External Affairs Officer of Asset | Economics
Joost van Avendonk
27/04/2024
Joost van Avendonk
At the start of this academic year I enrolled in the function of External Affairs Officer at Asset Economics. In this blog I will tell you some more about my tasks and experiences during this year.
First, let me introduce myself! My name is Joost van Avendonk and I am 23 years old. I was born and raised in a small village close to Tilburg called Raamsdonk. When I was young I played football and hockey, which I later exchanged for rowing at T.S.R. Vidar. In 2019 I started with my BSc Economics and Business Economics. It has been a bumpy road so far, since my motivation and effort weren’t too high. That’s why I decided to do a board year. I wanted to broaden my horizon and start getting into a rhythm that would get me to go to the University.
And so it started, during the summer period I got conveyance from the previous External Affairs Officers and had a lot of meetings with (potential) partners. During the summer, we have most of our meetings with our important partners. With the largest companies like CZ, BDO, DNB & PGGM I have contact on a monthly basis to ensure they are satisfied with their partnerships. I also have contact with SMEs, for instance Adlasz. As an External Affairs Officer I have three main tasks:
The first task is cold acquisition. Together with the acquisition committee and other formal committees that are responsible for organising formal events, I am always trying to diversify our partners. This means I have to research what companies could be interesting, look up any contact information and try to reach them to tell what we are doing. Unfortunately, not every company is interested in a cooperation with us. However, from time to time I get a new partner or a refreshing participating company for one of your formal events. My personal favorite part about this process is I get to leave a personal footprint within Asset Economics, even after my board year. Another positive aspect is that you will learn where your personal interests lie. In my board year, I discovered there are so many more interesting companies just around the corner!
My second main task is maintaining our good contact with the partners. This means keeping their needs satisfied, while also keeping the students best interest at heart. For example, I try to post as many vacancies on our Career Platform as I can, so our students have a diversified portfolio to choose from. This means, calling companies, checking their website, or sometimes even visiting their office. Next to the contact about promotion, we also organise career focused events, like the Inside the Business Day and the Economics Dinner. Together with my committees, I am the initial point of contact for the participating companies. This means I also have broadened my personal network during this year.
My third task is representing our department within one of Asset’s faculty wide organs: the Acquisition Meeting. Here we discuss Asset wide events, evaluate departmental events and discuss our cooperation with Student Career Services. Furthermore, we exchange tips and tricks on how to organize events, how to approach new partners and how to promote your events.
I have met some truely great friends during this year, in my own department, but also with other board members. Of course the ‘shotjes’ meetings from time to time, the Asset Boardies Activities and the External Pubgolf really helped with this. You can also just walk into each others rooms and chat, professionally or just for some gossip.
In conclusion, next to my professional development this year, I have made a lot of good friends and had some amazing experiences. I would recommend everyone to make the same choice! :)