Steven Klockaerts, Eurofiber Group CIO: ‘Our entire IT team felt very proud to see Sima on stage during Dreamforce. And even colleagues within the IT team who didn’t know Sima, or just got to know her briefly, felt that. She really knows how to take the stage, I really enjoyed seeing that’, Steven adds [with a big smile]. ‘I never doubted that an individual like Sima would bring so much to Eurofiber. And not just in terms of her work, but also the positivity and the energy she brought to the team. I really believe we perform better as a team because of that.’
Sima, who’s now currently working as a Salesforce consultant at Capgemini, started as a Salesforce developer at Eurofiber in December 2019. She was one of the candidates Eurofiber hired through Refugeeforce, a charity that has the mission to create more opportunities and access for refugees.
Steven: ‘The opportunity of taking part in the Refugeeforce program, being able to coach someone as a team and seeing them thrive, gives back so much positive vibes, team spirit, energy and adds to our happiness at work. It makes you step out of your daily routine and become more humble as a human being.’
Initially, the plan was to hire one candidate, but Steven’s team asked if him it was possible to hire one more. Steven: ‘My team always interviews candidates before a manager interviews them, because the team has to work with them. When I asked who wanted to interview candidates from Refugeeforce, a lot of people from our team stepped up. Hearing the stories and journeys of the candidates, really made an impact on the team, which is why it was extremely difficult for us to only hire one – and eventually two.’ Yet at the same time, as Steven explains, people who seek refuge in another country, feel they should be hired for the value and expertise they could bring to a company in the future and not because of the situation they’re in at that moment.’
Salesforce interviewed Sima about her journey, along with Gaspar Rodriguez, founder Refugeeforce and Eurofiber's Steven Klockaerts, as Refugeeforce, Salesforce and Eurofiber played a significant role in the start of her career in The Netherlands. This interview was recorded and broadcasted live during the Dreamforce conference: