“Peter is the one who keeps the team together. He is approachable and you can go to him with anything. With his energy and enthusiasm he knows how to pull others along and he doesn’t let himself be easily swayed. He thinks in terms of possibilities, is always full of new ideas and knows better than anyone how to make people grow. Peter is a people person: involved, sincere and always willing to go the extra mile for others. He believes in the power of the team and gives people room to do what they do best. This is precisely why colleagues feel seen, supported and motivated. You can build on Peter.”
Peter bought an old listed building and is renovating it step by step himself. As if that were not challenging enough, he also has a garden of no less than 2000 m² to go with it. Fortunately he loves gardening, so there is no lack of relaxation (and work).
Peter knows how to connect people. He sees the talent in others and gives them the confidence to grow in it. He creates an environment where people feel seen and supported, so they dare to develop and take steps.
For a beautiful sailing trip on his sailboat Passion. Especially if there is good company on board, because he enjoys that at least as much as the sailing itself.
Although Peter didn’t really feel that the story about himself was necessary, we felt that of course he shouldn’t be left behind. Important before you read this story: take some time for it ;). Peter likes a nice chat and this is reflected in his story.
That Peter ended up in IT was far from planned. After spending some time in the store, his career began as a professional soldier. But that turned out not to be for him. You mustn’t tell Peter what to do; then his stubborn side comes to the surface and he can become a bit recalcitrant. You can imagine that, as a professional soldier, this is not very convenient. So he started looking for something else and ended up in the seed export business. When the opportunity arose to take on an IT project, he grabbed it with both hands. Without any IT knowledge or experience, he thought: this is what I am going to do, it suits me. And it did, because the project became a great success. But, Peter wanted more.
He transferred to Florensis, a large international player in floriculture. They were looking for someone to manage IT, because by now it had become too big and too much for the accountant. He was given an Apple by one of the owners’ family members and from then on he was sold. To this day, he is a huge Apple fan, although at I4-YOU he is still sometimes teased about it since software developers are not exactly Apple-minded.
In 2007, Peter decided it was time for something new. He had wanted to start his own business for some time and this was the time. Thanks to the contacts he had made, his schedule was full from day one. At first mainly in the ERP field, but over time the focus shifted towards Microsoft and SharePoint. Because the work started to get over his head and he preferred working with people around him, he started hiring colleagues and building a team. That was the beginning of the I4-YOU as we know it today.
Growing people and pushing boundaries
What energizes Peter most is enabling people to do what they are really good at. He believes that there is potential in everyone and that the trick is to let it emerge. The fact that he used to do youth work also plays into that: he wants people to have the opportunity to grow and show what they can do.
In addition, he likes challenging projects, preferably projects that are just a little bit different than usual. If someone says something is impossible, he thinks: we’ll see about that.
Serious profession, with a wink
What strikes him in the IT world is how much mission work there is still to do. Not only towards end users, but also towards IT professionals themselves. Often these two worlds do not understand each other, while that is precisely where the key lies. After all, IT is always about change and in order for change to be successful you need everyone involved. Peter himself is not a typical IT professional, he studied change management at Nyenrode. From that knowledge and years of involvement in change projects, he sees the importance of bridging the gap. Because when project stakeholders really understand each other, something special happens.
Although IT is sometimes approached somewhat lightheartedly, Peter knows how big the impact really is. Changes in IT usually affect the entire organization and therefore require a thoughtful approach. Still, he sees that in the sector people sometimes think too easily. Also that new trends are quickly adopted without looking carefully at whether they really add value. According to Peter, it is important to look beyond the hype and focus on solutions that are sustainable.
Peter is always on
Peter is an early bird and is on first thing in the morning. While others have yet to get going, he is already running at full speed and ideas are bubbling up rapidly. His head never stands still and even in the evening it is still full of plans and inspiration (many times at 10 p.m. he sends Iris an enthusiastic message again with all kinds of marketing ideas he spontaneously came up with).
His love for IT is great and he doesn’t hide his love for Apple either. This often leads to funny discussions, because as a Microsoft partner we work mainly with Windows. But that also typifies Peter a bit: he likes to do things a little differently from the rest. And nice to know: almost half of the employees now work on a MacBook.
A close-knit club
The team at I4-YOU feels like a family to Peter. He is proud of how often he hears that colleagues really feel part of the team. “We do complex projects for large multinationals and the fact that we, as a small team, accomplish that together is really special. Everyone jumps in for each other, no one is above anyone else and despite the busyness there is always room for fun and relaxation. For Peter that is exactly what makes I4-YOU unique: the atmosphere in which people strengthen each other, are there for each other and achieve results together.
When we asked him about his motto (“the secret to success”), he laughingly said, “Can I name several?” Secretly, we didn’t expect anything else:
For Peter, standing still is not an option. Pushing boundaries keeps you sharp and alive and that is exactly why he likes to undertake.
