Hahnsang is fueled by New Power’s start-up culture
You can call Hahnsang Kim the start-up guy. His varied journey from software engineer to lithium-ion battery expert has prepared him to work in New Power, which employees have described as a well-funded start-up. "With start-ups there are a lot of unplanned situations that require intuitive ideas and quick solutions, and my experiences have trained me to solve those problems." For Hahnsang, New Power is a dream come true.
This is the kind of environment I have been longing for to continue expanding my capabilities. In New Power, every day is different with unique challenges that stretch me to continue developing.
All roads lead to New Power
Hahnsang joined Cummins a year ago and serves as the BMS Systems and Integration Leader for the BP74E project, working on the production of lithium-ion battery packs.
"I lead the implementation of requirement specifications, a variety of testing, including the final vehicle validation and delivery to the internal teams that assemble the battery packs for our customer, GILLIG. I partner with my team from start to finish."
The end-to-end nature of Hahnsang's current role is the perfect culmination of a career that has international experiences, including working in France, Korea, and across the the United States, including Michigan, Silicon Valley in California, and now Talent, Oregon.
Every job I've held in the past has led me to this role and all my experiences have given me the expertise and skills to really make things happen with my team.
The secret sauce in uncertain times
Hahnsang is not a stranger to connecting digitally with his teammates, since they are located in Talent, Oregon (USA), Milton Keynes, England, and Columbus, Indiana (USA). However, COVID-19 posed some interesting challenges as his team had never worked 100% remotely at critical moments of their project.
Always one to embrace unpredictability, Hahnsang has found what he calls the "secret sauce" to staying fully connected to his teammates. He's using the time difference in the different regions to his advantage and has developed a rather impressive schedule for his online meetings.
"I start my day at 5am PST in meetings with the Milton Keynes team and then at about 9am, I'm in meetings with the Columbus team, and then I meet with our Oregon team for the last portion of the day. It's working out great!"
Hahnsang knows that his work makes a positive difference, and he happily dedicates his time and expertise to it.
"Time is the most precious asset that we all have, so I strive to live each day like it were my last and remind myself that there is always something to be grateful for."
When asked what he is currently most grateful for, Hahnsang says "working at Cummins."
Diversity and inclusion are really important to me, and so the culture at Cummins is special to me. My work fulfills me, but I'm energized by the people I work with. I learn so much from all my interactions with each of them.
Hahnsang believes that alternative energy is the future, and the company has a strong foundation to help shape that future.
"Seeing Cummins celebrate its centennial last year made me very excited to see how the company will continue to thrive for the next hundred years. I believe that in addition to our value-based culture, being a leader in battery-powered technology is part of the answer."
When Hahnsang isn't elbows-deep in supporting the company's charge to be a leader in battery power, you can find him outdoors playing tennis and preparing for half-marathons.
"I'm using this time to continue preparing so when it's safe to run my half-marathons again, I'll be ready."
Every day, the world is coming to terms with new realities owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, but like Cummins, Hahnsang remains alert and ready to go full speed ahead.
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