The story of Roos van Delzen: Head acquisition and Treasurer of the Amsterdamse Carrière Dagen

The Amsterdamse Carrière Dagen (ACD) is one of the biggest career events in Amsterdam. Last year, around 70 companies participated and 2000 students visited the event. Do you want to further develop yourself and organize the ACD of 2018? Then read further, because Roos van Delzen will tell you all about her experiences as a member of the ACD committee of 2017.  

Why did you apply for the ACD committee in the first place?

I wanted to take the next step in my committee work, so that is why I decided to apply for the committee of 2017. I organized smaller events before, but I really thought (and still think) that the ACD was a new challenge, which I wanted to take. It is a great opportunity to develop yourself in a fun way, where you will gain persuasive and organizational skills, learn how to deal with deadlines and how to act in a professional business environment.

Besides that it looks good on your resume, you’ll also get a nice tailor-made suit (how cool is that?).

What kind of functions can you fulfil within the ACD?

You will work in a diverse, but fun team of eight students from the UvA and the VU.

The eight functions available are:

• Chairman
• Head Acquisition and treasurer
• Acquisition (4x)
• Offline marketing
• Online marketing

Which function do you have and do you enjoy it?

I am the head of the acquisition team and the treasurer of the committee. I am responsible for the coordination and coaching of the acquisition team, and to create and retain the budget of the ACD. This function takes a lot of time, because you are responsible for different aspects of the committee. This means that this function is a real challenge! I really like the tasks so far, and I already learned a lot. (Wondering what kind of tasks I am responsible of? Take a look at question 5!)

What are the daily tasks of the ACD committee?

Together with your committee you will organize the biggest career event in Amsterdam. What kind of tasks your dealing with on a daily basis, depends on your function. For example, the acquisition team is mainly responsible for acquiring the participating companies. Offline and online marketing are responsible for the promotion materials, website etc. The Chairman is responsible for the guidance of the committee as a whole. And together, we put all the pieces together to make it a successful event!

What are your specific tasks, related to your function?

I am responsible for the financial administration of the event, which also includes sending invoices to companies, making contractual agreements, deciding how much we can spend on promotion materials etc. Besides this, I am the contact person for the location of the event, in our case WTC. As Head Acquisition I have to prepare the acquisition meetings and guide the acquisition team. I also did some acquisition myself, to stimulate and help our acquisition team with acquiring companies. It is important to keep in contact with everybody within the committee: the acquisition team for the acquisition updates, the chairman about the overall progress and the marketing team about how much promotion materials they would like to have. It is my job to decide whether there is enough money available.

What was the best moment you have had with your committee so far?

It was great when we finished our acquisition period and reached our target! Our acquisition team has worked really hard to achieve this, so I am very proud of them!

Besides this, I really liked the moment we got our tailor made suits. Together with the committee, we determined the color, materials and model of the suit. For me this was a whole new experience!

What is the craziest thing you experienced while approaching companies?

Actually, I did not experience something really strange. Once, while I was on the phone with a company, the man told me that he was babysitting his daughter. He said that “if he had to hang up, at least I knew what was going on”, while his daughter was singing on the background. Of course, the recruiters are also just humans ;).

How much time do you spend on the ACD?

How much time you spend doing committee work depends on your role within the committee. I think I am busy with my ACD tasks around 15-20 hours per week. Of course this depends on the period and your function.

What have you learned so far?

Until now, I have already developed myself a lot. There are plenty of things I have learned this year, but I will give you a few examples. For instance, I have learned how to guide a team, how to motivate people and how to deal with the responsibilities regarding the financial administration of the event. I have also learned how to manage a lot of tasks in a short period of time, to decide where to put your focus on.

How is this experience going to help you in the long term?

I think working in a committee like the ACD, is really good for your personal development. It is one of the largest career events in Amsterdam, which means that you have a lot of responsibilities. You are in contact with a lot of companies, which can be really beneficial in the future. Besides this, working in a diverse team and learning how to deal with different types of people, is a skill you can use in your future career.

How much bigger did your network become?

I am not sure I can give you a number, but I think my network expanded a lot. Around 70 companies are participating. Like I said before, you are in contact with a lot of companies, which is good for your network.

If the ACD committee would be an animal, which animal would it be?

Well, the name of the WhatsApp group of our acquisition team is “acquisition tigers”. I think that says enough ;).

Why should everyone apply for the ACD committee?

Joining the ACD committee is really good for your personal development. Besides this, the ACD is also a really fun committee. You are working together with 7 other students to make sure the largest career event of Amsterdam is going to be an even bigger success than the previous edition! I am not saying you can beat our edition of 2017, but are you ready for the challenge?!

Are you interested in joining this committee? Go to http://www.aureus.nl/acd-webform/ to apply! Would you like to know more about the career opportunities at Aureus? Go to http://www.aureus.nl/career/career-platform/.