MEET AND GREET WITH JOEP AND MIKE
For this edition, we had a French breakfast in the beautiful Dutch City of Delft. For both Joep and Mike entrepreneurship has passed from father to son. The duo complements each other's talents more than well, resulting in an impressive impact on customers and colleagues!
Why did you start The Factory?
We’ve always had the ambition to start a business, it was just a matter of picking the right time and running in to the right people.
We worked together at multiple customers for a while. We were able to make a real impact on their business. At its core, the most important thing to understand is what drives our customers' core business. Knowing this, we then leverage modern (cloud) technologies, and a 'DevOps' way of working to facilitate our customers' needs. Using this approach resulted in an increase in collaboration, a faster time to market, a great customer experience and it gave us the time and space needed to drive innovation. With all this combined, we believe that our customers can stay at the front of the pack!
We truly enjoy this approach and as a result our ambition crystallized.
What did it take to get started?
A connection of ours introduced us to Reza and Roy, the founders of the CC Group. The CC Group is a group of companies. There are several companies, each focusing on certain key areas of IT: data engineering, cyber security, software development. They didn’t have activities in the space of DevOps and Cloud yet. We pitched our ideas around this, and Reza and Roy were immediately enthusiastic about our ideas. As a result, we co-founded The Factory in February 2019.
Having the CC Group with their wealth of experience in the industry we were granted the perfect launchpad to start The Factory.
Their dedicated Backoffice team has lightened our load, allowing us to concentrate on The Factory's day-to-day operations and to focus on our goals.
What is the most important value within The Factory?
Joep: Respect for each other is highly important to us. We believe that no one should feel superior to anyone else. This value is at the core of what we stand for, and it's also one of the qualities we look for when recruiting.
Mike: Our team vibe is all about unity and respect. It's a place where everyone can grow, both personally and professionally. What I like to see within our team is that we created an environment that feels like home, where strong bonds and friendships are forged, both within and beyond the workplace.
Joep, when are you successful?
When we make an impact on our customers and our staff. We take our customers to the next level. By understanding our customers’ critical business processes, we can utilize modern technology to help them achieve their goals. Our great engineers make this happen for them!
Besides this we want to make an impact on our people. Everyone has a (personal) growth perspective. Our colleagues are free to shape their own future at The Factory. From creating your own job description, to growth in technical expertise. You want to do a bit of marketing, photography, or perhaps cooking for your colleagues: just do it.
We do everything we can to involve all our colleagues in making company decisions.
Mike, you are CTO at The Factory, when are you successful as CTO?
My formal role is that of CTO, besides the role of CTO I wear multiple hats within the company.
As a CTO, technical leadership is important, where it starts with the technical vision and strategy of the company. We want to innovate, maintain a competitive edge, stay relevant, and above all make an impact on our customers! This involves a thorough understanding of market trends, the ability to adopt and translate said trends into business solutions and to transfer this knowledge to the rest of the team. As a consultancy company I firmly believe that knowledge is one of our most valuable assets and the key to our success and that of our customers. Our team of engineers are the driving force behind translating business critical processes into innovative and efficient technical solutions that positively impact our customers.
We are fully committed to investing in our team to enhance their knowledge and expertise. We encourage and support everyone in our team and challenge them to evolve through: certification, knowledge sharing (e.g., presenting at our monthly “What the Factory’s”), building confidence in their abilities through mentoring, pushing them to make an impact at the customers, and so on.
At The Factory, we do not operate alone; we function as a team. We stand united as a team, offering each other support and assistance! And that is what I’m proud of!
What shaped you into who you are today?
Joep: From my perspective, I had a stable and supportive family. Both my parents had successful careers and were involved at our local community at the football club where my father is honorary chairman. Personally, these were great examples, which helped to shape my ambition to lead and where my talent to connect comes from. Throughout my journey, a mixture of life events and career adventures had left their mark on my personality and values, making me the person I am now.
Furthermore, I've learned the importance of chasing your dreams. My wife, parents and my sister, who runs her own business, are very supportive in this. I always learned to be proactive, to make my own success.
Mike: Entrepreneurship has been a part of our family for generations, passed down through the years. My parents had their own successful business, and I've always admired how they managed it. So, this passion for entrepreneurship is something that has been passed down to me.
Another significant influence in shaping my character was my ambition in sports. From an early age I’ve always had a passion for motor- and autosport, my dream was to become a F1 driver. It all started with karting at the age of 6 and ended at the age of 25, a substantial period of my life. Unfortunately, the dream of becoming an F1 driver remained unfulfilled. I’ve achieved notable successes, secured victories, and even earned the title of champion. This adventure taught me a lot about sportsmanship and the dedication it takes to become a successful athlete. These qualities have not only significantly influenced my character but also continue to guide my approach to work. Like we say at The Factory the mindset of a true ‘Cup fighter’.
What is something which needs more attention?
Joep: In the daily hustle and bustle, we did not really stop to celebrate our successes so far. Maybe, I take things for granted too soon.
Mike: I don't settle for second place; I'm never quite satisfied because I'm constantly searching for ways to improve. I tend to focus on what can be better rather than appreciating what is already good. Therefore, I need to remind myself that it is perfectly fine to ease up now and then and enjoy the successes we have a bit more.
As the entrepreneurs you are, what’s the plan for over 10 years?
Joep: We will see, for now I’m happy at The Factory. There is still enough to do. First and foremost, we want to recruit talent that fits our culture. This will allow us to keep making an impact at our customers and enable our colleagues to become successful and capable engineers.
Mike: We're still a relatively young company, 2024 will mark our 5-year anniversary. We’ve experienced growth in various aspects, but there is no doubt that we have more milestones to achieve, and numerous goals left to reach.
If you could say one thing to the people who work at The Factory, what would it be?
Joep: Don’t go with the flow but be the master of your own destiny!
Mike: The time dedicated to work is substantial, so it's essential to do what you genuinely enjoy and chase your dreams.