Tomas Baars has been part of Alistar for over four years, where he is currently an Experienced Consultant in the Next phase of the IT Growth Program. He has developed into an experienced Mendix DevOps Engineer and optimizes applications for the IT consulting firm’s clients, both independently and as part of a team. Tomas takes us on a journey through his professional growth.
Tomas began his career with a creative background: media design, game design, and illustration. While studying at both media college and art school, he discovered his passion for coding. “We had quite a few programming classes, and I always enjoyed them because you see immediate results,” Tomas says, taking us back to the beginning.
After art school, he worked briefly as an entrepreneur and even developed an educational game for a museum. “Still, I found that it offered little stability or future prospects,” Tomas says. “A lot of the work is freelance, and you really have to be among the best to make a good living that way.”
“I’d always told myself: if things don’t work out, I can always go into IT. Low-code appealed to me, and Alistar responded quickly, made me feel like they cared, and offered exactly the direction in which I wanted to grow. That made the switch a logical choice,” continues Tomas, who decided to start at the IT Traineeship Program of the IT consulting firm.
Various assignments involving responsibility
Tomas’s first assignment through Alistar was at the NOS, during a turbulent period marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Winter Olympics in China, and the start of the war in Ukraine. ’That was a remarkable start right off the bat. The NOS was an exceptional place to work, because despite the pandemic, the news had to keep going.“
“I worked at the service desk, helping people over the phone, and sometimes I literally had to run into the studio when something went wrong. Later, I led a project to replace desktops with laptops, even in the executive department. Although the assignment only lasted three months, it was intense but incredibly educational.”
Tomas then worked for a year and a half at Rabobank in the Identity & Access Management department, where he performed operational tasks and assisted colleagues with access rights and requests. This was followed by a position as a functional application administrator at BAM. “I was given more and more responsibility there, including full applications. It was nice to have autonomy and to organize my own day.”
“After a few months, I was put in charge of a set of applications. I found that exciting, but also really enjoyable: I liaised directly with stakeholders and felt taken seriously because my input was sought, for example, when improving an online environment. A senior colleague supported me when needed, which gave me both confidence and the freedom to grow.”
After a few months, I was in charge of a set of applications. I found that exciting, but also really fun.
Adding Value with Mendix
After leaving BAM, Tomas returned to Rabobank as a Mendix DevOps Engineer. There, he currently works on several applications based on Mendix, a low-code platform that allows applications to be built and customized quickly, either independently or in collaboration with a team.
“At Rabobank, they work with what are called ”factory lines“—small subteams that focus on a group of applications,” Tomas explains. “Within the team, I work in two subteams, which for me means close collaboration and attending a lot of Scrum meetings.”
“I manage one of the Mendix applications entirely on my own, which gives me a lot of autonomy.
”The other is a large-scale global application that is still under development and will eventually be used worldwide. This makes the project both challenging and interesting. Moreover, the combination of collaboration and independence really energizes me."
“I’ve wanted to work with low-code ever since I started at Alistar,” says Tomas. “I’d already done some research on my own, and Mendix stood out as a powerful platform with a lot of possibilities. So even before the Deep Dive began, I’d already been exploring the platform and building small things using my work account.”
Creative Thinking and Proactivity
His decision to join the IT Growth program has proven to be the right one, says Tomas: “It clicked right away. The combination of creative thinking, logic, and quick results suits me. So when the Deep Dive began, it made sense to choose the application track and Mendix.”
In Mendix and low-code development, you have to think a lot in terms of both logic and visuals, and that aligns well with my background in animation and illustration.
His creative background continues to help him find solutions to complex client challenges. “I think differently now, come up with unexpected solutions, and work in a visual and structured way. Creativity allows you to look at problems from a different angle and come up with solutions that aren’t always conventional.”
“Working with Mendix and low-code requires a lot of logical and visual thinking, which aligns well with my background in animation and illustration. My previous experience as an entrepreneur also helps me in my work: taking responsibility, creating my own structure, and being proactive.”
Continue to Grow and Develop
Over the past four years, Tomas has learned a great deal and grown significantly. “During my professional development program at Alistar, peer review sessions and soft-skills training were particularly valuable to me. And the training sessions led by Guido (Geenen), a management and team coach—especially those focused on presenting—really helped me a lot. Those soft skills come in handy every day now and also help me collaborate more effectively with clients and stakeholders.”
Tomas’s sights are set on further development and growth in the future as well: “I’d like to advance to a more leadership-oriented role, such as Mendix Lead,” he says. “To do that, you need to have led multiple projects and earned higher certifications, among other things. That takes time, but that’s exactly the path I want to follow.”
He also wants to actively contribute to the community and knowledge sharing within Alistar, which benefits both clients and colleagues. “I enjoy staying involved in the community, such as the Mendix meetups and the annual Capture the Flag hackathon, which I’ve participated in with colleagues before. By sharing knowledge and developing new skills, I can also deliver valuable solutions to our clients more quickly.”