Digitalization has gained tremendous momentum and the demand for good IT personnel is greater than ever. During the transition to the new pension system, APG is recruiting new talent through an IT traineeship in collaboration with recruitment partner Working Talent (see video). After a six-week boot camp, recent graduates and lateral entrants start as trainees in various positions within Business Improvement & Change. DevOps Engineer Ardi Cengo was one of them.
After studying Biomedical Sciences, Ardi started working as a researcher at Maastricht University. A large part of his work involved collecting and analyzing data. And with data being obtained in ever greater volumes and speed these days, Ardi needed to become more and more immersed in IT technologies. “After all, through these technologies, data can be tracked and processed better. What I soon learned was the great importance and power of IT in this. This increasingly aroused my interest. Why shouldn’t I expand this beyond my field of expertise and orient myself more broadly, was a question I asked myself repeatedly during the past year. This made me choose to leave academia and join an IT traineeship, where I was trained to become an IT professional.”
And then you chose APG as the place to work as an IT professional. Why APG?
“In my orientation to the different IT traineeships offered nationwide, I quickly stumbled upon Working Talent, with APG as a direct client. APG was already familiar to me as an organization, because during my time at Maastricht University I accrued my pension with ABP. It motivated me to choose APG, because APG’s strategy and policies can have a major impact on society.”
So, it was a socially motivated choice?
“Absolutely. Having a pension ensures a good income for later in life. How great is it if I can contribute to that through my day-to-day work? Not just for myself, but also for the people around me. It is inspiring to be able to work for an organization with a clear mission and an impact on society. I also like the fact that there is room for personal development at APG and that it has a pleasant corporate culture.”
What contribution do you want to make to the challenge we face: the new pension system?
“I hope to be able to contribute to this by gaining knowledge and experience during my IT traineeship, which I can then apply to ensure that the transition to the new pension system runs smoothly and without risks.”
What do you like to sink your teeth into?
“I’m keen to keep learning and developing myself continuously. I therefore look forward to sinking my teeth into challenging cases. That is what really energizes me.”
What do you look forward to at the start of a working day?
“Every day, I look forward to the challenges that await me. I am currently still learning a lot and am enjoying what I’m learning every day. I have a good connection with my colleagues, they’re helping me master the work and they have created a nice work atmosphere.”
What do you hope to achieve at APG?
“By continuously challenging myself, developing myself and working with coworkers in a positive way, I hope to be able to provide an added value at APG. With this contribution I would like to help build the future income of 5 million Dutch people.”
IT traineeship Working Talent - YouTube
From 0.31 you can see APG and Ardi in the video.