A dream place to contribute to our sustainable goal
Mark Beukeboom, VPP Product Manager and Analyst
He has always been crazy about technology. In recent years, the need to commit to a sustainable future has grown. At Eneco, Mark Beukeboom links his technical skills to social involvement. 'With my models and processes I now directly contribute to the energy transition.'
The coolest thing about my job? Hearing on the news how quickly the transition to sustainable energy is happening, and knowing that my colleagues and I are helping to make it possible. This work is exactly what I was looking for. In my previous job as an IT consultant, I developed a desire for meaning. I not only wanted to work hours and earn money, but also make a social contribution. Sustainability has been important to me for some time, and that is how Eneco came into the picture.
Since the summer of 2021, I have had a dual role: I am a Virtual Power Plant (VPP) Product Manager and an Analyst. The VPP is a platform on which we clearly bring together assets from Eneco and others and manage them in a flexible manner.
Creating space for sustainable energy
The energy landscape is changing rapidly. We are moving from a limited number of large assets to many smaller ones. Wind and solar parks, batteries, electric vehicle pools, e-boilers, you name it. Our team develops data models, control processes and algorithms that enable Eneco to manage this growing group of assets as effectively as possible and to tailor the bundled energy supply to demand as accurately as possible.
The better the management and coordination, the more flexibility Eneco can offer to the grid operators. The energy grids are becoming full, meaning that new solar parks, for example, cannot be connected. If we can temporarily reduce the energy supply at busy times, we reduce the peak load on the grids and create space again. We also help to improve energy efficiency, which leads to lower CO2 emissions at system level. So what I do is very relevant; I contribute directly to the energy transition.
Every day is different
This is also beautiful work. I find IT interesting and I also like to invent processes. Here I can combine those two aspects. When an opportunity arises on the market, our colleagues from Business Development look at how Eneco wants to fill it. We translate that business case into a solution. A real brainteaser. I sit around the table with colleagues. What data is available? What calculations can we do? Someone comes up with an idea, draws it out on a whiteboard. You go through the entire thought process together.
And no day is the same. That sounds like a cliché, but if it applies anywhere, it is in this team. This is primarily due to the dynamics of the energy market. Customer and market needs change, laws and regulations are changed and new business models emerge. My field is also not standing still. The technologies that my colleagues and I use are developing rapidly. And the questions we receive are always new. No one has the answer; we have to discover it together.
Flexibility is a must
That constant movement is exactly what I wanted: in addition to meaning, I was looking for more variety. And I certainly found that at Eneco. Not only in my tasks, but also in the people I work with. Colleagues from other departments, consultants from outside Eneco: whoever is needed for a specific process.
The dynamics require a flexible attitude from everyone who works here. Of course, it is important that you are smart, can think through processes well, and have knowledge of the market and IT. You should also enjoy trying new things and not be afraid of making mistakes. But it is just as important that you can switch quickly. It could be that you have come up with something beautiful, but then discover together that it does not work and you have to take a completely different path. You have to be able to handle that.
If you have those qualities, you will find a dream place here. A place where everyone strives for the same, sustainable goal. Where you are given all the space to think with colleagues - and better yet: try out - how you can best achieve that goal. No idea is too crazy. The market demand is there, it is up to us to answer it.
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