The week of Director Anita van Maanen
Week 4 – 2018. Inside ‘the week of’ Project managers, or other team members from goMICE, share their working week in a new blog. This week, you can follow and read along with the week of goMICE Director Anita van Maanen!
The weekend is over again, a great week is coming up. My schedule is full of variety this week and that is just what I like so much. Every day is different with us!
Monday
As the owner of both UNIGLOBE Alliance Travel and goMICE, my diary is often packed with appointments. This week I have a lot of meetings out of the office. But first, today. Alongside a busy business life, I also have two sons aged 14 and 16. Both of them are tackling their exam week this week, and early this morning my husband and I just dotted the so-called i's and crossed the t's with them before heading to our office in Rotterdam.
When I have to be at the office in Rotterdam (we also have an office in Goes and in Arnhem) then I almost always go by bike. I love it. I used to always go by car (especially if I also had external appointments that day) or by tube, but since March 2017 I've replaced the tube with an e-bike. What a recommendation that is! So on average 2 to 3 times a week I clock up a few kilometres. In less than a year the odometer is already at 2,700 kilometres, because now I'm quicker to grab the bike for other things too! Wonderful to let your thoughts wander on the bike and the crazy thing is, you're thinking again, creating new ideas, undisturbed by your phone. And on the way back clearing your head nicely after a long working day. Moreover, it's better for the environment and that's an added bonus, too.
Anyway, today, Monday, I am in the office and in the afternoon an appointment is scheduled in Katwijk. Together with all those involved from the venue, our technical supplier and caterer, we will go through a large event for more than 400 people there. We will bring all the parties involved together at the table and go through all the details. We don't want to leave anything to chance, so such a meeting easily takes 2 hours. What we are going to do is bring the outside in, including real grass.
Tuesday
On Tuesday, thankfully I can enjoy cycling to the office again. Today there are no meetings scheduled outside the office, except that I'll be walking down to the basement of Hotel New York shortly to discuss the menu for our annual team kick-off. This will take place this coming Friday, so more about that later in this blog.
It is still dark when I get on my bike, at 09:00 I have a meeting with an applicant. Once again we are looking for a new project manager for goMICE, and that while Moniek has just started and Linda has yet to start. At this moment, 100 events are already planned for this year and the year has only just begun. Every day new requests come in, from regular, but also from new clients. I am so proud of the team, which gets to work every day with such dedication and pleasure!
After the appointment I will have a brief chat with the Operations Manager of goMICE and then I will do a round of our office and catch up with the Business Travel consultants. It's busy there too and we have taken on a large number of new clients again. Despite the busyness, everyone is happy and looking forward to the upcoming kick-off. On that evening we bring our three offices together and usually all 40 of our colleagues are present. I too always look forward to seeing them all together again.
Today I am catching up on all the backlog of work, because when I have been out of the office for a day, like yesterday, I have to work pretty hard both in the evening and the next day to get everything up to date again.
Today, two project managers from goMICE are abroad to prepare or accompany many trips once again. I just received some WhatsApp messages saying that everything is going well. Furthermore, I am working with the project managers on a number of other large events and trips. We brainstorm, are creative, and organised. Every time, it is fantastic to surprise clients with super fun ideas!
That wraps up another lovely Tuesday, I cycle home, wondering to what extent tomorrow's tests have already been crammed into the heads of both my sons, and I test them where necessary.
Wednesday
I am leaving home earlier than usual today, I'm picking up our Operations Manager, Elsbeth Groenevelt, from Kralingen station and together we are driving on to, this time, Harderwijk.
We have an appointment together with a new client over there. During the hour-long drive, we catch up on business, but naturally also talk about our families for a bit. Elsbeth and I have known each other for over 11 years now; she started with us 12 years ago at our business travel department UNIGLOBE Alliance Travel, making her one of the very first Business Travel Consultants. After a few years, she made the switch to goMICE, and by now we have a team of over 40 people and she runs goMICE every day with still the exact same passion.
Arriving in Harderwijk, we were caught up to speed and also very curious about what was to come. Because every client visit is different. We received a warm welcome. Quite soon we noticed that we hit it off well with each other. Our passion and pleasure in talking about the endless possibilities that goMICE has to offer rubbed off, and at the end our contacts indicated that we could go ahead and make a proposal for a incentive travel of 180 people. Choosing a destination was left up to us, so on the way back Elsbeth and I had plenty to discuss. We would propose three destinations that would surprise them, because surprising people is what we love to do. Naturally, I will keep you updated on this group when we are a bit further along in the process.
Thursday
Today is different again. I'm working from home for a few hours, because I have to be at Schiphol by 11:00. The annual KLM New Year's lunch is taking place today and that's a great opportunity to catch up with our contacts at KLM. After all, KLM is one of our most important business partners.
Furthermore, during lunch there is the opportunity to talk to colleagues from other offices. This year the lunch is taking place in the lovely new Hilton. I am right on time and the coffee is ready. Soon the lounge fills up and I see many familiar, but also unfamiliar faces. Lunch is served, and we are seated at lovely round tables according to a seating plan. Next to me, among others, is a key account manager from KLM and I immediately strike up an interesting conversation with him. The management also share a few words about developments in the market, but they keep it brief, as the main goal is to talk with one another.
Before I knew it, it was 2 pm and time to say goodbye. Around 3.30 pm I will be back in the Rotterdam area and will do a few more hours of work.
Friday
No office day today either. Once again we have a meeting with a new client. This client also preferred an introductory meeting first, and we are more than happy to pay a visit. They too found us via the goMICE website. After reading our blogs and watching the videos, they had been left feeling impressed. It is great to hear that our website activation is considered enjoyable and interesting!
This time we are driving to North Holland and that is another journey of about an hour. Once again, I am picking up Elsbeth today. Today too, we are curious about this new client and cannot wait to get them excited about goMICE again. Once more we are warmly received. The plan is to go on an incentive trip in May for the entire team of about 80 people. The destination is already known, only the employees do not yet know that it is going ahead. So we must not speak too loudly, after all, walls have ears. Here too we have a good connection and are allowed to work out the destination for them. Another great challenge for the team. In the car we discuss which project managers will handle the new assignments of this week. We look mainly at the workload they already have, but also who knows the destinations we want to propose best.
Around 13:00 we are at the office and it is extremely busy. All the desks are occupied, everyone is working flat out, at the meeting table are two people from our sales department together with a major business travel client and on top of that there's a cameraman and an interviewer walking around the office.
All afternoon, employees are asked questions about their work and footage is being filmed, with the aim of giving our blog followers a behind-the-scenes look.
Tonight the 2018 kick-off is scheduled and all employees from our other 2 offices are coming to Rotterdam. Filming will also take place during the kick-off. The kick-off will take place on the 31ste floor of our office. There we will welcome everyone with a drink, after which Rob and I will look back at 2017, but above all look forward.
To conclude, we are all having a lovely meal together in the basement of Hotel New York. We are a great team; I am moving from table to table to at least speak to everyone for a moment.
It makes me proud when I look around. Everyone is having a good time and feeling comfortable in their own skin. We are getting lovely feedback from everyone.
I am ending the week with that proud feeling. This weekend is all about my family and perhaps a bit of work. On Monday I will be back at it with full energy.