Iris Boom is a project manager at Larive International who has been with us for the past 18 months, in her own words she tells a bit more about what it is like to work at Larive International

After graduating from my Master’s degree in Management, Economics and Consumer Studies at Wageningen University I started my job hunt. Like many other recent graduates, I did not have a complete picture of the perfect job to kick-start my career. Fortunately, I came across an interesting vacancy at Larive International. Applying at Larive has been a direct hit, or bull’s eye so to say.

Over the past year and a half, I learned how to put my academic knowledge into practice and gained more insights into my strengths and competences. The trust and support of the international Larive team enabled me to take responsibility for numerous tasks from day one onwards.

Currently, we have two open positions for Junior Project Managers. And the vacancy provides insights into the task, responsibilities and the required skills and competences. But in this article I would like to share some of my experiences as Jr. project manager at Larive International to enthuse you about the day-to-day activities.

There is never a dull moment in the life of a Jr. project manager at Larive International. Right from the start, I was surrounded by all kinds of cool opportunities and activities. Within my first weeks I received research and coordination responsibilities in two multi-annual public-private projects; ShrimpTechVietnam, focused on shrimp sector development in Vietnam; and FoodTechIndonesia, focused on poultry sector development in Indonesia. Next to that, I applied for funding from an international organisation to execute aquaculture projects in Kenya and Tanzania, for which I received approval within my first two months of employment.

While being supported by your colleagues, you will gradually receive more and more responsibilities. When you feel you are ready to host a meeting, explore a project opportunity, run data analysis or strategically advise a client, you can!

Within my first year, I had initiated an animal feed cluster initiative including 7 Dutch and Kenyan partners, organised the participation of 11 Dutch companies at a poultry expo in Indonesia, visited shrimp farms in Vietnam, hosted meetings with governmental stakeholders, met the Minister of Agriculture in Indonesia, discussed cooperation opportunities with multiple NGO’s in Kenya, organized and hosted multiple (online) events, wrote articles for publication, and much more!

To top it all off, I have been engaged in the formalisation of a partnership between Larive International and business consulting firm LightCastle Partners in Bangladesh. We noticed our clients becoming more interested in doing business in Bangladesh, and we reacted to this finding by partnering with a Bangladeshi company, enabling us to provide the best services in this country as well.

The international work setting adds another dimension to the day-to-day activities; some days I communicate more with my colleagues in India than with my colleagues right here in the Netherlands.

Overall, being a Junior Project Manager at Larive International is challenging, fun, educational, and rewarding. I recently got promoted to Project Manager, and I hope we will find new Jr. Project Managers who will enjoy the experience as much as I did. You can find our vacancy via the following link: www.larive.com/vacancy-junior-project-manager

Do you want to learn more about my experiences or do you want to know more about the vacancy before applying? Please feel free to contact me: [email protected] +31 6 211 965 84