What was your dream job as a child, and what is your dream job now?

Almost everyone born in India dreams to be either a cricketer or an actor. Acting was my dream too. As I grew older I wanted to be in advertising and then be an investment banker. Clearly, I didn’t pursue any of those dreams. 

I am happy with my current work at the bank and as a speaker/trainer. At some point in my life, I will want to do something where I can help and impact lives of those who are in need.

What is your current position, and what do you do?

I work for ABN AMRO Bank, as a Business Developer in the private banking sector. I have been working for the bank for 8 years in various roles, as a Product Controller, Associate within ALM/Treasury, Business Developer at ABN AMRO Clearing Bank, and for the last year and a half I’ve had my current role. Additionally, I have my own small KVK-registered entity, where I give keynote/motivational speeches and train people on their soft skills. Besides, I am writing a book called “What’s your Plan B”, which I hope to finish before the end of 2020.

How did you get your job?

Right after my graduation, I met an alumni friend Pravin, who worked at ABN AMRO. He referred me for a position with ABN, which led to three rounds of interviews. The first was with my supervisor, which went very well. We had a good click and he immediately invited me for the second round with his manager. That round was tough, as the manager grilled me on my motivation for the job. After an hour I felt confused, unsure if I did well or not. As a rule, I always ask for feedback at the end of an interview, and he said he was positive. I wasn’t too confident, so this was a huge relief! The last round was with the department head. It was quite candid and interesting, at the end of the meeting I had the feeling I got the job – and that was true. 

What do you like most about your job?

The best part of my job is that I can multitask. I can be part of several projects and initiatives and always have something new to learn. In the last 8 years, I got to work in strict regulatory roles, fun yet challenging initiatives and many projects. This let me learn, among other things, about controlling, treasury and treasury instruments, as well as clearing.

What are the most challenging aspects of your job?

It’s a very content driven environment, you won’t go far if you don’t dive deep into issues and problems. That is challenging but also fun; if you like to analyse and investigate and then solve issues, you will love this environment. 

At ASE NEXT! 2020, you won the inaugural 'Bounceback Award', for how you recovered from a professional failure. What was that failure, and how did you respond to it?

In 2013, when I was in between contracts, I went for close to 16 job interviews and got rejected for all of them. This led to a very hard 2 months, as not finding a job soon would also have a visa-related impact on me. 

During low moments like these, it is very important to have the right people around you. I remember meeting my friend Reinier, who was a recruiter who would brief me before every job interview. Even when I didn’t get a position, he made me realise that this was not a personal failure: those positions were meant for other people with different profiles. 

What was it like to enter the Dutch labour market after first coming here as an international student?

It wasn’t easy, as most jobs needed a fluent Dutch speaker. In non-IT roles, not being fluent in Dutch  Networking, for instance, plays a very vital role for non-Dutch speaker. There are enough non-Dutch jobs in the Netherlands, but you need to be able to find the right people at the right time. Networking has less than 1% success rate, so only when you have met and reached out to over 100 people for connections, 1 of them may be able to help you out.  

How do you apply the knowledge and skills you gained during your studies in your job?

The experience at the UvA helped me a lot in my work life, especially in the initial years. Working in a diverse project group with Dutch and a few non-Dutch students at university gave me an early idea about the directness in a Dutch corporate environment. The UvA encouraged us to do presentations, which for me was the cherry on the cake when I started working. 

I found myself feeling much more comfortable standing in front of my colleagues and presenting my work. I am still in touch with some of my professors from UvA, and I often reach out to them for advice and guidance.

What career advice would you give students and fellow alumni?

The most important thing you do at work is building relationships and connections. Your team and colleagues are your biggest support if you value them and they value you back. It is a competitive world, but don’t elbow others out of the way, rather be someone who helps other colleagues at work. That will make you successful and indispensable.

We thank Sabyasachi for participating in this interview series, and for generously sharing his story. 

Questions?

If you’d like to ask Sabyasachi any questions, you can contact him via LinkedIn or his website .

We hope this month’s alumnus was an inspiration. What kind of Economics and Business career would you like to know more about? Let us know, and we will try to arrange an interview with alumni who have experience in that field for a future instalment of Alumni in the Spotlight!