In conversation with Erikjan

With 12.5 years of experience at A.Hak, Erikjan Jeuring has developed from Team Lead ICT Operations to Manager ICT/IM, where he is responsible for a complete in-house IT department. His vision? ICT should be like water from the tap – always available, easily accessible and efficiently organized.

How do you go from outsourcing to a strong internal IT department?
When I started at A.Hak, IT was largely outsourced. Six years ago, we made a strategic decision: all focus goes to insourcing. A.Hak has now built its own IT team, consisting of a service desk, network and workplace management, and a department for applications and information management. The focus is on process optimization and digital innovation, where IT is not only supportive, but proactively thinks along with the business. Learning IT is easier than acquiring process knowledge. Our strength lies in understanding business processes and translating them into smart IT solutions.

Our mission is to make IT simple, so everyone can work with it effortlessly.”

What is future-proof working?
That you use IT as an invisible force. A.Hak has been working completely in the cloud since 2018, very innovative, “old-fashioned” work like maintaining servers has changed to thinking along with the Business, what is good and works for A.Hak. Every employee should notice IT changes as little as possible. Behind the scenes, we work hard to make everything run smoothly. To achieve this, the IT team holds weekly stand-ups, where wishes and optimizations are discussed. Through newsletters, webinars and strategic partners, A.Hak ICT/IM continues to think ahead and implement innovative solutions.

What is the key to success?
Within the IT department, innovation is stimulated through continuous knowledge sharing and collaboration with colleagues. Major themes such as cybercrime and stricter ISO certifications require constant training and audits. Audits are not a burden, but an opportunity. They give us confirmation that we are on the right track and help us discover where we can still improve . Employees can access files and applications from anywhere. However, I find it important to be as visible as possible in the organization. After 12.5 years of service, most Hakkers know me by now.

Digital innovation then, what smart systems are coming to A.Hak?
Monthly, the IT department receives more than 400 reports or requests, plus 200 standard changes (permissions, software, hardware) which are now almost all executed automatically 24/7. Artificial intelligence plays an increasingly important role within A.Hak. From text optimization and automated (security) control to a smart chatbot that handles standard questions and predicts failures. There is an AI policy with clear guidelines, so employees know how they can use AI responsibly. AI is exciting and new for organizations, but we want to encourage colleagues to use it. Our smart AI chatbot will soon help to quickly find answers to frequently asked questions.

How do you ensure that IT remains accessible?
A.Hak wants to make IT as accessible as possible for all employees, from office staff to ground workers at project locations. Everyone should be able to enter their hours quickly and easily, whether daily or weekly. IT should be supportive, not complicated. An automated application portal and interactive task counter ensure that employees have direct insight into their workload. Everyone can see at a glance which actions need to be completed. When the task counter is at 0, you can go home with peace of mind.

For Erikjan Jeuring, digital maturity revolves around one simple but powerful principle: IT should work for everyone. Within A.Hak, that means reliable systems in the office and intuitive tools for colleagues in the field. With over 1,200 workplaces – from 800 desks to 400 mobile workplaces at construction sites – his team continues to build a digital environment that is solid, flexible and easy to use.