This article was written without the knowledge of Frank Houtappels. He is director/owner of We Provide and Analyst ICT and I am sure he is going to sit and change everything I write. Not to come off better, no, rather to tone it down (nuance he calls it). After all, Frank is one of the most humble people I know. And that trait doesn't really help promote your company. And as an IT company, that's needed more than ever; employer branding. After all, Web Developers and other techs have reached Hollywood star status. Senior Developers are the Al Pacinos and De Niro's of the job market. Which makes me wonder;
How on earth do we get those Al Pacino's to the Boschdijk?
So for that, I dove into We Provide for a while. To start at the core, the root of the company, I had a good conversation with the founder and owner himself.
Sorry Frank, I'm going to tell the real story
Frank Houtappels (39) is an exceptional entrepreneur. I know a lot of them, but Frank is quite different from the average. He is full of contradictions. Think: inconspicuous, introverted man with beard, originally an IT nerd with méga entrepreneurial drive and ambition. ALWAYS at work. In his head, in his car, everywhere. Thinks commercially, behaves modestly.
He manages to build super-strong websites for serious brands in a few years with about 20 developers (and good ones too). My Jewellery, Logistics Competitor, Vogel's, Paint Store, just to name a few names.
We Provide wins big awards and seems to be quite the shit in the country. Especially when it comes to E-commerce, Magento. We don't know much about that success in Brabant because he doesn't brag about it. Just like he still has no We Provide logo on the new (very fat) building, which is located on the Boschdijk and where I don't know how many cars drive by daily. And then he asks if I can arrange more brand awareness. Duss.
Sounds like a success story. So what is the problem?
I have been walking around ‘We Provide land’ for a few months now and conclude the following:
1. We Provide comes óto the customers. ‘Sorry André (RieuYou have to wait until we have time. And yes, these are projects of size.
2. Employees are satisfied and truly proud of ‘their’ company. Logical too. Atmosphere is top notch and in terms of conditions they are on their butts.
3. Frank can sell poop because he doesn't talk poop. His geek side overrides his sales side so he advises clients what is ‘sensible. So clients love him and the developers who ’make it‘.
Well, glory hallelujah. So what's missing?
After a thorough analysis, the problem turns out to be quite simple. Namely: No one knows that We Provide exists. And nobody knows what We Provide does. It is never told. And if ordinary people don't know that you build super cool websites, the Al Pacinos among the programmers certainly don't know. How could they ever apply for a job at We Provide?
Okay. Point taken. So what's next?
Let's start with the story. ‘Who we are. What we do.’ And perhaps most interestingly; ‘how we do it’. Because the pros of We Provide and Analyst ICT have something in common. They attach great value to expertise (figure it out!). And to cooperation, or better said, co-creation. With each other and with customers. And because they are also extremely sociable, people apparently enjoy working with (and at) We Provide and Analyst ICT.
So that's the secret.
Simply telling. And that's what we're going to do in the near future. Storytelling, blogging, sharing cases. On social, on the website. And no Frank, you really don't need to brag. Just tell us what you do. Because for you, e-commerce is a given and complex websites a given. But it is not. You are a group of very smart guys who build websites that make companies rich. And you make companies happy, because turnover and quality are one thing, but a great company you can build on is priceless. And that Frank, is exactly why the Al Pacino's want to work at We Provide and Analyst ICT.
I rest my case.
Marion van Loon LinkedIn
Employer Branding Specialist
