Portrait: Willem Van Leest

We talk with Willem Van Leest, who was promoted to Manager Project Department last year. 

A manager who knows the ropes 

After his training in information technology at the Hogeschool Eindhoven, Willem started his career as a programmer at Aucxis in 2003. His solution-oriented thinking made him develop to business analyst and project manager. After almost 20 years of practical experience in the various aspects of project development in both the E-Trade and RFID business units, Willem was the ideal person to lead the Projects department within our booming company. 

Everything starts with clarity 

When asking to describe his new job, Willem answers: “The most important challenge for a project manager is to start a project within the budget and within the predefined period of time. My task as Manager Project Department consists of supervising the project managers and observing whether they execute all agreements to achieve this objective. It goes without saying that everything starts with a clear description of all processes and tasks. During the project evaluation, all successful and less successful aspects are discussed and processed in order to take them into account for future projects.  

He continues: “As Aucxis has started the process to obtain the ISO-9001 certificate, all procedures will be further optimised. And enhanced uniformity will definitely lead to an even more efficient way of working.” 

Teamwork and pleasant customer relationships 

The diversity in projects at home and abroad but particularly his relationships with colleagues and customers gives Willem the greatest satisfaction. He explains: “I love to work towards the same goal with a motivated group of colleagues. Aucxis has a pleasant working environment, which benefits our customers as well. And a satisfied customer, that is the final objective of all our activities.” 

Humour plays an important role in Willem’s communication. It is absolutely impossible not to laugh with his witty remarks. This, in combination with his captivating personality, serves as a binding agent, also towards customers. He tells us: “It is very nice to receive a WhatsApp message from a customer from Scotland during the weekend about the football match “the Netherlands-Scotland” of that night. It is in my nature to forge friendships; this leads to pleasant customer relationships which could endure even difficult situations. Because obviously an unexpected problem may occur and relationships are being put to the test.” Willem totally agrees with the philosophical approach: “All good things come to those who make them happen.” “Although sometimes there is an outsider among them”, he laughs. 

Fatherhood and solo activities 

For Willem, fatherhood is at the core of his existence today. He is a family man and greatly enjoys the father-daughter time he spends with Lieke, eleven years old. Their joint activities include going to the cinema together, baking and swimming. He also loves cycling, visiting festivals and playing his acoustic and electric guitar.