Meet the Team - Arthur van der Leer
The man, the myth, the legend: who doesn’t know Arthur? Anyone who has ever called, emailed or chatted with us is sure to know our Tuur. He has been part of the Rinkel team since August 2020 as an extension of the Support Team, so there’s no way we could leave him out of the "Meet the Team" section. What does Arthur do besides talking to customers? All will be revealed in this interview!
So, what’s the first thing people think of when they hear your name?
Unfortunately I think the first thing people think of “King Arthur” with his knights of the round table, his sword Excalibur, Lancelot and Galahad. People who don't know me are quick to call me King Arthur, but (strangely enough) nobody I know ever calls me that.
Arthur comes from ancient Celtic and it means bear or warrior. A lot of important people in the history of the world have been called Arthur, like King Arthur. As I’m a history buff, I like that fact.
What do they call you in the office?
Well, as I said, my colleagues thankfully don’t call me "King Arthur". I think my name lends itself well to nicknames. So nobody here ever calls me Arthur, they just call me Tuur. People also sometimes call me Turowicz or Arturito (like Arturo Román from La Casa de Papel, but I’ve heard that I have nothing in common with him apart from my name).
I have many more nicknames outside work. I don't think anyone really calls me Arthur at all.
What exactly do you do at Rinkel?
I’m jointly responsible for customer contact (Support) at Rinkel, together with my colleagues Mike and Quintie. I also actively approach potential partners to establish partnerships. Maintaining our contacts is part of that, of course!
We do quite a lot in the Support Department. We have some administrative tasks, sometimes we explain to customers what Rinkel is all about and, of course, we help out with any questions or problems our customers have. All in all, it’s quite broad compared to a “normal” Support function.
What problems faced by your customers do you want to solve?
As a member of the Support Department, I actually want to solve all the problems and frustrations that our customers experience.
While I enjoy getting stuck in and solving complex problems, I also get great satisfaction from helping customers set up their telecoms systems.
We always try to get to the bottom of every problem, to make sure that all our customers are (and stay!) satisfied. But of course we also aim to prevent things happening in our systems that cause problems.
As long as the customer hangs up the phone feeling good, I’m happy! That’s what we’re here for.
What do you like best about working at Rinkel?
Do I only get to choose one thing?! I’m torn between the independence we get here and my great colleagues. Both things are very important to me.
We really have a great team and we all pull in the same direction. That makes it a very nice place to work, and at lunch and Wednesday drinks we always have a good time.
But, the independence we get here is also very nice. You’re not micromanaged; you have a lot of independence and your input is always appreciated. Not just in terms of Support, but really in all areas.
So we all work hard to do our bit. Like, one day Support might have a point to help our Marketing Team and a few days later they give Support another good idea.
What’s the best thing about the Support Team?
The people who work here, obviously! No, the best thing about the Support Team is that we invent new processes to help customers as best we can, without the need for us to interfere in their systems.
We want to automate everything as much as possible and make it as easy as possible for our customers to manage and change everything by themselves.
Every employee is expected to say whether they can see any room for improvement. These suggestions are often picked up very quickly, which motivates you to keep pointing them out.
What’s your favourite holiday destination?
Without a doubt 100% Florence! In any case, I think Tuscany is the nicest region in the world with beautiful nature and wonderful historical cities. Florence is the cream of the crop. It’s an outstanding city with so much history and so many stories, I’d love to live there myself.
What’s your favourite drink?
I try to live healthily, so I usually only drink water. But I am very fond of cool cocktails, especially the White Russian. It’s a mix of vodka, coffee liqueur and Baileys. Partly inspired by The Dude, of course, the legendary character from the cult film "The Big Lebowski".
Sometimes, I make my own Ponche de Crema, which is a kind of Baileys based on eggs, whisky and condensed milk. Then I use it to make my own version of the White Russian.
What is your archetype?
I am both an Explorer and a Rebel, although I feel more like an Explorer. I like adventures and excitement in my life and I certainly don't just walk the beaten track. So this archetype fits me perfectly!
(Other Rebels include Rihanna, Johnny Depp, Miley Cyrus and Buzz Aldrin is also half-Explorer.)
What keeps you busy in your free time?
Besides being a Rebel, I’m also a huge nerd. I follow the political scene in the Netherlands as closely as possible and am an active member of a political party.
I like to read about all kinds of subjects I find interesting, but my greatest love is history. And really all history, every period and every country. I’m even fascinated by the prehistoric period, which we don’t know much about.
I’m also interested in everything that has to do with Rotterdam. Not only Rotterdam’s political history, but really everything. I’m a Rotterdammer at heart and know everything about my city. (But I don't hate Amsterdam or other cities).
Because I love history, I also have a special place in my heart for genealogy. That means researching family history. So I know a lot about my ancestors and I find that very inspiring.
I’m descended from Charlemagne, as is probably most of Western Europe! I also like to find out things for other people, provided they give me the right data to start with.
Want to know more about the history of Rotterdam and the rest of the Netherlands? Check our vacancies!
