Monthly drinks at HeadFirst Group: together you celebrate more!
Monthly drinks at HeadFirst Group: together you celebrate more!
At HeadFirst Group, connection is at the heart of everything we do. We believe in celebrating special moments together, taking care of each other and always being ready to help each other when needed. One of the ways we strengthen that connection is through our monthly get-together, which time after time guarantees fun, creativity and most importantly: being together!
Every month a different team gets the honor of organizing the get-together, and this is always accompanied by a surprising theme. This year we have already had some get-togethers, all of which have proved memorable.
Spring vibes and royal charm
The Service Desk team kicked off the year with spring drinks, complete with a merry bingo. The enthusiasm with which the bingo cards were filled out, and the happy faces when winning prizes, showed how fun and connecting a simple game can be.
During the week of King's Day, we couldn't avoid the theme. It was time for the Kings & Queens get-together. The bar was draped in orange and many a colleague had pulled out the orange outfit.
Sporting challenges and traditional Dutch hospitality
Not long after, we imagined ourselves in a typically Dutch atmosphere during the 'Ik hou van Holland' drinks. With delicious snacks and a quiz full of Dutch facts.
With the Olympics on the agenda, HR organized the Olympic ping pong tournament. Colleagues were able to show their sporting talents. People played fanatically, but also laughed a lot.
In August, of course, many colleagues were enjoying a wonderful vacation. With the colleagues who were working, we celebrated the summer with the summer drink. On the roof terrace there were small pools, water guns and summer drinks ready.
Having drinks together: a moment of connection
At HeadFirst Group, our monthly get-together is about more than just drinks and snacks. It is a moment of connection, where we take a moment to reflect on what connects us as a team. We get to know each other better outside the workplace, discover new talents and strengthen our bonds.
Would you like to become part of an organization where connection is key and where job satisfaction goes hand in hand with performance? Then come and meet HeadFirst Group. Check out our vacancies here.
Music connects beyond the workplace at HeadFirst Group
Music connects beyond the workplace at Headfirst Group
At HeadFirst Group, "Connecting People" is not just a core value, it is the foundation of our culture and everything we do. We believe that true connection happens through personal interaction and sharing experiences, both in the workplace and beyond.
Personal interaction
Connection starts with personal contact. A conversation in person or via (video) call is always better than an email. Participating in, or better yet, initiating social activities, helps us further strengthen this connection.
Music events: connection outside of work
Because connection does not stop when the working day ends, at HeadFirst Group we regularly organize social activities such as get-togethers and parties. We also offer our colleagues the chance to enjoy music events together. This year, for example, several colleagues enjoyed concerts by P!NK, Joel Borelli, Taylor Swift and Amsterdam Summer. These events provide an excellent opportunity to connect with each other outside the work context and create shared memories.
At HeadFirst Group, we are all about connection. By encouraging personal interactions and creating shared experiences both on and off the job, we strengthen the bond between colleagues. Join our team and experience how we at HeadFirst Group bring "Connecting People" to life, every day.
HeadFirst Group headquarters in Hoofddorp
HeadFirst Group headquarters in Hoofddorp
At HeadFirst Group, we believe that an inspiring work environment is essential for stimulating innovation and creating a positive work culture. Located in Hoofddorp, near Amsterdam, our headquarters offers an inspiring space where connection is key. Here we want to strengthen our leading position as an HR-tech service provider and underline our sustainability ambitions.
Location
Our headquarters are located in Office Park 20|20 in Hoofddorp, just 1 km from the A4 motorway and 400 meters from Hoofddorp train station. With an area of 3,700 square meters, our office offers:
- A 1,500-square-foot theater, bar, restaurant and gym on the ground and second floors.
- Office space of 2,200 square feet, distributed on the second through fourth floors.
- 150 (flex) workstations with adjustable desks.
Facilities
Our office is equipped with various amenities to provide an optimal working environment:
- A theater with space for five hundred guests, ideal for presentations and events.
- A bar where colleagues can connect and celebrate successes.
- A restaurant with a barista, serving healthy and sustainable meals.
- A gym with fifteen Technogym machines.
- Seventeen meeting rooms with modern facilities for hybrid conferencing.
- Three coffee corners.
Sustainability
At HeadFirst Group, we strive to minimize our carbon footprint and contribute to a more sustainable world. Our office was built with sustainability in mind and features:
- A cradle-to-cradle building with energy label A and a BREEAM-NL certificate "Very Good.
- Smart blue-green roofs for rainwater harvesting, which is used for flushing toilets, among other things.
- A gray water recycling system.
- Green electricity from Greenchoice and carbon-neutral flooring from Interface.
- Our caterer, Leo Love Good Food, is committed to reducing environmental impact by choosing sustainable products whenever possible.
- Cleaning of our facilities is done with cold water and ecological cleaning agents.
At HeadFirst Group, we strive to provide an inspiring and sustainable work environment for our employees and visitors. If you're looking for a company that values innovation, connection and sustainability, you've come to the right place. View our vacancies here or contact us.
Becoming a recruiter with no experience? Here's what you need!
Becoming a recruiter with no experience? Here's what you need!
Connecting talented individuals to the right organizations gives us the daily dose of energy! Would you also like to become part of this beautiful matchmaking process? Not necessarily professional knowledge is required, because even without specific experience you can start as a Recruiter. Britt van Heffen, Recruiter at HeadFirst Group, tells what you need to become a Recruiter.
Skills Required for Recruitment Consultant
Are you someone who likes to help others, do you like to be in contact with people and are you sales driven? Then recruitment might be the ideal profession for you! At Sterksen we are always looking for enthusiasts to join our team of IT Recruitment Consultants.
Key recruitment skills include:
- Strong communication skills, both oral and written. For example, you must be able to write job postings and have a lot of contact with clients and candidates.
- Being able to listen well and ask through questions is also essential. After all, it is important to find out as much information as possible.
- Persuasion is important, wantsales is a big part of recruitment. In this case, you're just not selling a product, but a position in the IT industry.
- Stakeholder management is also part of this, because as a Recruitment Consultant, you are the link between the client and candidate. In doing so, you have to inform everyone in the right way and at the right time.
- Perseverance, because rejections are also part of this field. So it is important to stay focused on your goal of finding the best matches.
- Your time management must also be in order. After all, recruitment can go on forever because there is no hard deadline. In addition, it is important to prioritize. There is always a new candidate or organization coming forward.
Can just anyone become a Recruiter?
With a college education in HRM, Sales or Marketing or Communications and up to 1 year of recruitment experience, you have a good foundation. We pay particular attention to the skills you possess. When we receive an application, our Corporate Recruiters always check whether you really know what you are applying for.
To step into this role, you must be motivated and enthusiastic. You are client responsible and therefore have to bring in both candidates and vacancies. And yes, that includes some cold acquisition. Are you up to the challenge? If your answer is a resounding yes, then Sterksen is the place for you! And do not worry, we will not throw you in at the deep end.
Getting started as a starter at Sterksen
Sterksen is a committed and warm organization. Cooperation and team building are very important to us. When you become part of the team, you always start with an onboarding process. In a 10-week onboarding period you will learn all the tricks of the trade and receive the necessary guidance.
During this period you will get to know the work environment: the organization, the colleagues and the systems you will be working with. You will also learn interview techniques to learn how to deal with clients and of course you will learn all the ins and outs about the content of your job. You will then find the right candidates for our clients in the IT field.
The advancement opportunities as a Recruiter
As a Junior Recruiter, you start by filling Traineeship vacancies, for example, dealing with students. From there you pick up increasingly "difficult" roles and your work also becomes increasingly varied. We offer you plenty of opportunities to grow into a medior or senior role.
Do you have the desire to become a recruiter? Then check out our vacancies for open IT Recruitment Consultant positions, or contact our recruiters directly on 088 04 42 000 or info@sterksen.com.
New website and branding Striive
New website and branding Striive
We proudly launched Striive's brand new website and branding. Striive helps professionals find new challenges, supports suppliers in matching assignments with their talent and assists clients in their search for the best candidates. The platform is revolutionary in ease of use and uniquely uses artificial intelligence (AI) to connect supply and demand. In addition, Striive offers innovative services to fully support professionals in their entrepreneurship.
Connector between tech and touch
HeadFirst Group believes in - and fights for - a fair, open labor market where technology and human touch go hand in hand. In this "next world of work," Striive takes the position of excellent connector. Every year, the platform brings together more than twenty thousand assignments at over five hundred leading organizations in one place. In doing so, it provides easily accessible new career opportunities for professionals, self-employed or employed by suppliers.
Mattijs Wassenburg, Managing Director Digital at HeadFirst Group, explains: "Our goal with Striive is to make all assignments in the market available in one online place for all professionals, regardless of contract form. Ease of use is hugely important in this regard. We rebuilt the platform from the ground up, based on thousands of reviews, user interviews and data analysis. Independent professionals and suppliers on our platform have four primary needs: 1) challenging assignments with reputable clients, 2) minimal red tape, 3) prompt payment of invoices, and 4) personal contact when they want it. Striive fulfills the first three needs, giving my colleagues more time for the fourth: the human touch."
Are you ready to be part of the "next world of work"? Discover the opportunities at HeadFirst Group and view our job openings here.
HeadFirst Group: An inspiring workplace for growth and development
HeadFirst Group: An inspiring workplace for growth and development
As an employer, we have evolved rapidly in recent years. Guided by our three core values: Customer first, Learn everyday and Connecting people. Engagement, fun and ownership are central to our organization.
Responsibility
We encourage our employees to be entrepreneurial through personal development and give them responsibility. We combine our focus on customer experience with the Lean philosophy, which is based on the principle that improvement initiatives come from the entire organization rather than just from the top of the organization. We have put our employees at the wheel of continuous improvement.
HeadFirst Group Academy
To encourage our staff to continue to learn and develop, we have our own HeadFirst Group Academy. The Academy is an online learning environment where employees collectively attended 483 training sessions in 2023. In addition, a large number of classroom training sessions were conducted (305 training sessions).
Mental well-being
The mental well-being of our employees is also essential to us. That's why we joined forces with OpenUp, an organization whose mission is to make mental wellness accessible to everyone. OpenUp offers resources that make people more resilient and help them in their personal development such as a health check, one-on-one consultations with certified psychologists, master classes and group sessions, mindfulness consultations and online programs, articles and manuals.
Acknowledgment
Since we moved into our new headquarters in Hoofddorp in early 2022, we have our own HeadFirst Group theater at our disposal. We use this for our customized escape room, company parties, knowledge events and inspiration sessions.
All of this has been greatly appreciated: we were certified as a Great Place to Work (GPTW) for the second time in 2023. This is a great recognition of who we want to be as an employer. In the GPTW survey, our employees rated us highly on the topics of fair treatment, diversity & inclusion, responsibility and independence within work, and feeling that they can be themselves at work.
Does HeadFirst Group seem like a great place to work? Check out our vacancies and maybe we'll see you soon at our monthly drink!
HeadFirst Group is among the Best Workplaces™ 2024!
HeadFirst Group is among the Best Workplaces™ 2024!
For the 22nd time Great Place To Work has announced the Best Workplaces of The Netherlands. These 40 employers are the leaders in the field of being a good employer. HeadFirst Group ended on place 10 in the category Mid Large!
We participated in the Trust Index, Great Place To Work's employee survey. Based on the results of this survey, HeadFirst Group is Great Place To Work-Certified™. Not only that, but as an organization we are among the 40 Best Workplaces Netherlands 2024!
On June 27, the final ranking was announced by Great Place To Work. HeadFirst Group ended up on place 10 in the Mid Large category (250 to 499 employees). We are very proud of this achievement. You can watch the aftermovie of the event here.
Frontrunners on good employment practices
René Brouwers, managing director of Great Place To Work, says: "This year the 40 Best Workplaces once again set the standard for safe work cultures. Environments where everyone can be themselves, rewards are equal and the proverbial door really is always open. So in a time when anxiety cultures and burnout are the order of the day, these organizations can rightfully call themselves frontrunners in the field of being good employers."
100% based on employee feedback
The Best Workplaces 2024 list is based on the Trust Index™, Great Place To Work's employee survey. This survey tells companies how they score on trust according to their own employees. At a score of 70% or higher, an organization may call itself Great Place To Work-Certified™. This certification is 100% based on employee feedback. Certified organizations had a chance to win a spot on the Best Workplaces 2024 list. Winners earned the title Best Workplace according to their own employees.
Building a career at Sterksen
Building a career at Sterksen
Sterksen has been a specialist in innovative and industry-leading recruitment for more than 20 years. When you have been with an organization for 17 years, you go through a lot. This is also the case for Yvonne van Amelsvoort, Principal Recruitment Consultant at Sterksen. She tells what it is like to build a career at Sterksen.
The process from A to Z
"With the service IT Search (ITS) we work with (international) clients on the basis of recruitment and selection. We advise and support around recruitment issues in the full breadth of IT. I am currently active in both IT Search and Executive Search. With this we search, approach and select the best talent for key positions, such as a CEO or CIO.
What I enjoy most about this position is being involved from A to Z. From recruiting clients and picking up vacancies, to selecting suitable candidates and filling the vacancy, with everything in between. All facets of recruitment are covered. In this role you will also visit clients a lot, because being physically present is different from doing everything online.
When you join this Business Unit, you will receive the same onboarding that every new employee at Sterksen receives, to get to know the organization well. If you step into a junior role, your focus is on recruiting candidates. As a senior recruiter, you go right through the entire process to placement."
Growth within the organization
"A lot has changed in recent years. Think of the market and customers, the growth we have experienced and new colleagues. There have also been changes in our services. In the beginning this was limited to recruitment & selection, but now all forms of recruitment have been added. Currently we offer six services to our clients and work with three contract forms for professionals.
A nice development of this is that, regardless of the recruitment demand of the client, we can offer everything. Think of mediating interim professionals, filling internal projects at clients and deta-permanent constructions. We work with all kinds of clients and receive many requests from clients with whom we have worked before. Investing in relationship management is therefore essential, because you get a lot in return."
Creating career opportunities
"In this market, it is important to focus on quality in recruitment. It's not about quick wins, but building relationships, both with clients and candidates. We want to grow even further, of course, so the commercial part also requires attention because of the changing labor market. So you have to have that drive.
You will find yourself in a commercially driven team, with tremendously fine cooperation. We grant each other success and work together on a customer demand - something you don't see much in this industry. The teamwork, the diversity of services and the many possibilities make Sterksen's strength.
In 2022, we became part of HeadFirst Group. This gave us a large organization behind us. With joint clients, we can work better together and strengthen each other. This in turn creates additional opportunities for the future. For example, if HeadFirst gets a need for permanent recruitment, Sterksen can also contribute to that. There are still many opportunities to explore in that."
Are you interested in a versatile role as a Recruitment Consultant? Then take a look at our vacancies or contact one of our corporate recruiters. And who knows, maybe you will soon start a career at Sterksen that will last for years!
Sport connects
Sport connects
At HeadFirst Group we have seen it many times: sports connects. Therefore, we regularly make room within the organization for sporting initiatives. Also this year there are regular sports activities on the agenda.
- At the beginning of the year, a group of colleagues organized the HeadFirst Group padel tournament. More than 60 colleagues signed up and enjoyed a sporty afternoon and evening together.
- In June, several colleagues braved the Mud Masters run in Haarlemmermeer together. During this 6 km long run they helped each other through, under and over various obstacles. Real team building in other words!
- And although we ourselves are not physically participating in the European Football Championship, we are mentally fully involved. Daily the results and standings in the HeadFirst Group EK-poule are discussed.
- After the summer break, the Dam tot Damloop is scheduled. A group of colleagues will be at the starting line to run the Dam tot Dam by night together.
Togetherness
Sports initiatives are enthusiastically started by colleagues and everyone is welcome to join. Sports connects us and contributes to a close and enthusiastic working environment at HeadFirst Group. Would you also like to join an organization that makes room for sports activities? Check out our vacancies.
Tomorrow's bosses at HeadFirst Group
Tomorrow's bosses at HeadFirst Group
In early June, as part of the JINC Boss of Tomorrow initiative, we had the privilege of hosting two students who stepped into the shoes of our CEO, Marion Van Happen.
Dominique and Inha got to work with TikTok and thought about how we could use it to recruit new colleagues.
JINC Boss of Tomorrow offers young people between the ages of 8 and 16 from neighborhoods with socioeconomic disadvantages the opportunity to take a seat in the chair of a CEO, director or politician. During this day, they participate in meetings and think about specific issues. It offers young people the chance to step out of their often small world and take a look at the workplace, where they gain valuable insights, gain self-confidence and make contacts for the future. All essential for their future success in the job market.
HeadFirst Group is committed to a better world beyond the job market. We are committed to improving the lives of people around the world. Do you think this is important in a new employer? Then you've come to the right place. Check out our vacancies here or contact us.