Hi everyone,

My name is Tristan Swart and I live in Groningen. About six months ago, I joined the University of Groningen (RUG) as a business analyst at CIT, focusing on innovative initiatives, process optimization and digital transformation. So far, I’m really enjoying my time here. As business analysts, we’re usually involved right at the start of any change process. Often, it begins with a signal or a request from a stakeholder. That lands on our desk, and from there we kick off an advisory process.

Before joining the UG, I spent three years working at a consultancy firm. I had the opportunity to work with a variety of clients, including PostNL, the Province of Drenthe, and the Instituut Mijnbouwschade Groningen. It’s mainly that period I want to reflect on, not so much to look back, but to highlight how valuable it can be to step into different environments and see how others work.

Take a step outside of your comfortable bubble

During those years in consultancy, I experienced a wide range of working styles, cultures, and systems. You start to notice how some organizations have really streamlined certain processes, while others are still figuring things out. And sometimes it’s the other way around. Something that works well in one place might be completely ineffective somewhere else. You constantly have to reassess what works where. Those lessons stay with you, and it’s exactly that process of gaining fresh perspectives and learning from others that I find so valuable.

That’s why I believe it’s so important to stay open to new approaches and ways of thinking, not just within your own team or role, but also beyond it. It’s easy to stick with what we know, just because it feels comfortable. But when you take the time to look around and step outside your usual bubble, you often discover ideas or practices that you can bring back to your own work. That might be something technical, or it could be about team collaboration, decision-making, or even how to handle resistance to change.

Invest in yourself

Fortunately, the UG offers plenty of ways to explore. I’ve heard, for example, about the talent travel initiative, where you can spend some time working within a different department. That might be a team you wouldn’t naturally come into contact with, maybe even one where your first thought is, “What could I possibly learn there?”. But those unexpected places often turn out to be the most insightful. When you get a look behind the scenes of a completely different part of the organization, you gain perspectives you might never encounter if you only stay within your own field.

The message I’d like to share with the YoungRUG community is this: don’t close yourself off too early. We’re still at the beginning of our careers, with so much ahead of us. This is the perfect time to try out different paths and explore what’s possible. Sure, stepping into a new environment, getting to know new people, and adjusting to a different way of working takes some effort. But see it as an investment in yourself. There’s always time to settle later on.

It’s also just fun and energizing to broaden your perspective. You meet new colleagues, expand your network within the university, and you might even end up working on something you never would have thought of otherwise. Sometimes, it’s only when you’re confronted with a completely different way of thinking that you realize how stuck your own habits have become. And that can be incredibly refreshing.

Keep on learning

So to wrap up: stay curious. Explore the organization. Ask if you can shadow another department for a day, see if the talent travel program could be something for you, or join a project that pushes you slightly out of your comfort zone. It will make you more flexible, more insightful, and ultimately, it will benefit not just you but also your team and the university as a whole.

And if you ever feel like talking more about this or want to hear about my experiences elsewhere, don’t hesitate to reach out, I’m always happy to chat.There’s still so much we can learn, together.