You start an internship at a company, initially unsure what to expect, and three years later you’re part of the management team. For many young professionals, this sounds like the ideal career start. But how do you ensure you don’t get stuck along the way or burn yourself out? And what makes an organization so attractive that you simply stay after your internship? Rick de Jong, HR Manager at Eqeep, made exactly this journey. In this blog, he shares how he finds the balance between ambition and realism, and what lessons he learned along the way.

No master plan, but the right place

My story at Eqeep didn’t exactly begin with a grand master plan. A recruitment agency suggested this organization as an internship placement for my thesis research in Human Resource Management. It was practical: close to home and an interesting assignment. At the end of my internship, I was given the opportunity to stay. I seized that opportunity with both hands. Now, three and a half years later, I’m HR Manager and part of the management team.

Why I made that choice

The decision to stay wasn’t difficult. Eqeep is a close-knit organization with a beautiful mission and great people – that’s where it starts. Additionally, it’s a company where challenging projects await you, exactly what I was looking for as an ambitious starter. The accessible culture also played an important role. The short lines from HR to the executive team and management gave me confidence that I could really make an impact here. It felt like the perfect opportunity to shape my starting career.

Maintaining culture in a hybrid world

As HR Manager, I’m responsible for the complete personnel policy: from recruitment to payroll administration, from insurance to culture development. The latter brings specific challenges at Eqeep. Our consultants work largely at client locations or from home. This means colleagues can go months without physical contact. This requires a proactive approach to maintain mutual connections. We therefore regularly organize after-work activities: drinks, sports activities like padel, and team outings. But the most important instrument remains personal conversation. By regularly checking where people are struggling and how we can support them, you keep the culture alive and engaged.

The biggest learning moment: Professional ‘distance’

The transition from student to manager brought an important lesson: the distinction between personal and professional. At university, it’s mainly about personal relationships and emotional involvement. In business, you learn that sometimes you have to make business decisions that not everyone likes. You can’t always satisfy everyone, and you shouldn’t want to. Sometimes you have to stand functionally opposite each other, but that doesn’t mean mutual appreciation disappears. It’s about the function, not about who you are as a person. This lesson is indispensable for any young professional who quickly gains responsibility.

Many young professionals I speak with have the same drive I had back then: grow quickly and make an impact. That’s admirable, but also brings risks. Burnout and disappointment lurk when your expectations aren’t realistic.

My advice: invest in your professional development, but learn to keep work and private life separate. That ability to distinguish between person and function often determines the difference between success and frustration in leadership positions.

Future perspective: Growing in problem-solving ability

In five years, I see myself still in a role where I can tackle complex issues. Whether that’s HR-related or other challenges matters less to me. At Eqeep, we value flexibility and out-of-the-box thinking.

I would like to work more in teams though. Currently, I function as a one-person team, which is effective but sometimes lonely. In the coming years, I want to contribute to the further professionalization of our HR processes, possibly with team expansion.

What I find most beautiful about my role is that I can help others excel in what they’re good at. That facilitating function fits perfectly with my personality and ambitions.

Rick

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