Mijet Harinck has largely earned her stripes in telemarketing. After 14 years of 2Contact, she started working as an Operational Manager at SalesQ last month. We spoke to her about her first month. "It really is a hugging company. That sounds pretty weird, now that you can't hug anyone."

How did you end up at SalesQ?

"I worked for 14 years at 2Contact, one of the largest contact centers in the Netherlands. There I started with small campaigns and eventually had a team of 50 people for XS4ALL. I also trained young managers and was a career coach."

"In December of last year I was approached by SalesQ, because their Operational Director left. 2Contact has always taken good care of me, but I was ready for something different. That is why I started as Operational Manager at SalesQ in March."

What appealed to you about SalesQ?

"SalesQ has a number of core values ​​that I can really relate to. What I like is that result and people orientation go hand in hand. But the small scale also appealed to me, both at SalesQ and with clients. I am used to working for large corporates and in the B2B market it is all much smaller and more human. I really enjoy the passion of entrepreneurs."

What does your job entail?

"I am responsible for the entire operation. The call quality, training of the agents, but also results. As soon as an order has been won, it is my job to fulfill promised agreements with clients."

"In addition, I keep clients informed of changes, I think along and I pass on relevant customer signals. Especially in corona times, customers like to have a short line."

"I have formulated a certain vision internally. In the long run, I want agents to have more customer contact. This way they understand the context in which they call better. It is nice for clients that they know who works for them. I hope to develop that vision in the coming six months implement."

Is this function what you had in mind in advance?

"I have now been employed for 3.5 weeks and in the first weeks I only looked. What is going well and how can we benefit from it? I put all things that are not going well in a master plan. A dot on the horizon: this is where we have to go."

"I had expected and hoped that I could stay in that analysis mode a little longer, but I fell with my nose in the corona butter. So crisis management was also added. My first working day was March 16, after the urgent advice to stay at home. I haven't seen half of the agents live yet, only via Zoom."

How do you deal with that special situation?

"I do a lot through interviews and numbers, but of course you also have observation techniques on screen. We are very busy with motivation and coaching from a distance. Zoom meetings with the entire group, calibration sessions with agents, but also a Friday afternoon drink with a pub quiz."

"The positive thing is that we quickly arranged that everyone could work remotely. This showed clients that we are just running production. And you learn from this: after the crisis we may be able to let people work from home for one or two days more often."

How would you describe the atmosphere at SalesQ?

"SalesQ distinguishes itself by its humanity. You have a flat organization and everyone is very approachable. It really is a hug company. That sounds a bit crazy, now that you can't cuddle with anyone. But even from a distance you can taste that coziness. At a pub quiz on Zoom, the same people who normally do that are fun."

Why would you recommend people to work at SalesQ?

"We provide tailor-made solutions when it comes to personal and professional development. It is not top down. Together with the agent, we look at where profit lies and map out a path. After all, every person is different and is in different phases of life. I teach agents competencies that they can use for the rest of their lives."

What are your future plans at SalesQ?

"I want to set up an operation that can handle anything: a team that is invincible in mindset, competencies and results. After all, in 2020 you don't just want to carry out an assignment, but also enjoy working together. This is possible by thinking along with the client, to be transparent and to provide relevant information, so that we can create a Wow factor with our clients and in our conversations."

Does Mijet's story appeal to you? Are you considering a career switch or do you want to grow as a professional in a challenging work environment? Then view our vacancies. Maybe we can welcome you to our team soon!