What made you choose LeasePlan as an employer? After finishing school I was looking for a company to sponsor a combined degree and apprenticeship, and I heard a LeasePlan radio commercial. I applied for the programme and they got back to me very quickly. Soon after that, in August 2018, I started a business administration degree combined with an apprenticeship as office manager. I was able to reduce the length of the programme to 2.5 years and, since the beginning of 2021, I’ve been part of the International Business team.

What does your work involve? I’m an International Sales Associate, which means I’m one of the back office staff supporting the International Sales Manager. Our team handles the initial contact with potential international customers. Those potential customers generally contact us because they are looking for a leasing partner that operates internationally. I compile information about LeasePlan, coordinate and answer questions in tendering processes and establish contacts with the help of the teams in the relevant LeasePlan markets.

Now you’ve taken on a new role. Why are you changing jobs? Even as a trainee I was really looking forward to the work experience weeks in the Strategy & Projects department. I also studied strategic transformation processes as part of my degree programme. It involved modules on business model innovation and organisational transformation. I really enjoyed that part of the course so I approached my manager and told him I wanted to work in that area of our business.

How did you approach that goal of moving to the Strategy & Projects department? I like to be involved in projects that interest and motivate me. I’m also a person who takes the initiative and is keen to get ahead. To do that, you have to work hard and be attentive to other people. I’ve always stayed in contact with the department I trained in but at the same time I’ve kept an eye out for opportunities. Then, when the job became available I applied for it and got it. I grasped the opportunity.

What’s so exciting about the car industry? I’d say that mobility is a big trend today and in the future. People want to and have to be mobile – whether they cycle, take the train or use a car. In the future there will be a lot more options and concepts, such as car subscriptions, car sharing and lease-a-bike schemes. They already exist today but in the very near future there will be even more concepts that we can’t even imagine right now.

Sustainability is also getting more important. Many people want to live more sustainable lives, and that includes their mobility choices. This trend towards electromobility is already evident in our customers’ fleets. It’s great for my new job because strategy-related activities will be needed to a far greater extent with these kinds of market dynamics. Companies will be forced to continuously evolve.

How would you describe LeasePlan as an employer? Personally, I love working here. They put a lot of trust in all of their people. I can approach my manager and my colleagues about anything. They’re always ready to listen. So if I’m unhappy about something I can talk to them about it and we try to resolve it together. Another special thing is that we see LeasePlan as a whole, not as the sum of its individual departments.