As a starter, it can be difficult to get your first job. Let alone finding a job that suits you well, has great responsibilities and increases your knowledge. Not for Remi Demyttenaere (22). In the summer of 2021, he signed his contract with TMC before he had graduated. Currently Rémi is part of TMC's Young Potential Program and works on a project for which he regularly travels to Mexico. In this article, Rémi talks about his choice for TMC, managing projects and future prospects.

Partly thanks to his chairman role at the Belgian student organization Academics For Companies (AFC), Rémi ended up at TMC. For AFC he organized events and workshops for students and TMC was one of the organizations doing these workshops. “I followed some of the workshops and really liked what I saw. During my job search, TMC was still in the back of my mind. Seeing a vacancy, I found interesting, I didn't hesitate and sent my CV. Within a few weeks I heard I’d been selected and signed my contract. I was also asked to participate in the Young Potential Program. With this program new graduates and newcomers to the labor market get extra support and follow-up within the company. Every week there is a workshop in which we learn about public speaking and time management, for example. That I got the chance to participate in this program and signed my contract while I still had to graduate gave me a lot of confidence!'

Decisive

Once at TMC, Rémi and his manager examined which projects he found interesting and which would suit him best. Rémi was contacted by several project managers and talked about the projects and possible roles. In these conversations the projects, type of work and possible responsibilities was discussed. One of those projects was of IVC Group. IVC is the largest European producer of luxury vinyl tiles, vinyl on rolls and carpet tiles. Every year they produce about 180 million m2 of floor covering. The vacancy at the time did not immediately appeal to Rémi. Partly because he thought he had to be in Mexico fulltime. ‘My preference was to spend time both at home and abroad. Being there all the time was – at least for now – too much. A few weeks later, my manager at TMC asked me to go and talk with IVC. They were looking for someone that could manage the start-up of a Mexican factory of IVC. He thought this role could be perfect for me. The conversation with IVC made me enthusiastic. What appealed to me was the great responsibility and diversity of work. Something I had always found very important. During my studies I never really focused on just one thing. I like to know and learn about different aspects in a market, which is also an important part in my current role. I think this is what makes me a great project manager and why this role at IVC suits me so well. I enjoy working on technical aspects, but I also find budgeting and getting the right people to work together very interesting. When it turned out I was allowed to travel back and forth, I knew this was my project’.

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Encouragement

Working on this project for IVC Group is Rémi's very first work experience. With this important role and the enormous responsibility that comes with it, TMC gives him confidence. ‘I like how they encourage me. They really want me to develop myself and grow. To encourage this, I have a monthly meeting in which my manager at TMC and I discuss my work. We discuss if and where TMC can help me, but also talk about the customer and possible difficulties. We work solution-oriented which allows us to serve our customer well. These meetings are so valuable and it teaches me a lot’.

‘TMC also offers an annual budget which I am free spend. As long as it is relevant for the project I am working on or for my personal development at work. TMC determines the frameworks, I determine the interpretation. That varies from courses to books or a mentor and that's really nice. Especially if you want to keep developing yourself. The only thing you need to do is show initiative. A good example is me learning Spanish. In Mexico they only speak Spanish and I want others to understand what I am saying. This is possible thanks to the encouragement and budget of TMC.’

Based on trust

When the end of your studies comes in sight, you have to orientate yourself. Find out what is out there and discover the labor market. You have to think about what you can do and what you want to achieve. That is exactly what Rémi has done and why he chose TMC. ‘I'm happy I took this route. The fact TMC and I chose each other – as crazy as it may sound – gives me various options. I can choose from different projects. What I also like is you don't have to commit yourself for a longer period of time and there are many projects you can choose from. It doesn’t feel like you are working for only one company. Besides that, the most important reason I choose for TMC is they never make me feel like I can’t do it. On the contrary. Although many of my colleagues are older and my position may require more experience than I might have, they still believe I can lead this project. During preparatory meetings we discussed what I can and would like to be doing. It's all about my potential. And from that base of trust, we started building together’.