My name is Frenk de Jong and I joined Schouten Zekerheid over 25 years ago. I knew Schouten Zekerheid from my then position at a large insurance company. I wanted to change employers because I wanted to work more directly with clients and broaden my knowledge. At an insurer you often focus on one specific subject, with a broker you often need broader knowledge. At the time, I spoke with a number of brokers. What I liked about Schouten Zekerheid was the Rotterdam mentality, the fact that the company was fairly large but still easy to oversee, and especially the clear vision they had at that time. Furthermore, it was easily accessible - also important.

It was not in itself a conscious choice to work in this industry. After high school and military service, I was looking for a profession/employer where I could learn a trade on the job. I was able to do a traineeship with an insurance company and I liked it. A lot of studying (actually still is) but enormously fascinating. It soon became clear that there are many directions within our profession. I started in the claims department, after which I had many different roles: underwriter, mobility and consumer specialist, SME absenteeism and claims, marketing, corporate claims team leader, IT manager, data product owner and back office product owner. That is also the beauty of working at Schouten Zekerheid, there are so many opportunities to broaden your knowledge and make a career.

I know Schouten Zekerheid as a very loyal employer who is there for you even in difficult times. A lot is expected of you: hard work, gaining a lot of knowledge, wanting the best, but you certainly get a lot in return. It is a family business and we take care of each other that way, I feel. But you have to fit into the family and it doesn't all come naturally, you have to do something for it. Loyalty is also expected from employees.

My ambition is above all to enjoy my work every day, to make everything a little better every day. Working as a team to solve problems and create beautiful things. Learning new things is also part of it. Schouten Zekerheid is fun to work for because it is a real family business, it is successful, has great clients, is very dynamic, takes on challenges and takes good care of its employees.