What the Digital Marketing traineeship and the Digital Innovator program have meant for alumnus Toon.

How did you come across TTI?

After my studies, I started as a marketer in July 2018 at the training agency Jobtraining. That was a wonderful first job with many opportunities to develop myself. However, I lacked experience in working with data and experiments. I had also never heard of the 'growth mindset.' While at TTI, I discovered how valuable this mindset is for me.

Through a friend, I became acquainted with the philosophies of Sean Ellis (Growth Hacking) and Eric Ries (Lean Startup). I was quickly convinced that this was the way to do marketing and grow organizations. However, growth hacking was still a relatively new field at that time. Even my education did not cover it. When I asked around in my network, I quickly ended up at The Talent Institute as the place to gain experience in this. So, I started the Digital Marketing traineeship at The Talent Institute in 2019, along with 20 other enthusiasts.

What has the Digital Marketing traineeship meant for your career?

Above all, the growth mindset I mentioned earlier has meant a lot for my development. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do when I had just graduated from university. That sometimes made me insecure, especially given my lack of experience and the fact that there are many things you don't yet master. During the traineeship, I learned that making mistakes and failing is okay. Only by trying things out can you really learn. However, it would help if you have an environment that encourages it and gives you the confidence to experiment with things you barely or don't yet master. Like setting up a LinkedIn campaign to generate leads or building a landing page, for example.

The Talent Institute and VIM Group, where I ended up as a trainee, were such environments for me. Tom and Simone, who facilitated my cohort then, played an important role, as did Arjan & Loes from VIM Group. They gave me the space to learn, experiment, and make mistakes. They provided me with the right methodologies, tools, and concepts, but always with a focus on figuring it out on myself. That gave me the confidence that if I can't do something today, I'll be able to do it tomorrow if I put in the effort. As a result, I began to really enjoy learning new things, and it has become an intrinsic motivation for me. I wish this for everyone at the beginning of their career.

What did you do after the Digital Marketing traineeship?

After the Digital Marketing traineeship, I worked as a growth hacker at the growth hacking agency Sprints & Sneakers. That was also a great time. Like at TTI, I was given the confidence to learn the trade there. I worked for various clients and gained a lot of experience with, among other things, experiment design, SEO, SEA, social advertising, marketing automation, email marketing, web development, copywriting, and project management. I was able to learn a lot from other growth hackers, and I also had a lot of fun with great colleagues. After 1.5 years at Sprints & Sneakers, however, I was drawn to the Digital Innovator program of The Talent Institute. I wanted to gain more experience with innovation projects and was also curious whether working for and with corporates would suit me. Therefore, I returned as a Digital Innovator in July 2021.

Can you name a few things you learned during the Digital Innovator program?

I mainly developed stakeholder management and communication skills. Within large and complex organizations, these are essential competencies. If you want innovation projects to run smoothly and create support for your ideas, you must pay as much attention to keeping others involved as to the experiments themselves.

At the beginning of the program, I mainly used one style, direct and straightforward; this became more subtle over the two years. I learned to better switch between communication and stakeholder management styles to achieve my goal.

In addition, I learned how to define a project well and set the right frameworks. This increases the chances of success because you create realistic expectations, clarify what you will do and deliver, and indicate which resources are needed to do your job well.

What was your highlight at The Talent Institute?

During the Digital Innovator program, I was guided by several coaches and trainers, including Niek van Halteren. I spent a long weekend with him and nine colleagues on a 'leadership trail' in the mountains above Madrid. This awe-inspiring and valuable experience taught me a lot about who I am, what has shaped and motivated me, and what I need to grow personally and professionally.

My other highlight is undoubtedly the friendships that arose during my period at TTI. The open and warm culture of the company has undoubtedly contributed to this.

What are your plans for the future?

After a long search, I ended up at Spinoza, a beautiful place with passionate colleagues where my interests, talents, and motivations unite beautifully. As a growth marketer, I am responsible for attracting more participants for our psilocybin retreat. In addition, I focus on launching and growing our webshop, with which we want to serve all of Europe. My ambition is to put this company on the international map as a marketer, bring people closer to nature and themselves through psychedelics, and tackle the stigma surrounding psychedelics.