We mentioned to look for a job in a startup as an option in the previous Square post How To Find A Job In Ghent Without Speaking Dutch. There are quite a few startups active in Ghent. The newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws stated Ghent is an “epicentrum” for startups, singling out the local showrunners Showpad, StoryMe and Teamleader. With English as the primary language used in many of these companies, it is possible to find a job in a Ghent startup which doesn’t require perfect knowledge of Dutch.

Teamleader

Two new Ghent residents who found a job in startup company are Katrin, from Germany, and Elias, from UK. They both work now for Teamleader, which is a company providing online Customer Relations Management, invoicing and project planning for small businesses. The company, which was only set up in 2014, now employs more than a 100 people. You can see their open positions here.

One team despite offices in multiple cities in Europe

Katrin Kirchmann, who works as a Customer Success Content Coordinator, found the opening via the Expats in Ghent Facebook group. The reasons why Katrin loves working at Teamleader is the atmosphere. “It is very dynamic and positive, everyone is motivated and determined to do their best”, she says. “We have offices in various cities all over Europe, like Amsterdam, Berlin, Madrid or Paris and lots of different languages but we still are one team, where everyone supports each other. I really enjoy being a part of this culture of openness and sense of togetherness.” She also adds, “my job is very varied, offers opportunities and for sure never gets boring”.

Katrin likes how open and vibrant Ghent is. “There is always something going on and people are very friendly and welcoming. And not to forget: frietjes!!!!” Something she enjoys less is the weather. “I’m from Germany, so I will not complain about the rain or the temperature, I’m used to that. But that wind is sometimes not funny”, Katrin says smiling.

Growth ambitions

The commute to Brussels was tiring for Elias Suliman when he heard about Teamleader via a friend. Now Elias works there as the International Sales Executive. He enjoys working there because of its young and fun team. Teamleader’s growth ambitions also impresses him. “The infrastructure is in place to not only reach their ambition to be a European market leader. But (I might be slightly biased here) exceed it, the sky really is the limit” Elias says. “Plus the office is very close to my apartment. This means less time commuting and more time to enjoy this wonderful city!”, he adds.

He loves Ghent because there is always something happening. “For a small city there is so much character, he says. He especially enjoys the Christmas markets (get tips about the Christmas markets in this Square-post) in the winter. Of course the Gentse Feesten in the summer is a favourite too. What he doesn’t like is the fact that the supermarkets close already at noon on a Sunday!