Five years ago, our colleague Jan-Simon Rotgans left the corporate world to become a partnership manager at Refugee Talent Hub. From 1 October, he will start a new role as a coach at Energy Skills, while partly saying goodbye to Refugee Talent Hub. What will he take with him from the past five years, and what is he looking forward to in his new role?
From start-up to scale-up
In Jan-Simon’s first interview with us, he spoke about making the move and his motivation to contribute to greater social impact. Looking back at Refugee Talent Hub five years ago, he remembers an organisation that was still very much finding its way. ‘A bit like an excitable puppy, eager to explore the world, see what else was possible and meet new people.’ With a team of eight, there was plenty of energy to build, bring new partners on board and make an impact, all with one clear goal in mind: employers recognising the talent of refugees, and refugees being given a fair chance in the labour market.
Five years on, that ambition is still very much alive. The organisation has grown from a small team into a professional organisation with more structure, greater visibility and a clear position in the field. Its products and services have been developed and standardised further, and more and more partners have come on board. ‘The people in the organisation may have changed, but the culture, the social entrepreneurship and the incredible determination to make a difference have remained,’ he says.
Bringing heart and mind together
Moving from the corporate world to an NGO took some adjustment. Jan-Simon was comfortable working with partners, but found that translating those partnerships into Refugee Talent Hub’s internal priorities, and then communicating them externally, took time. The move also brought him something he had not expected beforehand: ‘I’ve learned to bring my head and heart together more.’ Where he once made decisions mainly with his head, his feelings now have a permanent place alongside it. ‘Not just on a conceptual or commercial level, but especially from one person to another. That personal development has enriched me as a person and made it easier for me to adapt to different environments.’
Meaningful conversations
Jan-Simon found the greatest enjoyment in the more than 150 conversations he had with candidates. Those conversations showed him how much can happen when you do not try to decide everything in advance. They also made him more confident in the way he approaches conversations. ‘In the past, I could prepare well for a conversation based on concepts and assumptions, but now I go into one with curiosity and genuine interest. I can have a conversation without knowing where it will lead. And because I approach it from a place of connection, meaningful conversations emerge.’
Those conversations also showed Jan-Simon how much uncertainty plays a part, not only for candidates but just as much for employers. ‘As human beings, we find it difficult to deal with uncertainty and not knowing,’ he says. With employers, he sees this reflected in questions such as: what will this require of me? How do I relate to someone who has been through difficult experiences and has not had the same opportunities as I have? For candidates, the uncertainty is more often about the next step and what lies ahead. What strikes Jan-Simon most in both cases is how often resilience ultimately overcomes that uncertainty. He believes there is something in that for all of us to learn from.
‘I can now have a conversation without knowing where it will lead. And because I approach it from a place of genuine connection, meaningful conversations emerge.’
Jan-Simon Rotgans
Embracing discomfort
At the same time, he is also concerned about the connections and conversations between people. ‘Seeking out discomfort together and having meaningful conversations about what is really going on for someone seem to be becoming less common in an increasingly polarised society. Yet being able to put yourself in someone else’s shoes — from both sides — is exactly the kind of quality we need if we are to make our ambition at Refugee Talent Hub a reality.’ After all, a lasting match starts with a lasting relationship, Jan-Simon believes. ‘As human beings, we are relational by nature, and ultimately it is about what happens between people.’
Working as a coach at Energy Skills
That belief also plays an important role in his next step. From 1 October, Jan-Simon will start working as a coach with Energy Skills, a joint training programme run by Alliander, Enexis, TenneT and Refugee Talent Hub, in which people with refugee status prepare for a career as a mechanic or technician in the energy transition. He deliberately uses the term coach rather than job coach. For him, the role is about more than helping someone into a job. It is also about personal development, building skills and learning how to navigate the different situations and relationships you encounter at work.
That choice is no coincidence. Through his conversations with candidates, Jan-Simon discovered just how much energy he gets from one-to-one contact. ‘I’m going to focus on the skills people need in the Dutch labour market, so that sustainable employment — and with it a lasting working relationship — can develop, and the talents of newcomers can come to the fore. That’s where I see that I can, want to and need to make the greatest impact.’
Fortunately, Jan-Simon will also remain involved with Refugee Talent Hub one day a week until the end of the year, working on business development. He values that combination: ‘I strongly believe in lasting matches that are built around the needs of everyone involved. I mentioned earlier the importance of stepping into someone else’s world. I can do that best when I am active on both the employer and employee side.’
Innovation starts with curiosity about one another
When asked what he would like employers to take away, Jan-Simon has a clear message: ‘You cannot be curious about the future without being curious about people.’ Companies are constantly innovating. How can processes be improved, made faster, done differently or brought closer to the customer? At the same time, those same companies are working to build more diverse and inclusive organisations. According to Jan-Simon, those two developments still intersect too little, and that is a missed opportunity. For him, innovation is not only about products and services, but also about people. ‘If you bring those two together, there is very little a company cannot achieve.’
