Who are you? What is your job and how long have you been working at NSI?
Benoît Pitsaer, I've joined NSI just over 3 months ago as an IT Project Leader.
What exactly does an IT Project Leader do?
To explain the sometimes misunderstood term of project leader, I often compare it the job of site manager on a building site. Indeed, their role is to coordinate the workforce, make sure that the work stays on schedule and within budget, while ensuring that the quality meets the technical specification. They also have to manage risks all across the site.
My role is incredibly similar with the exception of the professions that I coordinate: architects, technical analysts, or even developers. This coordination also extends to customers and suppliers.
While the site manager builds and/or renovated buildings, the IT project leader implements and/or modernises computer solutions. The project might involve either the design and the implementation of a new tool or changes to or an update of an existing part of the infrastructure or one of its components.
Describe your daily work at NSI in 3 words
Informal/family style contact, a lot of fun and unbeatable proximity.
How would you describe the working atmosphere at NSI?
What I appreciate the most: the close, engaged atmosphere, in the company and in our Business Unit. On a daily basis, we really feel the local origins of NSI. It is actually easy to make contact with someone and you are soon on first name terms. At NSI, we do away with formalities, you can make jokes and/or set a challenge without worrying and, with a little perseverance, your idea will take shape quickly. I have the feeling that everyone’s door is open.
Whether this is a colleague, a department manager, the Director General or even the CEO, you can speak to everyone (tried and tested!).
What was your first impression when you started at NSI?
Efficiency and proximity. I took an on-line course for the first three days. Then my colleague from Human Resources suggested that I should come into the office. Surprise - during my final job interview, she had told me that she had been known to pick up the new recruits from the station. She wasn’t joking!
The first week I was sent to work on a customer’s premises, and I was allocated a supervisor to shadow, to give me the best experience, and she looked after me for a few months. Looking back now, I realise that NSI really did a great job matching our personalities. I am very grateful for that.
Why did you choose to work for NSI?
Having already worked for a VSB, I wanted to stay in touch with IT although this time in a much larger structure. Having looked for a growing medium-sized company (> 500 FTE) which offered the chance to move up, NSI seemed to be the ideal candidate on paper. In practice, it was the corporate culture that got me on board.
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is very important for me. It is also a current issue that NSI is constantly working on. I hope to be able to get involved in it beyond my job.
Among NSI’s values, which inspires you the most or which do you identify with, and why?
Commitment and Responsibility
I feel the closest to these values. On the one hand, I feel that NSI regularly commits to its workers and its customers. On the other hand, NSI also commits to CSR in different ways, even if it is sometimes difficult to make that visible from the outside.
Apart from IT, do you have any other passions?
Of course! I really love cycling. Every year, I take a solo long-distance trip, over 1,000 km, with my bivouac and my gas stove. That helps me switch off, widens my horizons and I get to meet people that I wouldn’t normally come across in my daily life.
Sustainable development is also a topic I am interested in. In fact, in parallel to my studies, I was on the "Board" of Oikos International, a student network that intends to transform teaching on management and economics for sustainable development. I took several international training courses and I am strongly committed to it.
