Randstad Enterprise

Part of the EMEA Talent Marketing Client Partner team. We work with our clients and account teams to understand their strategic goals and challenges and develop comprehensive talent marketing strategies that align to the employer brand and improve the candidate experience.

Talent Marketing Client Partner

Serrala

Serrala provides software solutions for financial automation and B2B payments to medium-sized to large Enterprise customers globally, with a strong footprint across Europe and the US.

Responsibilities:
o Part of the global marketing leadership team
o Budget Responsibility
o Team responsibility for 9 employees
o Brand strategy
o Shareholder management with all external suppliers and internal interfaces
o Responsible for the introduction of a content marketing strategy 
o Responsible for internal communication and employer branding strategy

Global Director Corporate Brand and Communications

Human Marketing

No more BS Marketing speak. It's time to make marketing more human.
Connecting your business with the hearts and minds of your audience is my true passion and what I do.

Human Marketing helps you to create a brand that connects with your audience by telling your stories in a human way.

Content Strategist & Storyteller (Owner)

Sabbatical

Sabbatical year to spend time attending classes and coachings, reading books, building networks and, most importantly, spending time with my daughter. 
Unfortunately I missed out on the travel experience due to Covid.

Kelly Services

• Member of the Global Marketing Leadership team.
• Enhanced and oversaw the global content marketing strategy for b2b and talent marketing.
• Researched, created, and implemented content marketing projects to be distributed globally. 
• Launched award-winning content marketing projects across +25 countries.
• Increased brand awareness, website traffic, and lead generation through effective Content, PR, and targeted marketing campaigns  
• Coordinated and executed national and international events. 
• Delivered sales and operations support with content marketing initiatives.
• Managed a global pool of suppliers to reduce costs and grow productivity.

Success:
- Continued development of the content marketing strategy and realignment of the
development process, including the establishment of new design guidelines
- Annual implementation of diverse global research projects
(+ 50 content materials per year, increasing the PR clippings, client events, e-mail and
social media campaigns)
- Implementation of a global content supplier and distribution strategy
(500 recipients, cost savings through the centralization of all content marketing
projects)
- Implementation of the "Talent Leadership in Action" events in Germany
(4 events per year, 20 participants per event, positioning as an HR solutions provider)

Director, Global Content Marketing

• Developed and implemented a global content marketing strategy across 3 continents.
• Planned and produced b2b and talent marketing content initiatives, including white papers, eBooks, blog posts, case studies, videos and podcasts to drive content awareness and leads.
• Compiled research regarding market opportunities, potential clients, competitors and external trends. 
• Identified and leveraged relevant topics and stories to maximize engagement. 
• Directed relationship management with third-party institutions, writers, publishers and event organizers while maintaining cross-functional communication and meeting operational goals. 
• Oversaw social media profile management including post scheduling and engagement analysis.
• Researched, commissioned and developed content across +25 countries. 
• Assessed new market opportunities.
• Collaborated with key stakeholders including marketing operations, eBusiness, PR, and marketing information teams.

Success:
- Implementation of a uniform content marketing strategy and aligned process for 31 countries within the first 12 months
- 100 leads per month
(through external content marketing platforms)
- + 30% website traffic
(due to regular promotion of content and the introduction of a global blog program)

Sr. Manager, Global Content Development

Provided leadership and direction for 16 Country Marketing Managers as part of the European Leadership Team. Responsible for the European Marketing budget.

• Part of global marketing team. 
• Established the European marketing strategy.
• Developed and implemented marketing objectives for 16 countries.
• Developed and implemented employer branding strategy.
• Post-merger integration marketing (Randstad Portugal)
• Internal and external communications, PR and Events across Europe.
• Developed and executed European lead-generating online marketing campaigns.
• Vendor Management.

Success:
- 4,500 monthly client contacts with regular European-wide thought leadership newsletter
(website in 16 languages used for the monthly European e-mail campaigns)
- 50% cost savings through the centralization of contract management
- 5,000 sales leads per EMEA Sales Day - two times per year
- + 50% press clippings through the implementation of the Kelly Global Workforce
Index
- Brand integration in Portugal - 6 months instead of 12 months

Regional Marketing Manager EMEA

Provided leadership and marketing strategy for +15 branches across Germany. Part of the German Leadership Team. Responsibility for the countries marketing budget.

• Set up the German marketing strategy.
• Developed and implemented marketing objectives for the country.
• Managed internal and external communications. 
• Responsible for all external & internal events.
• Developed and implemented local and national sales activities.
• Launched and maintained country websites and social media channels.

Success:
- + 50% website traffic through website re-launch
- 30% cost savings through vendor consolidation
- 200 leads per Sales Day (planning, coordination and implementation of 2 national
Sales Days p.a)
- 10% successful meeting appointments through the marketing call center
- + 70% press clippings via the Kelly Global Workforce Index PR strategy
(annual national survey given to HR Managers to identify new HR trends)

Marketing Coordinator/Manager Germany

Implementation of a training program across 16 locations in Germany.

Project Manager Germany

Office Assistant

Deutsche Shell AG

Marketing Assistant

Marketing | Brand | Communication | Fintech | SaaS

Here is what I have learned in all my years working in marketing: If one thing can make your brand more relatable to other humans, it's telling stories.

Hi, my name is Michael, and I am on a journey to help others make their marketing more human by telling authentic stories that help solve problems and inspire humans to connect with them.

This came after a nearly 20-year-long career with one of the largest recruitment companies in the world, where I held several marketing leadership roles.

After that, I ran my own solopreneur business for two years before I joined a Fintech company to run their Global Brands and Comms department.

I am now fortunate to work for Randstad Sourceright, the world's leading partner for talent, where I help our clients to develop  recruitment marketing strategies that connect them with the best talent in their industries.

Over the years, I lived in Switzerland and Australia before moving back to my hometown, Hamburg, where I enjoy time with friends and my daughter, a good game of football, or reading a great book.

I am driven by sharing stories openly and honestly with others. It's the best way to connect with other humans, and the one thing I enjoy most is precisely this: connection.

Michael Kirsten

Career Coach | Helping You Design Your Dream Career and Land Your Ideal Job | Life's Too Short To Settle, So Don't!

Feeling Stuck in Your Career? Let's Change That!

You know that nagging feeling when your career isn't quite right? When you've worked hard, achieved success, but something's still missing? 

I get it, because I've been there myself and I'm here to help professionals in the Netherlands, just like you, get unstuck and land high-paying, fulfilling jobs. 


- What I Do
I guide expats and local professionals to design careers they're truly passionate about. No more living for the weekends or dreading Monday mornings!

✅ Achieve laser-focused clarity on your ideal career path
✅ Create a compelling personal brand that attracts dream opportunities
✅ Master insider secrets to stand out in the Dutch job market
✅ Negotiate confidently and secure the package you deserve


- Why Work With Me?
I worked in recruitment for a decade, from start-ups to Fortune 500s, and saw firsthand the effects of having an unfulfilling career. I've interviewed thousands of people on the subject of career fulfilment and discovered the pattern of what makes people fulfilled in their careers and what doesn't.

I also realised that if applied, anyone could have a fulfilling career, and this is what I now teach my clients. Here's what you'll gain:

🚀 Accelerated Career Progression: Land your dream job faster than the industry average
🔍 Deep Self-Understanding: Uncover what truly drives you and aligns with your values
💪 Boosted Confidence: Showcase your unique skills and experiences with pride
🇳🇱 Dutch Market Expertise: Benefit from specialised knowledge of the landscape in the Netherlands


- My Guarantee
I'm so confident in my approach that I guarantee you'll identify and land a fulfilling job. I'll work with you until you do – no exceptions.

I've helped hundreds of people step into their dream jobs. You can read what some of them say in my testimonials at the bottom of this page 🤗

Ready to Redefine Your Career?
👉 DM me here on LinkedIn to book a free career strategy consultation
👉 Visit alicegraves.com for more insights and resources

Remember, life's too short to settle for an unfulfilling career. Let's design a future you're excited about – starting today!

P.S. Curious about how my clients get clear on their next steps? Check out my free workbook in the Featured section!

Alice Graves-Nguyen

If you're unhappy, you are allowed to change..I know that sounds obvious, but you'd be amazed how many people don't believe this.....

They've been in the wrong job, the wrong career, the wrong environment for so long that somewhere along the way they stopped believing they had a choice.

They started calling it practical and realistic.

But really?

It was just fear dressed up in sensible clothing.

I know because I've been there.

And I know because I speak to people every single day who are living a version of their life they don't want.

Maybe that's you today.

Maybe you woke up this Monday with that familiar heaviness.

That quiet voice that says something needs to change.

Here's what I want you to know.

That voice is not being unrealistic 

It's wise.

And it's been trying to get your attention for years!!!

You don't have to have it all figured out and you absolutely do not have to hand in your notice or blow up your life!

You just have to take one teeny tiny step in the direction of something different 

One honest conversation with yourself. One application you've been too scared to send. One DM to someone who might open a door.

Because here's what I know for certain after years of helping people change their careers 

The people who change their lives aren't the ones who had it all figured out.

They're the ones who got tired of waiting until they did.

And they took one small step on a Monday morning just like this one.

So if something needs to change 

Change it 💙

👉 If today's the day you decide things are going to be different, DM me. Let's figure out what your first step looks like.

Career Coach | Professionals in the Netherlands come to me to get unstuck in their careers and land fulfilling jobs | Inner Clarity Meets Real Job Search Strategy

"I'm so happy I did this programme. Now I actually know what I want!."
My client said this mid-session, almost surprised by her own words.

And I felt it when she said it.

Not just the excitement.

But the relief.

Because she'd been stuck for a long time

Living with that feeling that something wasn't quite right, but not knowing what it was....

Like an itch you can't quite scratch, the answer to her questions always felt just out of reach

Am I in the right career?
Should I be doing something different?
Why does everyone else seem so certain and I just... don't?

She'd look around at colleagues who seemed to know exactly who they were. 

And quietly, in the back of her mind, the same thought kept creeping in.

What's wrong with me?

But there was nothing wrong with her

The problem is, that feeling doesn't go away on its own.

You can change jobs, get a promotion, get another 0 on your payslip

But the itch is still there...

Because it's not about the job, it's about not knowing yourself well to know what you actually need.

That's the work we did together.

Who are you? What do you actually want? What does work that adds to your life look like?  

And the moment she found it? The passion in her voice was unmistakable.

She was so excited! 

And that's what it feels like to finally scratch that itch.

So if you've been living with that quiet, nagging feeling that something needs to change but you can't quite put your finger on what 

You don't have to keep living with it.

👉 DM me the word CLARITY. Let's figure it out together.

She'd been working non-stop since she graduated. Head down, moving forward, building something. And then one day, circumstances forced her to stop.

Not dramatically, not overnight. 

But the ground beneath her started to shift and suddenly everything she'd poured herself into felt uncertain

And do you know what she told me?

"I feel like I'm losing touch with a part of myself."

Not the job, or the salary or the title. 

But Herself.

Because for so many of us, work isn't just what we do. It's a part of who we are. 

It's the thing that gets us up in the morning, the place we prove ourselves, the way we contribute to the world.

So when it starts to feel shaky, it doesn't just affect your career. It affects you.

And like almost everyone I speak to, her first instinct was to open LinkedIn and start searching for the answer out there - in a new job! 

But then she stopped herself.

She already knew, deep down, that wasn't what she needed.

What she needed was to take a step back and to go deep. To ask herself the questions she'd been too busy working to ever ask. 

Who am I now? 
What do I actually want? 
Where do I want my career to go?
What lights me up, and what's been quietly draining me for years?

That kind of self-knowledge doesn't come from a jobs board. It comes from slowing down long enough to find yourself again.

So that's where we're going to start. 

Not with her CV, or LinkedIn profile or interview prep. But with HER.

And soon she's going to get answers to all those questions.

And you know what the best part is????

Those answers won't just transform her career. They'll transform every area of her life.

Because we're not robots who can just switch off at 5pm. We're whole human beings. The energy you carry into work, you bring home. The dissatisfaction you feel on a Monday, you feel on a Saturday. The confusion about who you are professionally bleeds into everything else.

So when you finally get clear on who you really are? It doesn't just change your career. It changes you 🙌 

If you see yourself in this post, it's time to stop looking out there and start looking inward. ❤️ 

DM me UNSTUCK and let's figure out what you actually want first.

You're good at your job, you have been for years, but yet you feel nothing....Not burnout, not crisis, just... flat.

You show up, you perform, you get the results.

But at the end of each day you wonder if this is really it.

I call this the success trap.

You've spent years climbing a ladder. 

The money's good, the title's solid and yet something's missing and you can't quite figure out what

Here's what I've learned from working 100s of professionals who were also stuck in this exact feeling:

You don't have a job problem. 
You have a fulfilment problem.

The ladder was right for who you used to be
But it's not right for the person you are now  

This doesn't mean quitting tomorrow. It means getting honest with yourself  and then figuring out your next move.

Your career needs to evolve at the same pace you do.

The flatness you're feeling isn't a flaw, it's your instincts telling you this chapter is done.

The question isn't "should I leave?" it's "what do I actually want instead?"

That's where the real work starts.

→ Download my free Career Fulfilment Workbook (you can find it on homepage and in the comments below) Part 1 takes 20 minutes and will completely change how you see your situation.

I already have everything I need to be happy, but it took me starting a business to figure that out....

When I launched Alice Graves Coaching, I was anxious a lot.

Not because things weren't going well, but because I had this number in my head.

A number I'd decided meant "successful business."

Where did that number come from? 

Who the hell knows!

But it was a mix of what I thought I should earn, what sounded impressive and what I guessed other business owners were making.

So every month I'd measure myself against that number 

And every month I felt like I was failing.

Then one day I asked myself: what do I actually need to be happy?

Well, it turns out not that much....

A safe home, my gorgeous children, my amazing husband, my awesome  friends and family.

And that's it.

Everything else, I realised is just a bonus  

The majority of my joy doesn't come from hitting a revenue target.
It really does come from daily life.

And yet I'd been making myself miserable chasing a "more" that wouldn't have added much anyway.

The moment I got honest about that, the anxiety lifted.

Because I realised I already had what I needed.

I see this with my clients all the time.

Mid-career professionals who are unhappy, not because their life is objectively bad...

But because they're chasing "more" hoping it will finally make them happy.

More money. More title. More status.

And yet the goalposts keep moving, because more is never the answer.

Clarity is.

Getting ruthlessly honest about what you actually need and letting go of everything you don't, that's where your happiness is hiding.

This is exactly why I do the work I do.

Not to help people get more.

But to help them get clear on what they actually need.

Because most of the time? It's not what they think.

👉 If this resonates, drop me a DM. Let's figure out what enough actually looks like for you.

Work hard. Keep your head down. Be loyal. And in return? Stability. Security. A career you could count on. But what if that deal no longer exists....?

Companies are cutting people in their thousands. Profitable ones, growing ones. 

Companies are posting record revenues one quarter and announcing redundancies the next.

Hard work is no longer a guarantee of anything.

And the people making those decisions? They're not losing sleep over it.

So here's my question to you 🫵 

If the company isn't loyal to you... why are you staying in a job that brings nothing to your life?

I'm not saying walk out tomorrow. We all have bills to pay

But think about this for a second.

Most people choose the "safe" path, the steady job, the familiar role, the career that looks fine from the outside, because they're scared their dream won't work out.

The logic being: better to play it safe than risk it all.

But here's the problem with that logic.

That safe path? It doesn't exist anymore.

There are risks doing what you hate and there are risks doing what you love. 

The ground is shifting either way.

So if the world's going to be unpredictable regardless... why are you choosing to be miserable while you ride it out?

👉  Try this. Rate your job right now, 1-10, across these three things:
→ How much does it excite you? 
→ How valued do you feel? 
→ How often do you dread Monday morning?

If you're sitting on mostly low scores... you already know what that means.

So why keep putting off the career you actually want, in favour of one that could pull the rug out from under you tomorrow?

Stop waiting for the world to feel stable enough.

It won't.

And you deserve better than a life spent waiting.

The harder you work, the less it pays off, and you start to think you're the problem.....You're not

You've been working harder than ever, so why does it feel like you're falling behind?

The environment you're in shapes the story you tell yourself about who you are. And most people don't even realise it's happening.

You're in the wrong environment and everything just feels a bit harder. So you work harder. But over time? It grinds you down.

And then, like clockwork, the voice appears.

"Maybe I'm just not as good as I thought I was."

Boom. That's it. Game over.

The seed has been planted and the environment is watering it every single day. You push harder. The voice gets louder.

I was speaking to a client recently and midway through our session something shifted. 

She'd been pushing hard for years, delivering results, doing everything right. 

But something always felt off and she'd quietly started to wonder if the problem was her.

And then it clicked. It wasn't her performance, her skills or her potential. She was just in the wrong place.

That realisation alone changed everything. The self-doubt didn't disappear overnight but the story changed. 

Suddenly she wasn't someone who wasn't "good enough". She was someone ready to find where she actually belonged.

Here's what people don't realise: it's not you. It's the fit.

Because when you finally get out of that environment? Wow. 

You start to feel like yourself again, slowly the voice quiets and then one day you realise it's gone and you feel alive again. 🙌 

So how's that possible? 

Because we're all wired differently. We all thrive in different environments, with different cultures, different leadership styles, different types of work.

The wrong environment will make an exceptional person feel average. 
The right one? It will make you wonder why you ever doubted yourself at all.

So if you've been grinding and pushing and wondering why it still feels hard, let me tell you this; the problem is no you! It's your environment

👉 DM me the word ENVIRONMENT and let's figure out where you actually belong.

It's easy to look at someone else's career transformation and think: "That's not possible for me." They had more time. More contacts. More financial cushion - but that's not how it works!

I work with people from all walks of life.

Different backgrounds, different salaries, different circumstances.

But one thing unites them all;

They want to feel alive at work. Fulfilled and happy!

Some of my clients come to me with a two year runway. They don't need to work, they have time to explore, experiment and make their pivot in one clean move.

Others come to me and say: "There is absolutely no way I can stop working."
And you know what?

Both of them reach the same destination.

We just take different roads to get there.

The person with time might spend months volunteering, upskilling, exploring. Then make the leap.

The person who can't stop working? We find a path that moves them forward without blowing up their life in the process. A few strategic steps. A longer runway. But the same end result.

Here's the thing;

It doesn't matter how long it takes you or how you get there

All that matters is that you get there!

So if you've been sitting on the sidelines thinking "that kind of career happiness isn't for people like me"...

I'd gently challenge that 😜

My son asked me an interesting question this morning; "Mama, do you make a lot of money?"... here's what I said 


It depends who you ask...

I said

"Imagine you have a friend who lives in a teeny tiny place, they might come to our house and assume we're really 'rich'. But if you have a friend who lives in a huge mansion they might think we're 'poor' and feel sorry for us!"

Both of these can be true at the same time.

And that's when I had my own insight! 

We talk a lot about comparison being the thief of joy

But that's not really the problem, is it?

The real problem is that most of us have outsourced the definition of "enough" and "success" to everyone around us.

We're constantly scanning the room.

Who's got more? Who's got less? And where does that put me??  

Neither friend is lying 

But they're also not the right person to answer that question... 

And that's exactly what I told my son.

Only YOU can decide what enough is for you

Not your parents. Not your colleagues. Not LinkedIn.

But You.

And until you can answer that for yourself,  you'll always be at the mercy of whoever's standing next to you!

👉 So tell me, have you ever actually sat down and defined what enough looks like for you?

The best salespeople in the world use this technique to close deals. And it works just as well in interviews. So why aren't you using it?.....

It's called preemptive objection handling.

Here's the thing most candidates don't realise. 

Every hiring manager who invites you to interview already has a concern about you. Every single one.

Your location. A gap in your CV. Switching industries. Missing something on the job spec.

But here's the part that should make you stop and think.

They probably won't bring it up directly

Instead they'll ask broad questions and just hope that somehow, at some point, you say something that puts their concern to rest.

And if you don't? They assume their concerns were correct and they move on and you never know why!

Think about how insane that is. 

You're preparing answers to every question you think they might ask. You're researching the company. You're perfecting your stories. 

And meanwhile there's one specific thing sitting in the back of their mind that could derail your entire chances of getting hired, and you don't even know it exists.

You can't counter something you don't know about!!!

But you can get ahead of it.

Every interviewer has a concern. 

Your job, before you walk into that room, is to figure out what it probably is. And then bring it up yourself, before they do.

That's preemptive objection handling. And in the video I show why you need to be using it and how to use it.

Watch it before your next interview. 👇

Career fulfilment isn't down to luck, it's a formula that anyone can follow...

I know, because I found it! Not by accident, but by necessity.

My acting career fell apart at 25. I ran away to Thailand for a year trying to figure out who I was. Then I stumbled into recruitment, spent a decade inside start-ups and Fortune 500s, and became fascinated by what actually makes people feel alive in their work.

And gere's what I found!

The people who genuinely love what they do have three things in common:

1. They know what they're optimising for. 
Not just salary and  title. But they know what makes work feel meaningful to them and they design their career around that.

2. They treat each role as a chapter, not a life sentence. 
They take what energises them, leave what doesn't, and move with intention rather than desperation.

3. They treat clarity as a skill. 
Not something you're born with, but something you build through reflection, honest conversation, and a willingness to question the story you've been telling yourself.

You're not stuck because you're "broken" or because you were born without  'purpose'. 

You're stuck because nobody bloody taught you this!

But I truly want you to know that there's always a way forward and it all starts with getting clear on you! Who you are, and what you really want. 

→ If you want to start figuring this out with the support of experts, drop me a DM.

taplio

The Battle

Michael Kirsten

Alice Graves-Nguyen

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The Battle

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Alice Graves-Nguyen

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Engagements

Likes

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