force! Conquered my very real fear of the ride

• POPS PIECE: 1812 Overture, Inception’s Dream is Collapsing, and Disco Star Wars!

• CHILDHOOD MEMORY: Switching from violin to the cello

• HOLIDAY: Thanksgiving; the sharing of food and company with friends and family is truly enjoyable. Plus you get time to process your food coma!

  
  
  11/1/18

WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE FORD COLLEGE GRADUATE PROGRAM OR LIFE AS A REAL FORD ENGINEER? OR WOULD YOU RATHER MATCH WITS WITH GARAM IN A TRIVIA CHALLENGE FROM “THE OFFICE” THAT YOU ARE UNLIKELY TO WIN? CONTACT HIM NOW AT GARAM0531@gmail.com TO CONNECT AND START A CONVERSATION!