Our Giving Back Day: Spring 2017
As recruiters, we already know that every successful company is a unique blend of cultures and competencies. So, this spring we decided – for our company Giving Back project – to connect with the municipality of Amsterdam to help refugees seeking work.
At Seuss, we often joke that our office is like the Model United Nations: we represent a bunch of nationalities and work within an international industry. Though we come together for our love of Friday afternoon drinks in the sun, we also seek to have a meaningful impact. As a team, we feel compelled to help others – not only in our everyday commitment to our clients and the professionals we work with but also outside our office giving back in whatever ways we can.
This is why Seuss organizes ‘Giving Back’ projects twice a year. We pick a group that we think could benefit from our knowledge and offer our services, pro bono, to them.
Why did we get involved?
We, along with many of you, have heard and read about the refugee crisis. Our team felt urged to help if we could.
In Amsterdam, where we are based, the municipality helps these new Dutch citizens in innovative ways. We decided to lend a hand using our talents to give back, which turned out to be the organization – and delivery – of 4 workshops designed to help people integrate into the Dutch job market.
We stuck with what we know best
Knowing that we’d be working with people from different backgrounds, we created workshops to support people in different ways. We worked with them to create/update CVs, discussed interviewing, set up LinkedIn accounts, and talked about how the Dutch job market is different.
Not surprisingly, the afternoon of workshops with a diverse group of people was an amazing and energizing experience. Our team was continually impressed with the optimism and gratefulness of the refugees, shown simply because we took the time to sit down and help them.
To see cultural and job-searching differences from around the world was an all-around learning experience. For some, it was the first time they were “interviewed,” even if just in a practice setting! With every workshop, we saw the groups become more at ease and comfortable discussing what they uniquely offer to Dutch employers.
A unique opportunity
Our goal going in was to provide workshops that would result in people finding jobs. We also wanted to give our newest Dutch countrymen. the opportunity to learn something new. This meant something different for everyone, from giving CV tips to finding the right places to look at the jobs available online.
It was heart-warming for us to see how the workshops gave confidence – while giving us more energy and drive to do something good and share our expertise. Helping others helped us grow as a team. Having Friday drinks is fun, but working with a group of people that can benefit so much from what you have to offer is way cooler. Cheers to that!
We would like to say a special thank you to the Gemeente Amsterdam (especially Sandra Malaver and Thomas de Jager!) for their guidance and internally to our very own, Frank Bolhuis for coordinating.
Have you got a project that the Seuss Recruitment team could help with? Or know an organization that could use our help? Contact us by calling +31 020 290 00 16 or send us an email.
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