Throughout his entire career, Niki was passionate about people and technology. Two fields of interest that led to an important choice regarding his professional career: growing into aproduct specialist –and become a real technical expert -or aiming for a steering rolein which he directs others?  

People vs. Technology

Previous projects gave Niki the opportunity to gain many technical integration knowledge. He worked on several technical assignments where he tackled digital transformation challengesin the field of integration. For example, Niki worked for the Trade Union on the development of a modernization platform for their employees. Today, he works full time for Fednot – De Koninklijke Federatie van het Belgisch Notariaat- where he works on the development of an API managementprogram that enables Fednot to re-evaluate their notary services for the digital world of tomorrow. 

During the Fednot project, it started to tickle for Niki to delve into the human side of the projectand adopt a more managerial role. The assignment gave him the chance to grow both technical and people skills simultaneously: “I am always looking to improve my skills and maximize my impact on a project. After growing a lot in my technical skills, I was wondering how it would be to assume a more coordinating role” Niki starts to explain.

From technical expert to people expert

At the start of the Fednot-project, Niki focused on the technical aspects of the project. His task was to build the security part on gateways and APIs. But after a while, Niki felt ready for the next step in his career by taking on a more steering role. “Something they immediately supported at Integration Designers” Niki continues,“I got the chance to follow several soft skill and communication trainingsto work on my people skills.” 

In his new role, Niki helps to determine on how the integration platform will looks like. This entails technically figuring out how the different components work together, determining how the platform will go into production with an optimal delivery process in mind and how the platform will work in terms of safety. But for the platform to be a success, it is of undeniable importance to get everybody on board and provide them with a frame of reference.Integration is in fact a whole new principle for many organizations, which also required at Fednod a shift in working method for all involved: “As this context is heavily committed to politics and a shift in working methods of several teams is required, it is of great importance to get everybody on board and steer everybody in the right direction. But because of the political nature of the project, this requires extensive people skills.” 

Trainings, Trainings, Trainings! 

Skills Niki got to work on in depth- by many soft skills trainingsoffered by Integration Designers. This way, Niki was able to discover his talent for managing a teamand motivating colleagues for the project. “I was very lucky that I had the freedom in my project to realize this growth” Niki continues. “At Integration Designers, they always try to match your personal ambitionswith a project. You sit in the driver seat of your own career, which means you are in charge of your own projects, career choices and focus points. “For me personally, this was one of the main reasons to choose for Integration Designersin the first place” Niki concludes.

Do you have a passion for technology and are you also ready to enter a new phase in your career? We are happy to hear from you!