Reinier van Rooij
Taking the plunge to move to Singapore turned out really well
Reinier joined ING as an intern while doing his degree in System & Network Engineering. He was able to stay on at the company afterwards, albeit in a different department: Tech Infra. Then just six months later, he was asked to move to Singapore to train up the team members there.
“I was surprised to be asked to move to Singapore because I was still only just starting out. But after a brief moment of hesitation, I realised that I couldn’t allow this opportunity to pass me by. And it wasn’t the first opportunity ING had presented me with; I’d already done an internship in a unique department, the Core Banking University. For me, that was like a playground where we could work on developing all kinds of innovative technologies. I not only learned a lot there, but also had a lot of fun.”
Good addition to the team
“I couldn’t stay at the Core Banking University when my internship ended, but there was an opening in Tech Infra. I enjoyed my interview with my current Chapter Lead, and he saw me as a good addition to the team because I can also code – although I’m self-taught, because it wasn’t part of my degree.”
“Today, I work as a DevOps Engineer in the DDoS Squad. We protect the bank against DDoS attacks. And since April this year, that includes DDI too: managing DNS, DHCP and IP addresses. We automate regularly recurring tasks and create tooling to make the work easier, faster and more accurate.”
Terrific experience
“Some of our team members are based in Singapore, and just six months after I started I was asked to move there to train those colleagues up. I was initially taken aback by the suggestion, since I didn’t consider myself ready to do that yet. But I decided to take the plunge anyway and the rewards were countless: new technical knowledge, getting to know a different culture and way of working, a ton of new contacts, friendships... I was there for six months and it was a terrific experience that I wouldn’t have missed for the world!”
Right at home
“As a student, I never imagined that I’d enjoy working at a major bank. I always thought banking was a formal, slow-moving and not particularly challenging environment. But the opposite is true. There’s a really nice atmosphere here – we work hard but also have a lot of fun together, no topic is taboo and there’s a focus on learning and exploring. Besides that, you’re encouraged to share your ideas, and you’re given the freedom to put them into practice if you can back them up. I feel right at home here and can’t think of anywhere I’d rather be at the moment.”
About Reinier
Reinier did a degree in System & Network Engineering at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, including a minor in VR. He enjoys watching anime series and movies, playing video games and spending time with his girlfriend, whom he met in Singapore. She recently arrived in the Netherlands and they’ve been doing all kinds of tourist activities together (“I visit places I wouldn’t normally go!”). Reinier lives in Amsterdam.