Quanza operates in a dynamic world that never stops. Think of the rise of 5G, the use of IoT and the massive amount of people working at home as a result of the corona crisis. Our clients are in the midst of these developments and are often at the forefront of innovation. The need for a stable and reliable infrastructure has become more and more important in these times. These networks are very complex and at the same time vital for our clients. If a network fails, business operations also come to a standstill.
As Manager Service Operations it is my job to ensure that our clients’ networks continue to function. If there is a problem, my team notices right away. We then contact the client to discuss how to solve the problem. If necessary, I call in the help of colleagues from other Quanza departments. Our task is to inform the clients and to keep them satisfied. We also supervise changes in our clients’ networks.
In my team there are 22 employees, 15 of them work in a department that is operational 24×7. In addition, we have the Service Managers who deal with tactical client contact and manage processes. It is important to make these processes as easy as possible for our clients. I am working on streamlining processes even better to further reduce complexity and make our clients even more satisfied.
Nerdy character
Quanza’s corporate culture reminds me of XS4ALL, where I worked before. I like both the nerdy character of Quanza and the innovative techniques we work with. I think it’s great to work with colleagues who know a lot about something. They really have the ambition to provide our clients with the best possible service. My colleagues act like real professionals, but at the same time they are also very informal in their day-to-day dealings.
At Quanza we do everything for our clients. But we sometimes forget to tell our clients how much we actually do for them. In that respect, we might be a little too modest. Our high level of knowledge enables us to switch faster than our competitors. We are always willing to go the extra mile, and we do so with a personal approach, not letting our clients get lost in procedures.
In terms of company size, Quanza is relatively small, but at the same time we serve large clients. At the end of the day, it’s all about the technology. We have great people working for us, applying their high-quality technical knowledge when carrying out work for our clients. We want to serve even more companies with our services. By standardising more processes in my department, I am able to contribute to this growth. When our clients are innovating their services, they need Quanza to manage their networks, which is another interesting challenge for us.
Corona crisis
The corona crisis of 2020 also has an impact on Quanza’s business operations. During the lockdown in the spring of 2020, I spoke to my colleagues on a daily basis. By staying in touch with each other, we stimulated cooperation. Since lockdown, we have been working with new online tools. Within a period of two weeks we were able to implement them within our organisation. Everyone now works with these applications. As an organisation, we have shown our flexibility.
Colleagues from the NOC (Network Operations Center) continued to work at our office during the corona crisis. The internet connection at our office is more reliable than most people have at home. In addition, we have very large screens at the office, with which these colleagues can monitor our clients’ networks 24×7. However, it is also possible for these employees to work from home in case of an emergency. Of course, working at our clients’ locations remains necessary if there is a change in the network or an installation of a piece of hardware. This occasionally results in some puzzling situations, but we have always been able to continue to serve our clients.
Part-time Physics teacher
I live in an outdoor area and in my spare time I like to walk my two big dogs in the woods. Chances are that I will soon have fourteen dogs, because one of them may be pregnant. While walking I like to combine the pleasant with the useful by speaking with my colleagues. This way, I stay informed about everything around Quanza, even when I’m working from home.
In addition to my work at Quanza, I work as a part-time physics teacher at a secondary school in Overveen. I like to stimulate young minds with technology. From my own background, I believe IT should get more attention. My students, for example, have no idea how their phones work or what the cloud is exactly, which is a pity. But as a physics teacher I’m able to explain to my students how data gets transported through a fibre-optic cable. IT at my school is well organised. The first day after the lockdown, they were already teaching via Microsoft Teams. It was one of the first secondary schools in the Netherlands to do so.
