Adil Andour: “You should respect the fact that people think differently”

His five-year anniversary coming up this February, Adil prefers to remain in the background, silently safeguarding and improving the efficiency of Ampelmann’s IT environment. As he says, “I’m not the type of person who likes to be in the foreground in the sense of ‘look, this is what I’ve done, and this is what I can do.’ Maybe this is partially because of my faith, but I think that you shouldn’t do good in order to look good, but because you really want to help people around you. In this way Ampelmann’s core values fit with my general approach to life.”

Engineering digital safety

Safety is at the forefront of everybody’s mind at Ampelmann, but this is especially true for Adil, who considers this “a very important core value, not only in terms of my current role, but also outside of IT. Staying safe means being able to continue with your work without any obstructions. It’s all about listening and mutual understanding so that we respect each other’s ideas and feelings. At the company level, I really appreciate that Ampelmann finds it important that everybody feels comfortable at work, goes to work with a good feeling and returns home happy and healthy.”

As one of the primary gatekeepers of the company’s intranet, cybersecurity is as important as the human factor. Likening it to a hidden confrontation beyond our visual grasp, he points out that “in order to prevent the network from going down, we are strengthening our systems to make sure that no one can get in. A lot of people don't see this, but from the perspective of IT we are very busy to ensure our digital security is at the right level.”

Ensuring that Ampelmann’s cyberspace stays safe requires constant vigilance. As he says, “IT is always rapidly changing. What you implemented a year ago is already outdated. Because we need the best tools and the best people, we need to drive engineering excellence. We are always learning, taking courses, testing our digital environments and ensuring that we remain knowledgeable and up to date. Alongside the security of our systems, we also need to routinely determine which tools or licenses we need to acquire so that our users can do their jobs more efficiently.”

One example is the implementation and utilisation of cutting-edge technologies, commonly grouped together as ‘Artificial Intelligence’. These have become an important company focal point in which Adil has taken a leading role. “AI is a hot topic,” he says, “so we established a specific ‘community’ within Ampelmann to discuss and disseminate information. In the meantime, I’m also busy trying to gain more knowledge on the subject from Microsoft, what is available and what these new systems can do for us. As such, we need assurance that engineers can easily do their work with the help of AIs. Use cases are being created right now which we will work out together with Microsoft to implement these changes within Ampelmann.”

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Daring to be one team

In an international company such as Ampelmann, thinking inclusively is especially important and for Adil it plays an important part in how he fulfills his role. “Our team consists of people from different countries and backgrounds so it’s really important to take this into account and respect each other despite these differences. To give a personal example: I have an Islamic background so for me it’s important that I can do my daily prayers and go to the mosque on Friday. I really appreciate that within Ampelmann we are encouraged to think inclusively regarding such matters, that we are flexible and try to understand or accept each other. That’s not just true for my own beliefs, but also for other religions, cultures and views. Even if they are not something you can stand behind, you should respect the fact that people think differently.”

For Adil, there is a lot of overlap between daring to make a difference and being one team. As he says: “From my perspective, we’re trying to improve things. Together, we are looking at how we can do better and how we can help each other. To me, both of these core values mean that if you have the knowledge, skills, personal or professional experience, and (of course) time, you share this with your colleagues and ask them whether they need any assistance.”

“Look,” he continues, “I was hired for IT, and it’s something I’m very passionate about, but I don’t shy away from taking up other responsibilities. If you see that you can contribute, do so, even if it’s outside your specialisation or ordinary tasks. I find it really important that within Ampelmann people help each other and don’t just stick to themselves and their designated field of expertise. In the end, we all have our own specialisations and lead different lives, so let’s just help each other, share our experiences, proficiencies and knowledge, so we can dare to make a difference together.”

“The idea that you're not averse to extra effort is important in order to help others out. So really, it's about the willingness to work, finding joy in your work and radiating that joy outwards in order to inspire others. Like I said before, everybody is different, so being social with people, trying to know each other and respecting our differences, is really what makes being one team more productive and fun.”

Modest as always, in his spare time he works as a volunteer and is building a new community centre in Gouda. Adil says that both consciously and unconsciously, Ampelmann’s core values are reflected in his professional and personal life and he particularly “likes how they are written down.”

Reminiscing, he says that “Where and when I grew up, in Gouda, life wasn’t easy. It was difficult to get a job or an internship. My childhood really shaped me in this sense, so I really have this urge to help people in my neighborhood, to try make a difference and offer them a chance to make their lives easier. Maybe that's because I’m like that as a person, or maybe it’s because of my beliefs, but in a way Ampelmann’s core values correspond with my own ethics and sense of morality. Therefore, I think it is easier for me to apply the core values to my work as I don't really have to think about them.”

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