Joeri has been working at VIRO for four years now: ‘I was still graduating when I first started working here. However, they didn’t need to wait for me to finish my remaining subjects. Instead, they said I could finish them while working.’ I started the job, finished the subjects, and carried on working here.’ Joeri de Jager (31) first heard of VIRO via a secondment agency: ‘A few months before graduating, I created a profile on LinkedIn and was immediately headhunted by loads of recruiters. The secondment agency arranged a few job interviews, but most of the roles weren’t really for me. However, even during the first job interview at VIRO, I had a good rapport with the person who would be my future manager. The vibe felt right from the start.’
Four years later, Joeri can confirm that the good vibe he first felt is truly part of VIRO’s culture. ‘They try to put people together who have pretty much the same mindset, people who match.’ VIRO has seven offices in the Netherlands alone, and number eight is in the pipeline. In addition, the fast-growing engineering firm has three offices in Germany and one in Belgium. Joeri works in the Dutch city of Arnhem. Does he ever come into contact with colleagues at other offices? ‘The offices are working together more and more.’ I work for ASML: every Monday morning, we have a joint meeting with our ASML team and the team from Echt. Another team here in Arnhem is currently working with a colleague from the Vlaardingen office. It just depends on which fields of work are needed for a project.’
Being a multidisciplinary company, there’s no shortage of expertise at VIRO. Joeri relishes it: ‘It gives you a good basis to build on. After some time, you’ll qualify for a definite contract. But if you no longer like what you’re doing, VIRO gives you the opportunity to do something completely different. You don’t need to move employer, nervously wondering where you’ll end up. Basically, you don’t need to burn any bridges. It’s a smart idea, because I like it here.’ Joeri explains how several of his colleagues have benefited from this opportunity: ‘I know someone who enjoys working at ASML, but not all the time. So, he’s doing one project at ASML and then will do something else. He’s now working for an entirely different kind of client.’
Joeri still enjoys working at ASML: ‘I only do ASML projects, and each one is as challenging as the next. Of course, if you’re working on long-term projects, you’ll enjoy having some variety now and then. But overall, I’m still learning a lot. On top of that, we’re working on my promotion from junior mechanical engineer to the position of lead engineer. It’s a topic that always comes up during performance reviews: ‘Where do you see yourself in five years? What are your goals?’ While some people want to train further as mechanical engineers, others like me are more interested in becoming lead engineers. If you want to grow towards something, VIRO really goes out of its way to get you there.’
‘I’ve also learned a lot about how I communicate. At the beginning, I struggled to work out how I should talk to different people. The first presentations I gave didn’t always go very well, since I would include all kinds of technical facts and stuff. The first lesson I learnt was: “You’re presenting to managers now. They’re not interested in the same things as engineers are.” You learn how to address your audience effectively.’ I’ve learnt a broad range of skills and can put them to good use.
If he had to describe VIRO in a few sentences, what would they be? ‘VIRO is a family business, and you can see that all around you. If there are problems, there’s a collective approach rather than an individual one. If someone has a problem or something isn’t going well, the rest will help to solve it. There’s no: “you made a mistake – how are you going to put it right?” That kind of thing really doesn’t happen at VIRO. This, for me, is what makes the company unique.’