Do you hear cheerful tones in the office? Then you know that colleague Ron van de Vijver has arrived. From Jazz to uplifting spinning class music, Ron knows it all.

When you hear this colleague calling, it is a surprise every time in which language he speaks, from Spanish to French or English, Ron has a knack for languages! 

Curious about Ron's whole story? Read his entire interview and learn more about his hobbies, work experience and ambitions. 

Tell us about yourself (age, relationship, place of residence, etc.) 

My name is Ron van de Vijver, 60 years young. I come from 's Hertogenbosch, but have been living in Hoofddorp since 1984, close to Schiphol.  

I have been living happily with Monique for 10 years now. From a previous marriage, I have two sons, Jasper and Maarten. Monique also has 2 children: 

Mike and Demi. In short; a blended family with 4 adult children who now all live on their own. 

What are your hobbies (besides the hard work at WBE)?  

Travelling, recreational cycling, recumbent bicycles, walking, giving Spinning lessons at various sports centers in Hoofddorp, singing and reading. 

What did you study? 

After the Atheneum (Den Bosch) I completed the H.E.A.O. (Commercial Economics) in Eindhoven. 

What did you do before you started working at WBE? 

After completing my education and completing military service, I started working. 

Except for one year, I have always worked in a commercial position (mainly sales) in the floriculture sector, especially in Aalsmeer (Florimex, E-team Import, Verdnatura Holland). In addition, from 1990 to 1995 I ran a sales office in Barcelona for the company Movrie. During that time, I learned a lot about the Spanish culture and language.  

In which department do you work at WBE? 

Sales Export

At Which branch do you work?

Westland

What does your average working day look like?

Due to the Corona crisis and the subsequent changing way of working 

my day looks – still – like this: from 6.00 am. - ± 8.00 h. from home. Then to WBE Westland, where I generally close the door of the sales department (I am doing the late shift). The daily activities are obvious: maintaining contact with the various customers by telephone, via Skype, WhatsApp, and email. Processing and entering orders. Sometimes there is a bit of logistics involved. Sending offers and informing customers about product availability is also part of the work. In addition, there are various administrative matters to do and we are expected to ensure that payments arrive on time. 

What do you like best about your job? 

Contact with colleagues. The fact that you have a common goal and work together to achieve it. The variety, the diversity of contacts in all kinds of countries, the language knowledge that you can / should use, the fact that trade is never in equilibrium and the seasonality on both the supply and demand sides means that no week is the same. 

What do you like least about your job?

Occasional travel distance/time and computer system (Florisoft). Nothing to the detriment of the program itself, but more the way in which we – must – deal with it in order to ensure that the day-to-day running of the system runs smoothly. 

That is not my first interest either, so I may not be able to deal with it as well as some colleagues

What is your favorite product? Why? 

Roebelenii, because of its appearance, ornamental value and the fact that it is – generally – traded in large quantities.  

Do you have any ambitions within WBE?

To pass on my knowledge and experience to young starters in sales at WBE and represent WBE on trips / trade fairs / customer visits.