Temporary Staff Interviews（２）

Ms. Miyoshi, RPA Development and Implementation Support Staff

When my daughter started junior high school, I decided that I wanted to switch from part-time to full-time work. During my job search, I was hoping to find a position that offered a competitive salary. However, I did not have any professional qualifications that were valued by potential employers, so I decided to take stock of the skills I could offer, and thought, “I can use Excel to a decent standard. I’ll market myself as proficient in Excel.”

But even then, finding a job wasn’t easy. Whenever I found a job opening that matched my criteria and contacted the hiring company, I was told that the position had already been filled. In that case, I thought, instead of searching for a job on my own, I’ll use an agent to find positions that suit me, and review the options. With this goal in mind, I was looking over the websites of a number of temporary staffing agencies when PERSOL RPA Associates caught my eye.

I was interested in this role because it involves helping create digital tools that automate customers’ operations—a skill that will be essential in the coming digital transformation (DX) era—and I thought that I could utilize my past experience working in an administrative position. I also remembered that I had enjoyed the work I had done as a programmer at the company I joined after graduating from university (although I left the company after one year as the environment didn’t suit me). It was a combination of all these factors that encouraged me to take up the challenge of working in the RPA field.

I’ve been working as a PERSOL RPA Associate for about one year now, and I can feel my skills growing steadily. When I first started working after completing the training course provided by PERSOL, I primarily handled simple development tasks, such as automating routine procedures. Even then, as I was still a beginner, I often got stuck working on my own. However, thanks to the expert advice of PERSOL’s technical advisors, I managed to meet the demands of the projects I was tasked to work on.

Today, I’m able to create RPAs for complex workflows requiring multiple check processes, from start to completion. People are also increasingly consulting me with requests such as, “I want to make this process more efficient, but I don’t know how to use RPA to achieve my goal.” These types of challenges require me to define the problem and propose a solution.

Although in addition to creating tools, my training also covered how to communicate with clients, such as the types of questions that should be asked in order to determine system requirements, this is a challenging task in practice. Despite this, I remain positive and motivated because I recognize that taking on new challenges increases my skills, and therefore, my value.

It gives me great satisfaction when the members who requested the RPA use the system I have developed, and my work ultimately helps improve the operational efficiency of the company. When people thank me for making their work easier or more user-friendly, I feel that my efforts are helping others, and it makes me truly glad I chose this job. It also makes me happy when I speak up to point out a problem I’ve noticed, and the people around me respect my input by saying, “You’re right—we need to address that issue as well.”

To be honest, as a temporary employee, I sometimes wonder whether pointing out issues like this might go beyond my call of duty, or that bringing up too many details might cause unnecessary hassle. Even so, I try to speak up and act proactively, with the mindset that if even half of my comments prove helpful to my full-time coworkers in their 20s and 30s, who have little practical experience in the RPA field, my efforts will have been worth it.

I previously worked through another temporary staffing agency around 20 years ago, and I was surprised at how much more closely PERSOL supported me compared to my previous agency. In my case, as an RPA Associate, I was able to receive a career consultation interview during the training period, which allowed me to learn new knowledge and skills while searching for an employer that met my requirements, all in a single, integrated process.

I was also very satisfied with the thorough support I received after I started working. When I began working after completing the training, I was very nervous about whether I would be able to create the RPAs properly as requested. However, thanks to the detailed advice and support that PERSOL’s team of technical advisors provided me via Zoom and email, I managed to complete the projects smoothly without any issues.

PERSOL’s career advisors also frequently provide me with useful information relevant to my work.
For example, I’ve received excellent support that helps keep my knowledge and skills up to date, including study sessions that allow me to stay in tune with technological developments, such as the latest trends in RPA tools. I’m determined to take advantage of this supportive environment to continue growing and expanding my career options.

Through working as an RPA Associate so far, I feel that I’m suited to work in the digital transformation (DX) field, which focuses on using digital tools to improve the efficiency of business operations, so in the short term, my first goal is to improve my ability as an RPA Associate.

However, five or ten years from now, although I still don’t have a clear picture, I’m also considering pursuing a different approach to work. Specifically, I want to choose a career where I can put myself at the center. Looking back, so far, I have worked diligently at the job I chose while also taking care of my family, particularly raising my children. Although I have no regrets about this, at the same time, I can’t help but feel that in doing so, I put my own identity on the back burner. I need to ask myself, what are my passions and what do I feel happiest doing? I believe that if I can find the answer to this question and link it to my future career, it will make my life even more fulfilling.

With diverse work styles becoming the standard, I hope to someday find my own ideal way of working, such as using my RPA expertise three days a week, and then spending the rest of the time doing work related to hobbies or social contribution activities I’d like to pursue.