Sarah and Maarten's job application stories
Maarten Balis recently started working as a Fund Administrator at KBC Asset Management. Sarah De Smet has been a member of the KBC Live team for almost a year now, currently working as a Home & Insurance Expert. In this article, they both share the story of their application and appointment.
How did you end up at KBC?
Maarten: My story may be a bit atypical. I had previously applied for a job at KBC and taken online tests, albeit for a different position. That came to nothing at the time, but a while later I received a call. The person who is now my manager contacted me to ask if I was interested in applying for the vacancy for a Fund Administrator at KBC Asset Management. The timing was perfect as I was looking for a new job.
Shortly after that, I went for an introductory meeting. I had already taken the online tests, so in principle the process could move quickly. And it did: there was just three weeks between the initial contact and a contract proposal. My start date was a bit later so that I could begin along with eight other Young Graduates.
Sarah: That sounds familiar! The application process also went very quickly and smoothly for me. An employee at the KBC branch where I am a customer asked me if I might be interested in a job at KBC. I think he sensed that a commercial role would be up my street. So I just randomly looked through the vacancies on the KBC job site and the Commercial Track immediately appealed to me. This is the route KBC offers to those starting out in a commercial role in a bank branch.
That same evening, a bit impulsively i have to admit, I forwarded my CV and cover letter. I was immediately invited to take an online reasoning test and to record a video introducing myself. A day later, a recruiter from KBC contacted me to schedule an interview.
In that first interview, we did a role-play to see what commercial skills I already had. I received immediate feedback on that, which fortunately was very positive. So I was able to go home feeling good. I was told I’d hear back within the week, but in fact I received a call even before I got home. And later that same day, we discussed an employment contract proposal in an online meeting.
What was it like to start in your new job?
Sarah: In the Commercial Track, everyone starts at the beginning of the month. There’s a good number of start-ups each month; I myself started on 3 July together with six others. The very first day we were welcomed by colleagues, and that was a really nice experience. Other than that, the day revolved around taking care of practical matters, such as picking up my laptop.
Maarten: In my second week, there was welcome day for starters, where we received information from board members on what KBC is all about. It’s concept that makes you feel truly welcome. There are also smart initiatives for new employees. For example, there’s a flex system for desks, but starters are always given a seat at a reserved newbie desk.
Sarah: You also feel that there’s absolutely no competition between colleagues; everyone genuinely wants to help you. I felt very welcome.
How did the training for your new job go?
Maarten: The training is cleverly designed. There are some mandatory courses that you can take online at your own pace, for example relating to cybersecurity. For the job-specific modules, I receive face-to-face training from an experienced colleague. As we often work with colleagues from our shared service centre in Brno, a week in Brno was part of the onboarding process – I spent five days there getting to know those colleagues. It was a super cool experience.
Sarah: In the Commercial Track, training is very structured but at the same time tailor-made. All starters can follow the training at their own pace. For me, the basic training in the Retail Academy took five months. After that, I would go to a bank branch or join KBC Live. I wanted to work at KBC Live, in Home & Insurance. My supervisor supported me in making that choice and made sure I was able to continue in that role. Now it’s nine months later, and I’ve recently started conducting discussions independently with customers about home loans.
For me, the pace was neither too fast nor too slow. The structure gave me peace of mind. I had time to process new information, ask questions and then apply what I learned in practice. I never felt like I was being thrown in at the deep end.
What appeals to you about KBC?
Sarah: You feel that KBC is a very innovative bank. An example of a valuable innovation within Home & Insurance is a feature in KBC Mobile that helps customers live in a more energy-efficient way. There are tips that provide immediate savings, such as insulating part of your home.
Someone looking for a home loan can easily do an online simulation. This shows customers that they can get a cheaper interest rate if their home has a favourable EPC rating. If they subsequently improve the EPC rating of the property – for example, by having double glazing installed – they can still apply for the cheaper rate.
Maarten: A very nice example of innovation at KBC Asset Management is the concept of Spare change investing. Each time you pay for a purchase with your bank card, the amount is rounded up, e.g. from 9.59 euros to 10 euros. Your 'spare change' is automatically invested, which can add up to a tidy sum after a while.
You see that there’s a lot of focus on new technologies. What do they entail? What can you do with them? I recently attended a training day at KBC head office in Leuven. It was all about quantum computing and what that could mean for KBC. It was very interesting.
Sarah: It’s also a great benefit that there are lots of opportunities for career development. Those opportunities are there for the taking.
Following a presentation I once gave, I was asked to host the Retail Inspiration Day for students and act as their point of contact for questions. I was also invited by the HR team to participate in a side project. Out of this came ‘What’s on your mind?’ (‘Zeg’es’), an initiative on social media where we briefly interview young people on topics such as ‘Can you save every month?’ or ‘How much do you want to earn?’. The content is very accessible and it’s fun to do. As an employee who started relatively recently, it’s nice to have so much confidence placed in me.
