Did you know that you can also perform your internship at Itineris? Two years ago, we met Hanne, who was studying Commercial Sciences at that time, during the VEK Career Day. After a pleasant chat, we were happy to welcome her as a trainee.

Meanwhile, Hanne has finished her internship and liked it so much that she joined our company after that. She has been working here for 6 months now as a Functional Analyst.

Time to catch up with her!

Well, I had heard many good things about Itineris from friends. That’s why I passed by the Itineris booth during the VEK Career Day, where I learned more about the internship opportunities at the company. I instantly had a great feeling. Shortly after that, I spotted the vacancy on Ufora, the UGent platform. I applied and after a pleasant conversation with my supervisor, I could start my internship at Itineris.

During my internship, I always got really fun tasks and responsibilities. I worked on a project for one of Itineris’ largest customers, De Watergroep. We built a new customer service portal for them. This portal provides employees of De Watergroep with a 360° view on their customers. This means that, when a customer calls, the customer service agent has all details of that customer at hand: the type of contract he or she has, outstanding balance, any issues the customer might have encountered in the past, …

It was really exciting to contribute to such a large project. I had the chance to do many different things. On top of that, I always received constructive feedback, which was really helpful and motivating!

Yes, super well! Caroline, my internship mentor, let me discover different aspects of the job. And if I had questions, she always replied as soon as she had time. I really learned a lot from that internship.

I could certainly apply what I had learned during my studies about project management and communicating with clients. UMAX is a very specific software solution, so in that sense I also learned a lot of new things. In the beginning, the software and everything around it seemed like a lot to take in, but in the meantime, I am starting to become a real UMAX wizard.

Yes, definitely. I can rely on my buddy Benjamin, who is always available to help me out. I can ask him both work-related questions and practical questions about working in the office. He is truly a super buddy!

I spend most of my time writing Functional Design Documents (FDE’s). An FDE describes new functionalities within our UMAX solution. When an FDE is ready, our Test Consultants test the new functionalities, before our Development team starts implementing it. It’s also my job to make sure that new functionalities are well documented.

I really liked my internship because there was a lot of variety in my job. Now, I’m working in the ‘Product’ department, which is also a lot of fun. It’s really nice to learn more about our product UMAX and to see things that you created appear in the software. But I would also love to work on one of the projects one day, because of the interaction you have with the customer.

Yes, they know about that, and the feedback was very positive. We have a very open culture in the company. They want you to grow and they encourage change. It’s not like you are stuck in one position. They always want to give the best opportunities to employees.

In the first two weeks, we had an onboarding session with all the starters. This was a lot of fun. We really became a close group of friends. Right now, with covid, it’s a little harder, but it all still feels very homey and friendly. For example, when we do a stand-up with our team, we spin a wheel to decide who is scrum master and leads the meeting. Those kinds of things make it a little less formal and more fun. The atmosphere is amazing!

I did find it hard at times. Especially during my internship, which was completely online. I do miss the social interaction. On the other hand, working from home has its advantages too. It’s just a different feeling. I also think it shows how much trust Itineris has in its employees, especially in us, as starters. But I do miss the office sometimes.

I would say, know which kind of company you want to apply for. It can be a big or a small company, or something in between. Also, don’t be afraid to apply. I know it can be scary sometimes and nobody wants to be rejected. That’s why I think that events like VEK Career Day are a great initiative. It’s always easier to go and talk to someone, than to send them an e-mail (or at least in my case).