Interview – Jelle Wierenga (Project Manager)

From time to time, we will interview an ACS employee. This is to give you a better insight into who we are. In this issue we chat with one of our Project Manager, Jelle Wierenga. Jelle shares what he loves about his job, as well as where the challenges are.

Age: 33 (1992)

Job title: Project Manager

Number of years working for ACS: 8 (2017)

1. Can you briefly introduce yourself?

“My name is Jelle Wierenga, I am 33 years old and have been working for more than eight years at ACS.”

2. What do you do at ACS?

“At ACS I work as a Project Manager.This means I am operationally responsible for the projects I am involved in. I am responsible for creating the staffing schedule and the production planning. I also oversee the various departments to ensure everything runs smoothly and to address any questions that may arise, for example from the crew and transport planning teams or pre-production.”

3. What are the most main qualities needed for your role?

“As a Project Manager, you need to be skilled at maintaining an overview and able to handle stress well. You also need strong communication skills.”

4. What does an average working day look like for you?

“Between projects, I work in the office on preparations for upcoming projects. This mainly involves creating schedules and production plans. I also regularly conduct site visits to discuss upcoming projects with the client and the venue.”

5. What gives you the most satisfaction at work?

“That we, as a team, arrive in an empty hall, and within a few days build and set up a full conference or event, only to hand back an empty hall again at the end.”

6. What is the biggest challenge you face?

“On site, things almost always change — sometimes because a crew member suddenly falls ill, or because wrong materials have been delivered. In those cases, you need to quickly come up with an effective solution, with the main goal being that the client doesn’t experience any inconvenience.”

6. Would you like to share something personal about yourself?

“In my free time, I enjoy meeting up with friends or spending time out on the water.”