The Employee Spotlight series is our way of giving you an inside look at the people behind our brand. In last month’s Employee Spotlight, we interviewed a special member of the Mopinion Marketing team, Tjeerd. We hope you enjoyed his story. This month we’re switching gears as we highlight one of our Customer Success team members, Mr. Pieter Hotke.
Meet Pieter. Pieter has served as our Senior Customer Onboarding & Implementation Manager for nearly 4.5 years, which practically makes him a Mopinion veteran. A master in juggling multiple tasks at once, including implementations, technical support, and account management, it is safe to say that Pieter is a highly committed – not to mention, persevering team member.
Let’s find out what Pieter had to say about working at Mopinion these past 4.5 years…
What initially drew you to Mopinion?
‘When I first started at Mopinion, the market for online customer feedback was practically non-existent.’
For some the idea of entering into an untouched market might seem dubious, but to Pieter it was an opportunity; an opportunity to assume an active role in the development of the market for online feedback software.
I was anxious to both start developing the market as well as meet the growth plans Mopinion had set out for itself. In fact, that was another reason I chose to work at Mopinion. The team has a lot of ambition and drive to be successful and I wanted to be a part of that. I knew this was my opportunity to really make a difference and bring direct growth to the company.
He goes on to describe that his work at Mopinion is comparable to disruptive creation, a term coined by Joseph Schumpeter. It refers to the process of innovation, whereby successful applications of new technologies eradicate old technologies.
What does a typical work day look like for you?
‘Almost every day I have online calls scheduled in with customers, ranging from introductory calls and implementation assistance to routine check ups and product support. And when I’m not on the phone, I’m usually working on our Knowledge Base or doing other ‘behind the scenes’ work. For example, when we have a new migration (e.g. to our new survey script), my team and I need to think strategically about how to release this and which factors need to be held into account.’
What is your favorite part about working at Mopinion?
Definitely the freedom. Working at a startup like Mopinion gives you so much freedom in your work. I love that I can make my own decisions and that there’s no micromanagement. Employees are given a lot of trust and flexibility which is really really refreshing.’
What are the biggest challenges you face in your job?
‘I think one of the biggest challenges is educating our customer base and making sure customers unlock all of the benefits of Mopinion’s software (that they haven’t yet discovered on their own).’
What is your proudest moment at Mopinion?
‘I think it’s really gratifying to see our feedback button on so many websites. It really gives you a sense of pride!’
And now for the fun stuff…
What was your childhood nickname?
‘Hotke’
What is your guilty pleasure?
‘5 scoops of ice cream. Sometimes I grab some ice cream during my lunch break and nearly finish it before I reach the office!’
Where’s your favorite place in the world?
‘If I had to choose I’d say South Africa. I went there on vacation a few years back and it was really cool! We did just about everything from bungee jumping to swimming with great white sharks. We even spent a little less than a week in the wine country, which was well, kind of a blur,’ he laughs.
Pictured: Capetown
‘I would love to go back some day and witness the sardine run. It’s this really cool phenomenon that happens once a year, where billions of sardines swim to the coastline to escape a current of cold water. It becomes this feeding frenzy of sharks and dolphins and you can swim between it all.’
What’s your favorite 90’s jam?
‘I’m a fan of easy 90s, but if I had to choose one song, I’d say Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana.’
Who inspires you?
‘My wife.’
What is your favorite quote?
Nostalgia was better in the past
It’s the translation of the quote ‘Nostalgie was vroeger beter’ that a friend of mine came up with.
If you had to eat one meal every day for the rest of your life, what would it be?
‘Porterhouse steak’, Pieter says with zero hesitation.
What is something that not many people know about you?
‘We’re welcoming a new addition to our family – a mini labradoodle named Bobby!!’
Stay tuned for more!
We hope you enjoyed the first edition of the Employee Spotlight series! Stay tuned for our December spotlight…
