Project manager
JOEP HOTTERBEEKX
Objectiver since June, 2018
January, 2021 – I chose a job within Objective because it is a small-scale organization with strong growth ambitions, especially in the Netherlands.
My previous employer was a large consultancy company with a lot of internal policies and regulations which often made it feel unwieldy and bureaucratic. For myself, I was sometimes curious what it would be like working for a smaller company, where the communication lines are a lot shorter and you know everyone personally. These decisions, together with the nature of the software and services Objective provides to manufacturing companies, made me choose to switch to Objective.
The role of Project Manager appealed to me because besides project management activities, you are also functionally responsible for the solution to be implemented at the customer.
I find it most fun to solve substantive issues and I wanted to be careful not to move further and further away from the content as a project manager. The beauty of this role is also that you get to know many manufacturing companies and see them from the inside. In addition, I have a lot of affinity and experience within the IT sector and I have a background in logistics and production processes through my study in Technical Business Administration. All these aspects are reflected in my current position as Project Manager, which puts me in a very good position within Objective.
The cooperation with colleagues from Belgium is excellent. I usually spend a day at the head office in Wichelen once every two to three weeks. The daily meetings take place via conference calls and the ad hoc calling of colleagues is also very accessible. You do notice small cultural differences between the Belgian and Dutch employees, so you have to be aware of that.. Furthermore, the Dutch employees work for Objective Nederland BV, with all the regulations that are involved.
Through Objective’s MES and WMS system, we can optimize production and logistics in manufacturing companies. You have to think of data collection and control of machines, display instructions to operators, and registrations along the line (paperless). In this way, the quality of the end products can be better guaranteed, resulting in less waste, and less experienced personnel can be deployed. In addition, our system ensures that the right raw materials are on the production line at the right time and after a production order has been completed, it is possible to consult an accurate track & trace of which raw materials have gone into which end product. For our customers, this is essential information that needs to be available quickly. It gives me a lot of satisfaction to optimize production processes and to see that companies achieve this through the implementation of our MES/WMS system.
After my explanation, friends usually understand immediately that our system can make a big difference for production companies. They are often surprised that many manufacturing companies still keep records on paper. Based on experience, these companies hope that they have purchased enough raw materials and have enough stock for the production machines. Friends who have an affinity with production processes are often triggered by my story and see for themselves applications within companies they know.
It is nice to see that Objective has been developing a lot in recent years and has a strong vision towards the future. The plans for the collaboration with our sister companies are becoming more and more concrete, with the new platform, EdgeOne. This allows us to jointly offer an integrated solution to our customers with even more functionalities, which will make us even more interesting.
I am happy to help realize this vision by working as hard as possible on the projects for which I am responsible and by building good customer relationships. This will allow us to grow as a company and build an ever increasing brand awareness and customer group. In addition, I try to identify opportunities with new and existing clients in order to expand our scope (even if this could be done through a subsidiary). Finally, I find it very important to have a coaching function towards the junior employees, so that we can all increase the level within Objective.
I have the best memories of our annual staff parties and biennial team building weekends. You really notice that Objective pays attention to this and that nothing is left to the imagination at these events. It is always a big party with good food and drinks, but sport and teambuilding are also central. These events show the appreciation the company has for our work.
