“For people who like to provide added value, a performance-oriented company culture can be motivating”, says Dániel Pintácsi, Asset Operations Director at MET Group’s Green Assets Division, who left and then rejoined MET after a break of almost two years.
“Returning to MET was like a roller coaster, in a good sense”, recalls Dániel. At the beginning, he was only filled with positive feelings, it was great to see so many old friends again. Then, a few weeks later, he realized it was not so easy to come back – in such a dynamic organisation, many things had changed, and he was excited to adapt to new structures and processes.
He got to know a different MET Group when he joined as a Business Development Expert in 2016. Just a few months later, the decision to build MET’s first solar power plant (Dunai Solar Park) was made, and Dániel was involved in the project from the very beginning. As he obtained a Master’s degree in Energy Engineering at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics, his technical know-how proved to be very useful. When the next PV plant (Kaba Solar Park) was developed and built, Dániel was already assisting this process as a Project Manager.
As the renewables business grew and became more and more important inside MET Group, Dániel was climbing the career ladder. He was appointed Program Manager, overseeing a growing team of Project Managers tackling the development and construction of green projects.
Leaving and rejoining MET
However, a few years later Dániel was offered a tempting position at the Hungarian Transmission Operator company, an opportunity that he did not want to miss. He left MET Group in September 2022 and joined MAVIR as Director of Transmission Network Planning and Construction.
While Dániel found the professional challenges at MAVIR highly rewarding, he came to recognize that the circumstances and conditions were not optimal for performing his duties as efficiently as he had expected. Anyway, he stayed in close contact with former colleagues, and the possibility came up that there might be an opportunity for him to provide further support to the Green Assets Division's growth. The timing was perfect, as an important vacant position needed to be filled – so he finally rejoined MET Group as Asset Operations Director in June 2024.
Boomerang Alumni Dániel Pintácsi is aware of what he has acquired at MET. “I have gained a very strong competitive mindset at MET Group. I got used to questioning and challenging everything, not accepting answers like ‘we have been doing like this for ten years, that’s why’. I have also obtained a deep understanding of renewables markets, and it proved to be extremely useful at MAVIR.”
Benefits of being performance-oriented
Talking about MET Group, performance is the first word that comes to his mind: “It's fantastic to be performance-oriented, as long as you don't overdo it! For those who love to be useful and add value, this expectation can be a great motivator.” By the way, the best memory Dániel has from his career so far is receiving the MET Excellence Award for his outstanding performance in 2018. The fact that he was nominated by his line managers gave him important feedback.
The second word is brainstorming – it’s an excellent way to discuss professional topics informally with colleagues at MET. “The goal is not necessarily to find a solution within an hour, but they like their professions so much that they are happy to brainstorm about what is happening in the markets, and what role MET could play in all this”. Useful ideas are then presented to the management, and this bottom-up approach has already resulted in many successful business projects.
Friendliness is the third key word that the Asset Operations Director uses for characterizing MET. “I have always found it a friendly and welcoming company, where you enjoy working with your colleagues every day, where you can always ask for help. Or brainstorm, if necessary”.
What gives the most strength and joy to Dániel is his two-year-old daughter. Spending time with her and the family is the greatest way of recharging batteries, sometimes travelling around Hungary over the weekends. He also likes cycling, so he recently decided to come to the office by bicycle once a week – thus combining health and sustainability.