Tell us a little about yourself.

I have three children, 28-year-old twin boys and a 23-year-old daughter. I’m happily married and live in Holon. I have been a payroll manager and accountant for thirty years now. I started my career in an accounting firm, and one of my clients was a small company called Nova. A few years in, Nova decided to open an internal accounting and payroll department and offered me the job. That’s how I began my career at Nova, twenty-two years ago. During these years, I’ve been promoted several times, and have studied and expanded my knowledge and expertise.

What made you stay at Nova for so many years? What is Nova’s secret?

The people. Period.

Twenty-two years is a long time; so much has happened and changed in my personal and professional life. There have been ups and downs, but one thing that has never changed here at Nova is the good people that I get to work with. I simply enjoy working with my colleagues and managers. A surprising fact about my long tenure is that during this period I have only had three different managers. This is not typical of the tech industry, but at Nova we have many people that love working here and stay for long periods.

About two years ago you were diagnosed with breast cancer. That couldn’t have been easy.

That is correct. A few years ago, one of my teammates discovered she had melanoma, but it was too late for her and she passed away at the age of 38. I remember how much Nova supported her and her family, even after her passing.
This hurt me very much and as a result, I started having regular checkups and mammograms and everything was fine. At the age of 50, I decided to partake in a general checkup program, a benefit Nova offers for employees over the age of 50.
The day after the checkup, I was told they found something suspicious in the mammogram and that I should go in for an ultrasound check, after which I was ordered to have a biopsy.

This was just before a holiday and I had to wait a few days until I could have the test.

I admit these were very difficult and nerve-wracking days.
I didn’t know what to expect and what it meant to have cancer, so I read a lot of information on the internet which only made things scarier.
A few days after the biopsy I was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. I was also told that luckily, the tumor I had was of a less aggressive type and that chances of recovery were in my favor.
The treatment included surgery and radiation treatments. The doctor who treated me was so compassionate, and she was almost always available to answer my questions and relieve my fears.
This helped me deal with the situation.

This early discovery saved me. By sending me for early testing, Nova literally saved my life.

How was your recovery period?

Most of the time I was on sick leave.  I returned to work gradually because I was very weak and tired most of the time. Nova’s wellbeing team and my friends and colleagues kept in touch all the time. I received baskets of gifts and goodies delivered to my home and Sharon, Nova’s CHRO kept calling me to make sure that all my needs were met.

What changes happened in your life during the healing process?

Despite my family’s support, I felt very lonely at that time. That led me to the discovery of the power of support groups for women going through the same thing. There were times when new friends, whom I had only just met, accompanied me to the treatments in the hospital and supported me. I discovered a new world of friendships, communities such as “GamAni Machlima” (lit. I am Also Recovering). It touched me deeply to discover how many good people had entered my world.

What did you discover about yourself during the recovery period?

Here’s something that surprised me: I became an athlete. I saw a post on Facebook inviting women who are recovering from breast cancer to join a running group. I don’t know why I went, but I did, and the rest is history.
I never liked running or jogging and it’s really something that isn’t easy for me, but I joined the group and now I run five to six kilometers and I’m happy and proud of it. I even became the captain of my town’s running group.
To my delight, more running groups have opened all over the country, thanks to one determined coach, other couches country-wide joined and chose to volunteer their time and many women who survived cancer joined this healthy community.

It has been proven in research, that exercise reduces the chances of cancer returning.

I also joined a rowing team, and I attend folk dancing with my husband twice a week.

It sounds as though this experience changed your life

Yes, this is correct, my recovery changed my life. Now that I’ve recovered, I’m the one who supports my new friends. A few days ago a friend of mine underwent another surgery. I organized a group of women, and together we sent her a fruit basket to sweeten her recovery.

What has changed in your worldview?

My outlook on life has changed. In the past, I was focused only on work and family and today I have learned to invest in myself and take some space for my interests and needs.
I encourage women to get tested by telling my story, and I am very happy when I hear of women that started getting regular checkups.
I also take a prominent role in connecting Nova to my running team, and their endeavors to raise awareness of the importance of the early discovery of breast cancer. Every year Nova employees join a run to raise awareness, and even Nova’s CEO runs as part of the project— that makes me very happy.

It especially moves me that Nova holds on-campus checkups for women during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I too signed up for this test. It just shows how much Nova really cares about its employees.

Today I feel that I have great partners and friends, and I know now that I am not alone.

In our conversation, Madhulika shares her passion for industrial research and her tips to help students land their dream job – straight out of college.

Tell us a bit about yourself and your unique background.

My name is Madhulika Korde, and I am originally from India. My parents, sister, and grandmother are still in India, and it is always wonderful to go back and visit them. I was born in the beautiful town of Nashik, Maharashtra, which is western India. I came to the US in 2017, for grad school.

Traveling to a different country to learn that sounds like an adventure and a challenge. What is the most notable lesson you took from this experience?

It is not necessarily a lesson, but rather an experience.
When I was young, my mother sometimes used to wear fragrant flowers in her hair. As a kid, I used to jokingly say to her that it’s a style from the Bollywood movies from the ’80s. When I moved away from my country, I missed many aspects of my culture, family habits, and festivals. I realized how wonderful some of our traditions felt, even something as simple as wearing fragrant flowers in the hair and I appreciated the fact that my mother did what she liked and was not afraid of being judged by the newer generation. In my last visit to India, my mom and I were getting ready for a family photo shoot and we jokingly mentioned that wearing flowers in the hair isn’t so bad. And you can also see in the photo how lovely the experience was.

What inspires you?
I have always been drawn to the creative arts, works of great artists, and new, innovative technological advancements. I believe that these influence the way that I think and work.

What are you passionate about?

I am passionate about painting, especially nature-inspired scenes. I recently visited the Chihuly Museum and the Seattle Art Museum and I thoroughly enjoyed both of them.

What led you to pursue a career in Nanoscale Engineering?
Industrial research has always interested me. During my undergrad degree in my junior year, I worked on a summer project in which I increased the purity of a compound during manufacturing. I was able to successfully provide a solution which was implemented in large-scale manufacturing. This gave me the confidence to believe that I can do well working on industrial projects.
In addition, I was interested in learning more about material properties and the applications of materials research. This led me to take courses towards an online certificate while pursuing my undergrad degree.
Both these factors led me to major in Nanoscale Engineering, which provided me with the opportunity to work on industrial research as well as understand materials and their applications.  

What was your biggest challenge as a college student?
During my studies, I was happy and fortunate to be able to work on a project that gave me exposure to the industry. I was also blessed with a wonderful advisor who provided me with critical direction to help me advance the project.

However, my greatest challenge was to effectively complete all my assignments when there were both quantitative and qualitative deadlines. I am grateful to have had the challenges, as they helped me learn how to multi-task. They also helped me develop the ability to learn skills that were crucial for the project, faster.

We’re asking this on behalf of all the people in the world who do not understand: Can you please explain in simple words what exactly is Nanotechnology?

Haha. Without straying away from the common answer, I would say that Nanotechnology is the science of the very small – that which cannot be seen by the naked eye or touched with your hand. It’s the scale at which materials behave in an amazing way. That’s what makes the work fascinating.

Nanotechnology is something I’m involved in every day. I am constantly focused on the measurement of device structures – typically tens to hundreds of nanometers in dimension, without physically touching them.

How does your specific academic experience integrate with the needs of Nova’s Material Metrology Division?
I have an undergrad in Chemical Engineering and my grad major was in Nanoscale Engineering. My grad project was specifically focused on the non-destructive characterization of device structures using optical and X-Ray based techniques. Having worked on that project helped me understand the work at NOVA. In fact, a lot of the skills I learned in grad school are directly translated here. I look forward to learning even more at Nova.

What is the best part about working at Nova?
So far, my experience at Nova has been amazing. It is my first job and the team members as well as other employees made sure that I felt welcome and comfortable joining the project. I also received a personalized training plan to help me get up to speed with team goals, and start working with them in the most productive way. HR has been extremely supportive during my relocation and onboarding. Also, Nova’s company culture is very pro-employee and I feel lucky to have that.

I am excited that I will soon get to work on developing application-focused metrology solutions that will eventually be used by the semiconductor industry. Since I was driven to work on industrial research, it looks like I found the perfect job for me. I am extremely grateful to everyone who helped me get here. ????

What do your team members still not know about you?
That I make awesome chicken and fish curries ????

Knowing that this could be an issue, Dora was worried about Kobi’s reaction but decided to speak to him about it. Kobi’s response was the best Dora could have wished for: He warmly congratulated her on her good news. When Dora asked if it would have any influence on the final decision to hire her, Kobi immediately reassured her: “Not at all! I want you to be part of Nova for many years to come, so I naturally assume that you will have children and raise them while working here.” Dora remembers the relief she felt at that moment, mixed with certainty, that she made the right choice with Nova.

I sat down with Dora to learn more about her and what she loves about her work.

I’m so excited for people to get to know you. Give us a little background about yourself.

I’m 34 years old, married to Yoav and the proud mother of three girls the youngest one is just 2 weeks old.  I live in Modi’in. I studied at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. I hold a BSc in Physics and Chemistry and an MSc in Physics in Nonlinear Optics. Up until a few months ago, I was an intelligence officer in the IDF.

Tell us a bit about what you do at Nova.

I work in the algorithmic group, but I actually belong to the CTO group. This means twice as many meetings, but also twice as many treats served at those meetings. ????

Can you share your thoughts about what it’s like to be hired during an interview process affected by Covid-19?

Wow. It was a long and thorough process, which included six Zoom interviews. I have to admit it was peculiar but completely understandable given the circumstances. Everyone was so nice and pleasant to talk to that it made me really excited to join Nova.

What is your favorite part about working at Nova?

It has to be the exciting challenge of working on leading projects – ones at the forefront of the company’s business, even though I’ve only been here for several months. And besides, working with people here at Nova is so much fun. We have a rare atmosphere of friendship, collaboration, and camaraderie.

What makes you take pride in yourself?

Without hesitation, I can say that I’m very proud of my courage to make a significant change in my career – leaving behind a military career and starting anew as a physicist.

With three kids and one of them a newborn, a career, and life, you probably have a lot on your plate. Do you still have time for hobbies?

Up until I got pregnant, I practiced kung fu. I also paint oil paintings and love to travel. But as you mentioned, who has time for hobbies with three tiny tots?

What is your superpower?

If you ask me, it’s determination.

If you ask my mother, it’s being stubborn.

You seem to be very calm and relaxed. What drives you crazy and makes you mad?

Slow people. That drives me insane—for example, my husband. Every time we leave home, I end up waiting for him in the car for at least five minutes.

If you weren’t working for Nova as an algorithm developer, what would you be doing?

I’m now doing exactly what I dreamed of doing, so I would probably be doing the same.

What don’t your teammates know about you yet?

Hmmm. They still do not really know that I can be extremely sarcastic. On the other hand, I’m lighthearted and laugh a lot.

Name three reasons why someone would want to work at Nova:

• The intellectual challenge – that is by far the top reason
• The wonderful people, which I enjoy working with everyday
• The variety of fruit that is served throughout the day

Want to Join Nova?
Click here to learn more about career opportunities at Nova

In a life-changing decision, Leon, who works as a planner at Nova, and his husband, Assaf, a musician, decided to become a foster family to two siblings in urgent need of a warm, loving family. Intrigued? So were we. So, we sat down with Leon to talk about his career, life, family, and dreams.

Leon, what’s your story?

I was born in Ukraine and moved to Israel as a baby. My mother raised me, and I have the highest admiration for her and how she coped with life as an immigrant and single parent. My mother’s focus was always on doing the right thing, and education was always a top priority for her. So, walking the path she paved, I studied Industrial engineering and then got an MBA- a twofer to satisfy my academic curiosity and my mother’s sense of pride.

I’m happily married to Assaf and together we raise two foster children, who are the apple of our eyes.

I worked at various companies as a planner, but I already knew I wanted to work at Nova for several years. I was interviewed by Nova a few years back, but it didn’t work out then. But I didn’t give up, and a few years later, I noticed another job opening as a planner. I felt determined to join the company, so I applied again, and here I am. Sometimes it is just a matter of timing.

Why did you want to work for Nova?

I was drawn to the technology, to the dynamics, and the people who work here. It looked like a very innovative company from the outside, but now that I’ve been here for a year and a half, I also know Nova cares for us and that the employees’ wellbeing is a top priority. There’s also the gorgeous offices and the fact that the people are great to work and socialize with.

I love the dynamics, the ever-evolving and changing pace of things. The demands from my work change daily, things are very versatile, priorities change all the time, and I am required to be flexible, adjust quickly, and provide great service to my coworkers. A planner does a similar job at any organization, but here at Nova, I get that extra touch of challenge and collaboration, which I love.  

You became a family pretty much overnight. How did that happen?

Assaf and I always knew we wanted a large family. We were already in the process of joint-parenting with two lovely women when an unexpected family situation occurred, in which someone had to step in and step up to make sure two children had a stable, loving home.

In most cases, there are nine months of pregnancy, and you have time to get used to the idea of becoming a parent. In our case, we were an ordinary married couple who instantly became a family of four and had to learn to cope with the situation as it evolved. We are fortunate enough to be surrounded by loving and supportive friends and family, and they help us a lot.

Despite the challenges this surprise brought us, we feel so fortunate to have become parents to these two lovely children and realize every day that our journey is unique and magical. It is almost unbelievable that during a worldwide pandemic, we became parents to Lenny and Peter. It was simply meant to be!

Let’s go back in time a bit: how did you meet your husband?

Assaf is my first serious relationship, and we met online. At first, we both weren’t sure where this would lead, but rather quickly, we realized we are in love and moved in together.
Being raised in a conservative family, I didn’t tell my mom and stepdad about this until Assaf had proposed.

Hold it right there! You have to tell us about the proposal

We have already been together for a while when our friends announced they were planning to get married in Paris. I told my friends that while we will be in Paris, I intend to propose to Assaf. I thought that either Disneyland or the Eifel Tower would be the perfect setting for my proposal. Little did I know that Assaf was going to beat me to it, as he proposed to me during a romantic trip to the old city of Jerusalem four months before our trip to Paris.

We got married in Vegas and then had a large party with friends and family in Israel.

Is it ok to challenge you a bit? Your story sounds like a walk in the park, while many LGBTQ experience challenges and hardships.  

Indeed, in many cases, life as an LGBTQ can be very challenging. But fortunately for Assaf and me – our path was smoother, albeit not always easy. My husband’s family fully accepted him as he was. In my case, it took my parents a little longer to get used to the idea.

I grew up in a conservative house where everything needs to be by the book: finish high school, go to college, be an excellent student (mostly in math), get married, have kids. Do this and that so your mom will be happy. The message that came across is that being different is wrong. As a child in school, there were all kinds of insults from kids around me. So I did the “normative” thing because I didn’t want to be different.

After I graduated high school, I became increasingly aware of my attraction to men- and I chose to live happily, proudly, and openly. However, since my parents are not so open, it was difficult to tell them, and I worried about their reaction. After Assaf proposed, I realized it was time to deal with this. I told my aunt and uncle that I am gay, and they supported me wholeheartedly. Then they joined me when I shared this with my mom. There was a bit of drama there, but at the end of the day, she said she would love me and support me no matter what.

Today, in a way, I know I lived up to all my parents’ expectations:  I have an academic education, I have a career in a great hi-tech company, I’m happily married with two kids and a dog. What more could my mom want?

I feel that I lead a very normal life and society accepts me, my family, and my life choices. 

What do your colleagues not know about you?

I used to be a modern dancer, and I was part of a performing dance company, and we even traveled abroad together. Dancing fills my soul. I know it is a typecast, being a gay dancer, but I assure you that not every dancer is gay, and not every gay is a dancer ????

What is your parenting motto?

I teach my children it is ok to be different as much as it is ok to belong. I want them never to fear saying what they think and authentically following their hearts, beliefs, and passions. I wasn’t raised like this, and therefore, it is vital for me to raise them in a pluralistic and diverse environment, where they know they have the choice to be who they want to be.

Assaf and I are complete opposites in so many ways. I love sports, he loves the couch, I am a morning person, he is a night owl, I work in the hi-tech industry while he is a musician. And we have a different parenting style.

While we were both most ready to become parents I am the more responsible parent, the caretaker, in charge of setting limits, responsible for all the bureaucratic aspects and Assaf is the one that spoils the kids, hugs them and allows a bit of release from the limits.

So the kids get the best of both worlds; love, warmth, hugs, proper upbringing, education, everything they need on the material level and also a healthy routine, which, unfortunately, they didn’t have in their previous home.

The kids are always in my mind and heart and I find myself occupied throughout the day thinking about their everyday needs. Being a parent is a tedious mission and sometimes it is even hard. But then we get a hug from Peter or a smile from Lenny and our hearts melt. Suddenly all the hardship simply disappears. 

A message to the world…

Live freely, authentically and make sure to make a significant contribution to society and to the world.

The Australian people call it “Prawn Killer”, and deep-sea divers call it: “Finger Smashers” due to the speed at which they can spear, cut and shock their prey with their powerful claws.

Mantis shrimps are extraordinary sea creatures. they can throw the fastest punches in the ocean The crustacean reaching up to 40cm in size can rapidly unfold their claws at their prey, with an acceleration of 10,000g and speeds of 80km/h. These strikes are so rapid, they vaporize the water around them and create a shockwave that can stun or kill their prey, even if the initial strike missed its target. So, if you find these little creatures adorable and wish to have one as a pet, take extra caution when handling them and make sure to use a bullet-proof aquarium glass.

Yet, what’s more, remarkable about the mantis shrimp is another feature– its eyes; Mantis shrimps are thought to have the most complex eyes in nature. They have compound eyes made up of tens of thousands of ommatidia – tiny independent photoreception units – each with its own lens, cornea, photoreceptor cells and pigment cells (much like flies). Each eye is mounted on a mobile stalk and can move independently. Each eye is further divided into three regions looking at the same point in space. This gives the mantis shrimp the ability to perceive depth with just one eye.

While we humans have three types of photoreceptor in our eyes, through which we experience the rich colours of the world around us, the eyes of mantis shrimps have up to 16 types of photoreceptor cells. Twelve of these photoreceptors are used for colour analysis, for light wavelengths ranging from the deep ultraviolet to the far red (300-720nm). The other four are used to analyze polarized light. In addition to detecting linear polarized light, some mantis shrimp species have been reported to be able to detect circularly polarized light. Such ability has not identified in any other living creature.

Now you might be puzzled, asking yourself, is it Nova blog that or the National Geographic?

Why are we, at Nova, are so fascinated with this creature?

When it comes to understanding why the mantis shrimp requires such complex eyes and its uses, we are nowhere close to solving the mystery. Polarization vision can be used for mating and secret communication while avoiding predators’ attention. Their elaborate eyes may also enable them to recognize predators’ prey easily and with accurate depth perception. This is especially critical for their hunting manner, which requires accurate ranging information, with split-second response times.

Ever curious about anything that has to do with better vision and data analyses, we had to check how this relates to Nova and the semiconductor metrology industry. At Nova, we use optical metrology to measure the dimensions and materials of our semiconductor samples with exceptional precision. We always seek to extend our spectral range, use the light polarization properties, and increase the amount of information gathered. But having a lot of data doesn’t necessarily mean getting better results. Having “only” three photoreceptors and lacking many of the features that the mantis shrimp eye possesses, it is the human brain that uses heavy processing of the impulses from the eyes to create vivid, colourful, and sharp images. Such processing requires powerful brains as well as time. When attempting to recognize prey or predator and deploy its extraordinary claw punch, the mantis shrimp cannot allow itself to waste precious time.

Likewise, when attempting to provide a fast and accurate interpretation of the collected data, Nova’s tools have to provide the collected data and its analyses rapidly. Mantis shrimp utilizes its many types of photoreceptors as a neural-wired system. The visual information is preprocessed by the eyes, allowing its brain to understand its surroundings without dealing with the complex process task used by other species, which requires more time and energy. Much like this, Nova tools utilize neural networking to overcome the time-consuming process of data analysis and provide an unmatched dimensional accuracy of the nano-metric structures under inspection.

At Nova, we never get enough of learning what nature can do and how we can simulate it to provide the best metrology possible.