Interview with Joske Bernaerts – Interim womanager
Joske Bernaerts obtained her master’s degree in Applied Economics from UHasselt in 2013. Originating from Leuven, Joske at 33 undoubtedly belongs to a new generation of Interim Managers who took the step to an independent life in higher positions quite early in their career. Joske gained a first professional experience in auditing at Ernst & Young.
“A real stepping stone in my career” Joske looks back. She continued her early career at Banden de Condé as Financial Controller. So, at an early age she had the opportunity to get acquainted with both an internal function and a more versatile job as an external consultant for various companies.
“That variety, getting involved in different projects and as many different corporate cultures, I realized early on that this was the one I would find the most satisfaction in” Joske continues.
Joske’s path subsequently crossed that of the Leuven office of ADM, and Nele Langens in particular. “The advantage of a career as an Interim Manager is that you are selected for assignments according to your capabilities. How quickly you can settle in to specific assignments, what experience you have in a specific sector, how smoothly you can work… count more than personal data. A selection procedure for a specific assignment also goes much faster, especially if you can count on the support and advice of a company like ADM.”
However, Joske realizes that you have to be able to deal with the uncertainty that comes with this kind of professional life: “Sometimes, two or three weeks before the end of an assignment, you don’t know which new assignment will follow. Pretty thrilling”. Still, she finds being an interim manager mainly provides more advantages and also opportunities to build a stronger and wider network faster.
“It is also easier to follow your own moral compass as a self-employed person by choosing or not choosing certain assignments. You are also the master of your own work-life balance.” Although Joske feels that many of her contemporaries would like to follow the same path, she understands that there is nevertheless some waiting, especially when a family is expanding, a loan needs to be paid off and the security of a steady income becomes more important.
Still, the Interim Manager, who lives in Kortessem today, feels very comfortable in her own skin, emphasizing the satisfaction she derives from ADM’s strong follow-up. “Nele follows up the assignments very well. With my current mission, she already informed me after a day, after a week. And every so often she contacts me. ADM also does this along the client’s side, and it works excellently that way.”
Lastly, Joske also appreciates that the administrative side of the cooperation runs seamlessly. “Both the platform for passing on the worked hours and the payment always run very smoothly, so that we can focus on our assignments in a total carefree manner.”
