Not sure if the IT Traineeship is right for you? Then Patrick (29) is the perfect person to help you make that decision. He joined Alistar this year, quickly earned the required certifications, and is now happily working on his first assignment at the Alistar Cloud Services help desk. We asked him what to expect when you start working at Alistar—from applying for the job to bonding with your new coworkers.
How did you end up at Alistar? What were you doing before that?
Before this, I worked at a moving company as a transportation planner. I wanted a new challenge, so I set out to find a new adventure. I hadn’t finished my degree, but I still really wanted to prove myself. That’s why I started looking for cool traineeships, and that’s how I found Alistar! And to think I’d actually sworn off IT because my dad works in it too, haha. But the great thing about IT is that you never stop learning. It’s constantly evolving, and that really appealed to me. I felt like I’d been stuck in a rut for a few years and wanted to find something that’s future-proof. That’s IT.
What happens after you apply?
I was invited to the Assessment Day, which is basically one big round of interviews. But it’s one where you get to know the company and the people who work there right away, so I felt very welcome. There were four of us, including a former neighbor of mine. First, you work on a case study together, and Alistar observes how you respond to it as an individual and how you collaborate with others. Through aptitude tests and personal interviews, Alistar then assesses where your strengths lie. This gives you a really good sense of each other—Alistar gets to know you, and you get to know Alistar. And then, all of a sudden, there’s a contract right in front of you! Of course, you don’t have to sign it right away, but it’s really great to be trusted like that. I also enjoyed the whole day—you get an immediate sense of how the company works and get to talk to some of your future colleagues. It’s a roller coaster of information, but it gives you a very complete picture of what Alistar stands for. I can really recommend it to everyone.
Of course, you decided to sign that contract… and then what?
Then there’s another great day: the Career Kick-off. All the new colleagues come together, and you get an overview of Alistar—how everything works and what the brand is all about. You also get some basic information on how to interact with customers and what to expect on a typical workday. You’ll also get to know your new coworkers right away, which is really fun. The five of us are still in close contact, partly to ‘one-up’ each other with how many certifications we’ve earned so far, haha. And once you’ve got those under your belt, you’re ready to get started.
What is it like to balance work and school?
I started at Alistar Cloud Services, and then it began IT Traineeship That’s really true. It was the start of a pretty intense period, because on top of your job, you also have to earn more certifications. That’s six more, since you’ll earn nine in total. And they’re really useful: for example, you learn everything about Microsoft, CompTIA, and Agile methodologies. I thought: it’s all or nothing, so I dove into it with full commitment. I managed to get it all done in two months—what helped was that Daniel and I had challenged each other to earn them as quickly as possible. Besides, it felt really good to have the certifications behind me, because then you can focus entirely on your work. And financially, it’s nice too, because with each certification, your salary goes up a bit. But it really depends on your preference—you can set your own pace here.
Did you pick up the job quickly?
Well, I was a Mac user, so at first I had to relearn how to use Windows. But that was a piece of cake. So far, I think Cloud Services is the best place for an IT professional to learn new things—the learning process is also very fast. You just learn so much: about Microsoft 365, about Azure. And you really do learn from your coworkers. We work together a lot and solve so many problems—and when you can help an entire organization, that’s really great.
Speaking of those coworkers: do you actually feel like a real Alistar yet?
Yes! It’s really special, but from the very first moment, Alistar felt like a familiar place, and it was as if I’d known the people there for years. We all come from different backgrounds, but we’re still pretty much the same: very friendly, with a great sense of humor, socially adept, and just easy to get along with. That really adds to the enjoyment of working here. Training days are coming up again soon, during which we’ll gain more knowledge and get to know each other even better. I’m really looking forward to that.
So you're doing really well—do you already have plans for your next step?
I want to Deep Dive I’d really love to do that—it’s the second phase of the IT Growth Program—and I hope I can get started on it soon. Ultimately, I want to move into project or management roles, so I think this will be very valuable for that. And beyond that, I want to work with Alistar over the next few years to explore what other options are out there. Combining the technical and people-oriented sides of IT is what I enjoy most, and that’s something I can do perfectly here at Alistar.