Stories about: Professionals

Podcast: Let’s talk money: everything you need to know about salary negotiations 27 November 2023

Money. For some it’s an uncomfortable subject, for others it’s easy to talk about. But we all need it to pay the bills. And whichever way you look at it, salary is an important aspect of job satisfaction. Astrid Roest, Talent Development Manager at Exellys, has some expert tips on how to find out what you’re worth and how to ask for it. Listen to our podcast below, or if you don’t understand Dutch and/or don’t have time to listen to the whole talk, read the blog!

The challenges of being a Transformation Consultant 3 August 2023

At the latest Meeting of the Minds, our Business Tribe gave a presentation about ‘Agile transformation in a big company’. Which challenges does change hold, […]

Why Jordi moved from Spain to join Exellys in Belgium 26 July 2023

Data Analyst Jordi recently completed his Start Smart Program at Exellys and successfully integrated at Atlas Copco. He applied at Exellys remotely from Spain in 2019, and even though we weren’t living in a Zoom and Teams society yet back then, everything went smoothly for him. Let’s have a closer look at his experiences from these last two years…

Podcast: “It’s never too late to change your career” 23 July 2023

Our guest for this episode of Exellys Talks is an experienced professional from South Africa. She came to Belgium, went back to school, and is now working as a business manager at ING. Sindy de Jonge is an inspiration to women, people who aren’t 20 anymore, and everyone who doesn’t have Dutch as a first language. She’s living proof that you can do it if you believe in yourself. “It’s never too late to change your career,” she says.

“As women, we need to support each other and share our knowledge” 3 July 2023

Sindy is not your typical Exellyst. Her trajectory has been so unique and inspiring that we simply had to share it. She faced and overcame many challenges: from having a different nationality, speaking a different language, to being a woman in a male-dominated industry: she crushed all these hurdles in her own upbeat and enthusiastic fashion.

Why personal development is so much more valuable than a fancy company car 5 June 2023

Especially in the earlier stages of your career, looking for personal development opportunities should be your priority over the actual money you’re making, the perks you’re receiving or the company car you’re driving. Try to look at it as an investment in future you. Trust us, the ROI will be worth it!

Stuck in a Golden Cage? Here’s how to get out! 15 May 2023

Ever heard of the Golden Cage Syndrome? It’s a phenomenon that affects a lot of people at some point in their career. And while it may sound nice, it’s probably best to avoid. Here’s why…

How to form high performing teams in hybrid enviroments 6 April 2023

Just like every year we had another great edition of Meeting of the Minds. Organized by our very own consultants. During this event, there were a lot of interesting talks, panel discussion and some great opportunities to network. This years panel discussion was all about “how to form high performing teams in a hybrid environment”. We invited Jeff Van Calster(Projectivegroup), Sandrine Murrath(Belfius), Mohamed Ahmed Shallo(Swift) and Marc Gielis(Illumina) to come and talk about this subject. Here are some key takeaways from the panel discussion. 

7 office pranks to try out this April Fool’s 26 March 2023

With April Fool’s coming up you might be still looking for some office prank inspiration. Keep on reading for some of the internet’s greatest examples.

The power of your purpose: how to create a meaningful job 7 March 2023

While previous generations valued a stable and reliable income, Millennials and Gen Z value purpose over a paycheck. In fact, according to a survey conducted by BetterUp, 9 out of 10 employees would be willing to accept a pay cut in exchange for a more meaningful job. How about you?

5 strategies to succeed fast in your new role 22 November 2022

People nowadays tend to switch roles a lot more frequently than previous generations ever did. Millennials and Gen Z’ers will have on average twelve different jobs throughout their lives. Internal moves are also increasingly common. But those transitions aren’t easy, even if you move to a new role within the same company. A Gartner survey indicates that 49% of people promoted within their own companies are underperforming up to 18 months after the change. That’s surprising, isn’t it? After all, these people know the company, they have the right skills and experience and they’ve been vetted for cultural fit. So why are they performing so poorly?

Video: How a Bio Engineer ended up as a Project Manager in Germany 3 October 2022

Meet Luigi, a 27 year-old Bio Engineering graduate and IT Project Manager. In this video, Luigi tells us all about his professional journey so far.

Log4Shell: Securing the Web of Interconnectedness (video) 26 September 2022

At the end of last year, the Log4Shell vulnerability detected in the Apache Log4j library made thousands of companies and security officers around the world grind their teeth in anxiousness. It was a huge problem, and it needed to be addressed immediately.

Learning about .NET6 and Quantum Computing in Las Vegas – Hendrik’s DevIntersection recap 5 September 2022

In December of last year, Exellyst Hendrik Danau attended the renowned DevIntersection conference in Las Vegas. Let’s dive into the world of .NET6, Quantum Computing and casinos.

Reverse engineering your favourite game: what is it, why do it and how to start 30 August 2022

In his spare time, Exellys alumnus Olivier likes to reverse engineer games. Though it is a very niche subject, his peers at Exellys were curious to know more about it, so during his tribe’s ‘Talk of the Minds’, Olivier gave a presentation on the subject.

Beyond buzzwords: why A.I. isn’t always the best solution (video) 6 July 2022

Wim is an Exellyst working as a Business Analyst (in RPA & Data Science) at Umicore, and one of the people in charge of finding new and improved ways of managing repetitive administrative tasks such as logging worked hours. They need a better, more user-friendly tool than the one they currently use, which was around since before Wim was even born. So they got in touch with a scale-up launching a new time management tool and scheduled a meeting.

Kubernetes: An introduction to high availability (video) 13 June 2022

Meet Jochen Wilms, Exellys almunus & Software Engineer at ProjectiveGroup company The Glue. During one of latest events, he took the stage to give a talk on Kubernetes, or k8s, in short.

The do’s and don’ts of office pranks 29 March 2022

How do you make sure that you don’t turn your office prank into a career limiting move? We listed some easy to remember do’s and don’ts, so that your next (or first) office prank won’t get you fired.

25 ways to boost your productivity in 2022 28 January 2022

As work productivity resolutions are near the top of most professionals’ lists, we thought we’d offer a helping hand. We’ll discuss 25 ways that you can boost your productivity at work. The best news? There’s no need to wait until the New Year; you can start implementing these ideas right away!

What to look for during your post pandemic job hunt 21 January 2022

You’re not the only one out there looking for a job right now. What are the most important things to look for in this jungle of vacancies and head-scratchingly vague job descriptions? And when you do find a great opportunity, how do you make your application stand out over hundreds of others?

How to survive your first conference 30 October 2021

If you’re about to pop your conference cherry, it’s natural to feel a little anxious. You may be worried about what to wear, feel stressed about presenting your elevator pitch and maybe you’re even a little unsure about how to, you know, crush it. Here are some top tips for making it awesome. Let’s get right to it!

How to adopt the 7 habits of highly effective people 27 July 2021

Do you want to be more successful in life? Are looking for a way to stand out from the herd? If you’re looking for ways to improve yourself, the secret lies in adopting powerful, effective habits. In this post, we’ll show you how to do just that by following Stephen Covey’s influential book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

6 things to do at work before leaving on vacation 5 July 2021

Taking time away from the office is a fantastic way to lower your stress levels, improve your productivity, and boost your mood. But if you aren’t careful, work problems can follow you on vacation and leave you feeling even more stressed than before you left. Here are six things you should do at work before you leave to make your vacation as relaxing as possible.

How Louis became the Business Consultant he always aimed to be (Video) 15 June 2021

During the recent virtual graduation ceremony of his Exellys Start Smart class, Louis and his Talent Development manager Leslie Hemmerechts reflected on his experiences of the past two years and how he benefited from Exellys’ Start Smart Program.

Why most developers don’t (get to) code all day 7 May 2021

Congratulations, you got the job! You’re ready to dive headfirst into your new life as a software developer and write thousands of lines of code. Because that’s your job now, or is it? If you really think developers do nothing but code all day, you’ve probably seen too many movies…

Pivot your career: When should you switch? 13 April 2021

Feeling unsure about your career is totally normal every once in a while. But when is the time to actually jump and make that change you’re looking for?

Jürgen Ingels’ advice for young professionals (video) 30 March 2021

We invited Jürgen Ingels to talk about his first book ’50 lessen voor ondernemers’. Which of his lessons can easily be implemented as a consultant or employee?

Starting out with home automation: A practical guide (VIDEO) 16 March 2021

Exellys alumnus Jeroen Reinenbergh offers some pointers about how anyone can get started with IoT at home. His talk covered everything from microcontrollers to starter kits, tutorials, and entry-level projects that anyone can explore.

How stepping out of your comfort zone can become an eye-opening experience 10 March 2021

Exellyst Katrien Meessens recently wrapped up her StreetwiZe expedition. During three days, the Exellysts are brought in contact with boys and girls aged 14 to 17 who are living in a closed community institution. The co-creation project enables the Exellysts to explore skills such as authentic leadership, compassion, engagement and empowerment in a unique way.

Is our health more important than our privacy? 16 February 2021

We recently invited privacy activist and director at the Ministry of Privacy Matthias Dobbelaere-Welvaert to give our Exellysts an online keynote on tracking applications, their known issues, and the impact they are having on our privacy. Here are some of his thoughts…

Burrito’s and learning (part 2) 24 November 2020

In our previous ‘Burrito’s and learning’ blog, we discussed some of the basic tips that we’ve picked up in our switch to online training. We’ll continue with some of that prep work in this blog and dive into a practical example.

Burrito’s and learning (part 1) 23 November 2020

We take a lot of pride in our training programs, but just like everyone else, we were forced to switch it up over these last few months. Here’s how we tackled that switch.

5 Career killers you need to avoid 10 November 2020

You have probably worked hard to achieve your current career status. Coming so far, the last thing you want, is to make a mistake that ruins all your progress. In this article we take a closer look at the 5 biggest career killers and, more importantly, how you can avoid them.

7 things no one will tell you about salary negotiation 12 October 2020

How do you ask for a raise and actually get one? Whether you’re starting a new job, are up for a promotion at your current employer, or just don’t feel that the value of what you do is reflected in your current paycheck, you’re bound to have this conversation at one point in your career.

Mindshift Festival: it’s all about feedback 23 August 2020

At Exellys, we put great emphasis on feedback. Learning how to give and receive feedback in a constructive way is essential to personal and professional growth. We also take great pride in our events: they’re generally awesome. But we want to practice what we preach, so we always ask for feedback after each event. It turns out our ‘traditional’ Meetings of the Minds weren’t resonating with our consultants anymore, at least not as well as they used to. There was an overload of information, which proved counterproductive. So we took the feedback to heart, put our heads together, and came up with a new concept: our first Mindshift Festival.

My journey from Industrial Engineering graduate to Chapter Lead 5 August 2020

Meet Lore Donné! After graduating as an Industrial Engineer, she joined Exellys in September of 2018 as a Full Stack Developer. Here, she shared her two-year journey from Groep T graduate to Chapter Lead.

5 learning platforms to sharpen your skills while staying at home 20 April 2020

“Never waste a good crisis”, a saying you probably heard more than once since the coronavirus outbreak started. But wasting away your time with Netflix probably isn’t the best way to tackle your quarantine. Why not boost your skills and qualifications? We listed some of our favorite technology skills platforms you can use to get ahead.

How to work from home more efficiently 11 March 2020

Chances are your employer recently asked you to start working from home. Whether you work from home fulltime, once a week, or just every once in a while because of a virus outbreak, here’s how to be as productive at home as in the office.

How to survive as a woman in tech 6 March 2020

A few weeks ago, we invited 4 top leading ladies to have a round table session with some of our female Exellysts. They took the time to share their experiences and stories on leadership, career progress and gender equality. Based on the insights of these power women, here are some tips and tricks to handle yourself as a woman as you pursue your career in tech.

Google Hash Code 2020: The Exellys edition 24 February 2020

Since we’re always in the mood for a challenge, we registered our office bar as one of the more than 700 official hashcode hubs.

7 (tech) conferences we’re looking forward to in 2020 20 January 2020

If you want to improve yourself, attending a conference every now and then can make a difference for your business and career. We’re anticipating quite a few this year. Here’s a short list of conferences we’re looking forward to in 2020…

I spent over an hour dangling from a cliff, and this is what I learned about leadership 6 January 2020

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to join one of our Grow Smart kickoff weekends? Well, our digital growth marketeer Pieter Mijnendonckx recently found out first hand. He shared his key take aways right here… 

Web Summit 2019: Our key take aways (Part 2) 11 November 2019

It’s a wrap! After a spending a couple of days in Portugal for Web Summit 2019, this is what several of our consultants will remember…

10 ways to become better at presenting 6 November 2019

You may not be the world’s best public speaker, but the following ten tips will help you improve the quality of your presentations, whether you are presenting yourself during an interview, demoing a product, or trying to land that all-important promotion.

How to give feedback to your manager 14 October 2019

If you’re fresh from school and new on the job, you may feel insecure about giving feedback. If something’s bothering you, you may not know the best course of action to take. Being able to provide feedback to others without causing offense is just as important as being able to accept feedback about yourself

This Exellyst created an AI course without a line of code 30 September 2019

Ever heard of Udemy? Well, Data scientist and Exellys consultant Domien Van Damme is a big fan of the platform and recently even created his very own course: Machine Learning, AI and Data Science without programming. In the first days alone, 2.224 people registered. Here, he elaborates on why he took the time to create this course.

How Mara from Romania became a Full stack Java Developer in Belgium 17 September 2019

What if we were to offer you an international professional adventure? Would you hesitate? Mara seized the opportunity and relocated all the way from Romania to end up as one of our Exellys Consultants. Today she is very happy to be here and proud to call herself an Exellyst working as a Full stack Java Developer at ING Belgium.

Spotify’s Engineering Culture: An introduction 20 August 2019

Since its launch in 2008, Spotify has grown exponentially to account for an estimated 40 percent of the global music streaming market. To reach over 180 million active listeners and 83 million paid subscribers, Spotify developed a unique Agile methodology. Let’s have a closer look at their engineering culture.

Netflix’s The Great Hack: A Modern Day Horror Story 1 August 2019

Even if you’re very familiar with data tracking, it’s hard to find Netflix’s new documentary The Great Hack anything short of terrifying. Like a horror story for the digital age, the documentary features the twin villains of Cambridge Analytica and Facebook and shows how they used people’s own data to weave a dystopian web of deceit and distrust.

Why this is the book you should read on your next holiday 23 July 2019

If you’re starting to think about which books to take to the beach this year, we suggest 21 Lessons for the 21st Century by renowned historian Yuval Noah Harari. In this blogpost, we’ll discuss four of its most crucial lessons and show you exactly why it deserves a spot on your summer reading list!

Why Unity is one of the best game engines for beginners 24 June 2019

Thinking about getting started with game development but don’t know where to start? We suggest Unity and here are five reasons why!

How to think more productively 17 June 2019

A while ago, Functional Analyst Jolien Jackers took the time to write a blogpost on the Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy or REBT in short. How do people create their own stress and how do I start thinking more productively? Find out right here!

9 Career lessons to learn from Game of Thrones 21 May 2019

That was it, Game of Thrones is over. After 71 episodes it turns out, Game of Throne’s biggest ‘gotcha’ was that between all the violence, nudity and dragons, the show actually offered some important career advice too. So, here are 9 career lessons that this legendary show taught us. Just be careful, because spoilers are coming…

How Maxim made it from Functional Analyst to Product Owner 13 May 2019

Maxim Van Aert is an ambitious Product Owner at ING. He is leading a team, making important changes within the company and is always able to take people in tow. His endless drive helps him to grow as a professional, while still being down-to-earth and always open to learn. Time for a chat with this people-oriented young professional.

What you need to remember from Stack Overflow’s 2019 Developer Survey 23 April 2019

For nine years, Stack Overflow has fielded an annual global survey asking tens of thousands developers about their opinions on a wide variety of topics, from which programming language they prefer to how optimistic they are about the future. Following the recent publication of the Developer survey results 2019 we picked out some of the highlights.

SingularityU Spain Summit: Our Founder’s favourite talks & take aways 9 April 2019

A while ago, our Founder & CEO Raf Seymus hopped on a plane to Spain to attend the Singularity University Summit in Madrid, a two-day conference that helps leaders understand how to apply exponential technologies to create positive change and economic growth.

7 Habits of unsuccessful people and how to tackle them 3 February 2019

Bad habits can have a significant impact on all aspects of our lives. They can affect our levels of happiness and limit our successes. These habits can sometimes be difficult to break. If you aren’t careful, you can turn these patterns into a mindset and stifle your potential. A life of success is waiting for you; we’ll show you the routines you should adopt instead.

14 rules programmers should live by 22 January 2019

There are some truly great programmers out there. So, what sets them apart? All successful programmers live by certain rules and applying these rules can help you become more efficient and productive.

Michiel flew all around the globe for a training week 10 December 2018

Wanna go into the wide world, ha? We get it. We’re all young. Most of us like discovering new cultures from time to time. That definitely goes for Michiel, Exellyst for 2 years and traveler at heart. He was able to mix business with the pleasure of exploring Shanghai thanks to Atlas Copco!

4 reasons why fun in the office is important 27 November 2018

Who has time for fun when there’s work to be done? We do! Our new office is awesome, but, as anyone who visits us soon finds out, it is more than just an office: it embodies who we are and what we do. Our new home perfectly symbolizes our mission: to nurture top tech talents through training, coaching in a fun and stimulating environment.

Meet Steve Wozniak in our office 13 November 2018

As you may have heard, we recently moved to a brand new office in Mechelen. Next to our tech talent scouts, talent development managers and sales and marketing teams we also have some very special guests… No less than ten pioneers in tech. That’s right, we named our meeting and training rooms after some of the people who had (and still have) a tremendous impact on technology today. They don’t need an introduction so let them introduce themselves just as they do on the walls of our office.

Exellys hacked the Port of Antwerp 16 October 2018

As you might have seen on our social media, last week 10 Exellys consultants participated in the ChainPORT Hackathon. Tom Bruyninx, Java API developer at ING and one of the participants, took the time to write down his experiences.

10 questions you should ask yourself after one year on the job 3 September 2018

After one year on the job, it’s time for a Q&A with yourself! It doesn’t hurt to look into your rear-view mirror every once in a while. Not to get nostalgic or go over all your shoulds and should nots. No, it’s healthy to look back at where you first started because it will remind you how far you’ve come, how much you’ve grown and most importantly, where you’re heading.

How a 27 year old consultant ended up working from a beach in Mauritius 21 August 2018

Let’s be honest here, if you were to picture yourself in your next IT job, would there be any palm trees, sandy beaches and clear blue water in the frame?  The answer is probably no, unless you work for an awesome employer who sends you on a mission to a tropical island. That is exactly what happened to lucky bastard and Exellyst Arvid who spent 3,5 weeks in Mauritius on an assignment for BrightKnight!

You have a limited amount of fucks to give, spend them wisely! 9 August 2018

Every year the Exellys team gets a book for some light summer reading. Each book is carefully selected for its valuable lessons. This year, we received a book by Mark Manson: The subtle art of not giving a fuck. In this blog post we share 4 lifechanging truths we learnt. Ready to be enlightened? Keep on reading, unless you don’t give a fuck, of course.

The five best talks from JS/CSSConf in Berlin 7 August 2018

Three front-end developers are sitting on a plane. What happens next? Not too long ago Stijn, Steven & Yoran, three Exellys consultants of the ING team attended the JS and CSS Conferences in Berlin. When they came back, we asked them to select their five favorite talks. So sit back, grab some popcorn (and maybe a note book) and let’s get started!

How to take your career into your own hands 31 July 2018

Exellys has by now become strongly associated with tech, but (and there is BIG but 😉 ) the fact is that although we specialize in matching IT Talents, we wish to nurture ALL talents from various educational backgrounds. That’s why we decided to share our top 4 hacks to accelerate your career growth.

Disrupting disruption: What the heck is a Hashgraph? 10 April 2018

Hashgraph DLT technology is a superior consensus protocol with a unique data distribution structure. It may be a much better alternative to current blockchain technology. The project is still under development and there is no public version of it yet. Nevertheless, it’s interesting to follow the development of this technology to see where it might lead.

Meeting of the Minds: Photo Report 27 March 2018

That’s right, Meeting of the Minds. These are our quarterly meetings with all Exellysts: consultants, internal staff and management. A group that hasn’t stopped growing since 2014.
Our focus? Knowledge sharing and co-creation, because that’s in our DNA.

Data Trinity: What you should know about the Data Big Three 20 March 2018

We are fast approaching the ‘Data Age’, an entirely new era that will see the rise of everything from humanoid robots to autonomous vehicles and more.The power that this data will bring is virtually limitless and will change the way we communicate, work and live. Within the global datasphere work can be categorized into three main areas: Data Science, Big Data and Data Analytics.

The ultimate guide to finding a Blockchain job in 2018 6 March 2018

Given that this particular market is growing exponentially, wanting to get involved is natural. If you are thinking of making a career change, this guide will supercharge your move off the sidelines and into the thick of this exciting space.

Google Hash Code: Photo Report 2 March 2018

Some motivated Exellysts took on the Hash Code challenge on the first of March. Hash Code is a team programming competition organized by Google. Here are some impressions.

Machine Learning is changing the world. This is how you stay ahead. 30 January 2018

No machine in the history of mankind has a learning capacity comparable to the human brain. Not yet. But things are changing.

5 must see talks (according to our presentation skills trainer) 29 January 2018

For this blogpost, we had a small chat with Cris van Cleemput – Founder and owner of Cyres and Exellys’ longtime presentation skills trainer. He listed some of his all-time favorite talks which we boiled down in this short list.

4 Industries that will never be the same after Blockchain 16 January 2018

You might first have heard of blockchain in connection with the cryptocurrency Bitcoin. It seems to be in the news more frequently nowadays, and people are talking about it more and more.

This is why a Tech Talent Scout at Exellys is so much more than a recruiter 2 November 2017

We at Exellys, are passionate about attracting, selecting and matching IT graduates and young IT professionals with the perfect job at the right company. We bridge the gap between the academic and the business world and by doing so we give them both a chance to boost their potential.

Robotics: join the (r)evolution 17 August 2017

From Star Wars to superhero movies, robots are never very far away in modern life. But this is fiction. Right? It will be reality sooner than we think. The future of robots is here. Now.

Java 9: All you need to know about the features and release date 26 July 2017

The upcoming Java Development Kit – JDK 9 will be packed with amazing new features, including modularization, a read-eval-print, ahead of time compilation, and a memory-saving enhancement.

Building the bridge between business and IT 27 December 2016

One year ago, Lissa and Vincent started working for Exellys as IT business analysts for Umicore. Umicore is a worldwide and BEL20-listed company that aims to deliver materials (mostly metals) to the processing industry.

Raf Seymus in Knack GO Startersgids 1 August 2016

For organisations, talent is key to make a difference. But in reality they usually look for ‘experience’ and work-related knowledge. That observation, in combination with my personal experience, gave me the idea for Exellys.