Not all heroes wear capes. Meet the Teamleader Titans: our brave rocks in the surf who were there from the very beginning and witnessed it all. It’s largely to their credit that Teamleader is where it is today. After all this time, they’re still holding the fort. They are the real MVPs, high time we gave them the spotlight they deserve. This episode: Yorick.
How many different roles have you had over the years? Which ones?
Two. I started as a Back-End Developer back in 2015, now I’m a DevOps Engineer. The biggest difference between the two roles is that as a developer you’re writing code, creating the software yourself whereas as a DevOps engineer you make sure that the software is built and kept running as it should for the customers.
What’s your fondest Teamleader memory since you started working here?
I’d say the Web Summit conference in Lisbon in 2016. It still holds a special place in my heart because my girlfriend was there as well. We were dating for about one or two months at the time. Six years later, we have a kid together.
Apart from a great chapter in my love life, it was also a memorable trip from a professional point of view. We attended the event with a great bunch of motivated colleagues. We were all promoting Teamleader with every chance we got.
In the evening we had dinner in a very remote fishing village. We went there with a taxi, but had all the trouble in the world getting back to our hotel in Lisbon, because it was already very late and we had no one to drive us. Luckily, in the end, we managed to find a taxi driver who was willing to give us a ride back to the city.
What are the top three company milestones you’ve witnessed during your time at Teamleader?
1. The second funding round in 2016: I remember everyone cheering in the auditorium when the news was announced. To this day, you can still see some of the streamers from the party poppers we used during that celebration hanging from the ceiling.
2. The opening of the Milan office in 2017: To celebrate our international expansion and our first steps on the Italian market we went to Milan with the entire team which consisted of 130 colleagues back then. In hindsight, I’m still amazed that everything went so smoothly because the whole trip was arranged pretty last-minute.
3. The Teamleader Champions Tour in 2019: I like the fact that Teamleader organizes and supports sports events in order to promote more free time and a healthy lifestyle for entrepreneurs. During the Champions Tour we sponsored 5 different cycling events, so this was a big deal in terms of brand exposure. Personally, I got the opportunity to ride with cycling legends such as Johan Musseeuw, Greg Vanaevermaet and Sven Nys. Also, I’m proud to say I finished in the top three in the ranking of the Teamleader colleagues.
What’s the most important change compared to the early days?
That we now have clearly articulated company values. It helps to understand what the company considers important. It’s great to see how they really live within the organization. Everyone knows the values by heart and we consciously apply them in everything we do. We use them as benchmarks, for example when evaluating employee performance.
What’s one thing you would’ve told yourself when you started?
If I’m honest, I wouldn’t change a lot looking back at my seven-year path at Teamleader. The reason I’m in my current role is because I created it myself. I saw a need within the company and I knew I had the required knowledge and experience, so I seized the opportunity. It's what I’d advise anyone starting at Teamleader: don't hesitate, just go for it.
What’s the personal achievement you’re most proud of?
My apologies, because it's a very technical affair: the containerization of our application, our infrastructure. We started using Docker and Kubernetes, which is the framework on which our application runs.
The main added value is the flexibility and the (semi-)automated flow between the moment the code is ready and when it’s deployed. It makes it easier for us to modify and deploy software updates to customers. We can roll out separate code changes 15 times a day, so to speak. It also provides the necessary scalability for a fast-growing company like ours: whether we service ten thousand or a million customers, we’ll be able to keep up. In other words: our infrastructure is fully equipped for the next 10 years, and beyond.
In 2022 we celebrated Teamleader's 10-year anniversary. What do you look forward to most in the next decade ?
I believe enormously in the benefits of the cross-fertilization between us and the other Visma companies. I’m thrilled that we’re now part of Visma's extensive knowledge network and I’m already seeing the first improvements. I’m convinced the exchange of knowledge and experience will only increase in the future and it may change our view and approach to certain things.
One area I’m particularly interested in is the product, because I know Visma attaches great importance to product NPS. So I’m curious how the Visma way of thinking will be reflected in our product roadmap, especially for Teamleader Focus.
