Meet Daisy Ilaria, People & Talent Lead NL at School of Applied Technology </salt>!
Every week we interview a Saltie and with Daisy we talked about her broad role, the strengths and skills she brings to her position and the hobbies she has.
What is your role at SALT and what excites you about working with SALT?
So I’m the People & Talent Lead here in the Amsterdam office. The Country Manager is actually a contact of mine I’ve known for a few years now (he was a client whilst I was in a recruitment agency) and he reached out to me for the opportunity. I felt really honored and I loved the idea of the job and the company so I thought – let’s do this!
I have been in my role for around 6 months so far, and it’s had its challenges of course, but I am loving it!
What excites me? I love the fact that we are an EdTech and we’re helping people towards their dream of becoming a Fullstack Developer here in Amsterdam – it feels incredibly rewarding. Also, we are helping companies with the shortage of Developers in general too. So we are like a bridge between hobby coders and companies hiring!
Interacting with our developers (students in current classes) is one of my favorite things to do – I love supporting, listening and helping others out as much as I can.
I am also leading a team of 4 right now, and I’m learning a lot about managing a fresh team in a start-up. This is something I’ve always wanted to do and I’m grateful for having the chance to do it in a company like SALT.
Tell us a bit about yourself and your work before joining SALT
I was actually a Dentist Assistant for quite some time (to this day, I still know a lot of stuff about mouths, teeth, dental instruments… I learned a lot!) until I discovered the world of HR & Recruitment. I landed a HR role in the UK Government (UKSBS) and this is where I established myself in the field. I didn’t know much about HR at all if I’m being completely honest. I learned a lot in the role and from then on really loved the industry. From then on I’ve worked as an agency, freelance and internal recruiter working for various industries and companies (I won’t name drop – all listed on my Linkedin!) It’s been 8 years now and it’s gone really fast.
What strengths and skills do you bring to your position?
I think the combination of my experience in start-ups & agencies allows me to understand how to set up processes and policies within a new company, and also it helps to work in an agile way and be efficient with what you do. I understand the challenges and importance of having proper processes put in place whilst also being in a scaling operational company, and I always like a challenge! I like to think I’m also an initiator and try to come up with ideas outside the box or solutions during high pressure situations which also helps me function in this type of role and environment. I am also a great listener and like to enable others – I always listen to my team and whenever they have great ideas, I always give them credit and give them a chance to shine too. No matter what title you have within the company, I believe everyone has to be treated the same (whether you’re the cleaner or the COO) so treating everyone with empathy and respect is key.
How is it to work in the tech industry?
It’s always interesting isn’t it? Even when you feel like you’re quite up to date with trends and the industry in general, it can completely change. Look at AI and ChatGPT – it’s changing the world as we know it and it’s really exciting. I try to keep up to date by watching Youtube content from LTT, MKBHD etc. and networking/speaking to other Tech Recruiters and Leaders in the Netherlands.
What random hobbies do you have?
I enjoy gaming, particularly Switch & Steam. Not sure if that’s random though. I really love F1, and have been following it forever, I try not to miss any races during the year.
