On 21 February 2023, IAEA Director General (DG) Rafael Mariano Grossi met with UN-NYG as part of the “Talk to the (D)DG” series to hear from his experience and discuss opportunities and concerns with young professionals.
DG Grossi shared from his over 35 years of experience in the non-proliferation and disarmament field and other cross-disciplinary experiences, including corporate banking. Specifically, he shared from his early career as an Argentinian diplomat, during which he underwent a dedicated technical training to be able to work on technical disarmament matters like nuclear safeguards. He underscored that career paths are rarely linear and that every new opportunity offers something to learn.
Prompted by questions about career paths, DG Grossi highlighted the importance of adaptability, especially in today’s work environment, where it is less common to start and end one’s career within one and the same organization. Adaptability, openness and effort will serve young professionals well to find new opportunities. The DG underlined how thankful he is that he constantly learns something new at the IAEA and also how he continues to be fueled by his passion for his work. He wished such passion and luck to the roughly 90 young professionals present in the audience. He also expressed his desire to arrange an exchange between senior leadership and young professionals again.
For more information on the DG’s career please visit his IAEA page.
The UN-NYG community expressed its gratitude to DG Grossi for the open discussion with young professionals. In the future, more “Talk to the DDG” events are scheduled to take place and those interested can register as a UN-NYG member (free of charge) at www.unnyg.org.
