5 reasons why you should join a tech ecosystem
The general opinion about software developers is that there’s a bunch of guys, sitting in their office isolated from the rest of the world and immersed in endless screens of numbers and code. At Jongens Van Techniek we are living proof that this is definitely not the case!
In fact, about two years ago, we became the first members of The Hague Tech. And ever since, we’ve been at the center of a highly dynamic and exciting ecosystem. We couldn’t be happier with our choice and we want to share with you some of the reasons why we love being part of a tech ecosystem
1. Change is progress, embrace it!
When we first heard of The Hague Tech, not everyone was fully convinced it was the right move. For some of us, it meant changing commuting habits, finding a new café or even a whole new routine. To add to all of that, we were taking the risk of becoming the first members (really, the first guinea pigs) of a brand new concept.
As with any big change, we needed some time to get used to the idea! However, when we understood what it was really about, everything started to change. It wasn’t simply a co-working space, it was something far beyond that!
We were about to join a tech ecosystem. A place where everyone involved in tech would be able to work on their projects and bring innovation to life.
Always being on the hunt for the latest technology, we realized that this change wouldn’t be a negative at all. If anything, it would actually enable us to discover new realities and help us grow, both professionally and personally!
We believe that change is progress, so without any further doubt, we decided to join the mission and contribute to this new ecosystem!
It wasn’t until we actually moved into the building that we fully understood the power of such a concept. Being part of The Hague Tech exposed us to a brand new world and what follows are just some of the reasons why we would advise any tech company to join a similar hub!
2. Unleash new skills
One of the most striking things we learned, was how many skills we didn’t even know we were missing! When you work in your small office, you tend to live in your own bubble. Of course, you can always gather new knowledge, but as in our case, it’s knowledge only within our own field.
In our case, we regularly organized internal learning sessions. However, the limitation we faced was that the knowledge was always from someone within the team. Which in the end, limits your view within that bubble.
This changed when we joined THT. We discovered so many more skills which we’d never been exposed to or practiced before. For example, in the past, there was no one organizing a soft skills course or business related events. Everything we knew was from our own experience and traditional learning as engineers and technicians.
Being part of The Hague Tech ecosystem enabled us to access this knowledge at any time and most importantly, to unleash skills we didn’t even know we could have!
3. Enjoy the network effect
On a more practical note, being part of a community within a tech ecosystem gives you access to a very large network. This means that you can boost your business simply by using referrals from other members.
What we really love in THT is that within the community, nobody really tries to sell to each other. However, everyone helps each other and refers you to other companies which need your service. Thanks to the network we’ve been able to work on very cool and interesting projects.
The power of networks is undeniable. As long as what you provide is valuable and you make people aware of it, the community becomes your advocate and will talk about you!
4. Co-create with your fellows
Our team is very diverse and we are able to tackle the most complex challenges. But, we have been in situations where our clients required complementary services, for example, design. Which is not really our field of expertise!
In the past, when this happened, we relied on freelancers that we could find on the spot to fulfill these requirements. This always came with risk: What if the freelancer disappears? What if s/he doesn’t do a good job? What if we don’t find anyone in our budget?
All these headaches stopped once we had access to the amount of talent available at THT. Just across our office there are designers and marketers who make it possible for us to provide a full service to our clients.
Thanks to co-creation we have been able to take on big projects that required a multi-disciplinary approach. Hans and Marki are our go-to designers, Peter is our IoT hardware provider and many more people are regularly able to jump in as there is the need.
And of course, it works the other way around as well. We helped many companies and individuals within the network by putting our skills to work!
Co-creating really is a unique factor of THT and definitely one of the main reasons we love being here!
5. Go global, stay local!
Finally, ever since we joined The Hague Tech, we feel like we’re on a world tour every other day. We have the chance to get to know other cultures and learn how they communicate and work. This allowed us to see things differently and tackle issues with a much broader perspective.
And of course, it gave us quite some international visibility, which is always good! We’ve grown as an international company, where we are known abroad and often get the chance to work with international organizations on some very cool projects!
After two years, we can confidently say that being part of a tech ecosystem definitely supercharged our growth. We have access to more resources, we can grow personally and as an organization and there is no limit to what we can achieve together with the network!
Written by Lucia Piseddu
