Sybren and his homelab
- Sybren de HartogBusiness Process Management Architect
“I can share my passion for technology with my coworkers”
With over 10,000 IT professionals, there’s a fair chance you’ll come across another tech-minded soul at Rabobank. One of them is Sybren de Hartog, a Business Process Management Architect who had to hire additional office space and even buy a separate business unit, after his home lab outgrew his home. At Rabobank, he’s discovered he’s not the only one with a passion for technology.
Sybren, a contracted professional, is now on his second job at Rabobank. As a Business Management Architect in the Financial Economic Crime (FEC) unit, he bridges the gap between Business and IT, analyzing processes, identifying overlaps and inefficiencies, and spotting potential optimizations. He transforms the data he collects into actionable insights, focusing on steps that would benefit Rabobank’s FEC in terms of organization, data and technology. “Efficiency and cost savings are the name of the game,” says Sybren.
Utilizing every square meter
With the office a strictly work-only environment, where does Sybren do his hands-on hobbies? The answer lies in his home lab. “I’ve created a space that lets me combine my passion for electronics and technology. There’s an electronics workbench with four switchboards, two 3D printers, a CNC mill, which I built myself, and a circuit board mill, which I use to make my own electronic circuit boards. I have two Raspberry Pi’s for network administration, one as a VPN server between my home lab and home and one as a network controller for my home lab.” Laughing, Sybren continues: “Plus all the cabinets and drawers crammed with spare parts, sensors, bolts, screws and other stuff!”
Hands up if you’re a nerd
Sybren reflects on his experience at an introductory meeting at Rabobank’s office. “The usual spiel – what’s your name, how old are you, where do you live. Tedious stuff. So, I said: I’m a nerd. Anyone else a nerd? Seeing how many hands went up, I felt confident talking about my home lab. During the break, it turned out that more people had a home lab, 3D printers, home automation, the works. I’d found my tribe just by asking that one question.”
A hobby turned obsession
Thanks to his “pretty well equipped” home lab, Sybren can make a lot of things himself. “I weld my own cables, write software in various programming languages, make my own tools and design and build solutions to problems that are beyond standard products.” For a job working on an escape room in the Dutch town of Mijdrecht, Sybren built a machine that takes just 5 seconds to roll up a screen measuring 6 by 12 meters. He had end-to-end ownership for the mechanical calculations, power and user safety, and software and hardware development. Sybren has also made various custom electronics and 3D printing solutions for radio and television, including for his local news channel RTV Ronde Venen.
It’s me or the lab
Nobody in Sybren’s household shares his passion for technology. In fact, he’s even been asked to rein it in. “One day, my wife turned round and said: ‘It’s me or the lab’. In jest, of course, but I got the message. It really was taking up too much room. So, I managed to rent office space through a friend and set up all of my equipment there. Later on, I had to literally buy a unit at a business park in Mijdrecht. My home lab’s on the top floor, alongside a parts storage room, and I lease out the ground floor.”
The call of the office
Sybren and other coworkers regularly bring their latest 3D creations to the office. “It’s a chance to share what works or ask for advice. But it’s not like we spend the whole day talking tech – the conversation quickly moves on to other stuff. That’s what I like about working here. I’ve done jobs at fifty or so companies, but Rabobank’s the one I look forward to coming back to.
And there’s a reason why, explains Sybren. “There’s such a laid-back vibe. People are open and genuinely interested in you as a person, not just the job you do. You can absolutely be yourself and express your interests outside of work without feeling judged. If you ask me, Rabobank is one of the top three best places to work.”
