As Lead Project Manager for Avantpage, Vera Hooijdonk is a master at juggling projects, time, and people. Her job requires an incredible amount of attention to detail, quick thinking, and highly-developed communication skills as she guides Avantpage’s translation and production teams to accomplish their tasks, meet deadlines, and deliver the quality work Avantpage is known for.
Vera, a native of the Netherlands who speaks English, Dutch and Spanish fluently, has always had an interest in language and linguistics. While attending the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands, she majored in Spanish language and literature, and then earned a Masters degree in translation studies. According to Vera, “Other majors like Economics are always popular, but I chose to follow my passion and study languages.”
As Lead Project Manager, how does she keep projects on track and on time, and her team engaged and working cohesively? Planning, patience and flexibility –– all hallmarks of Vera’s own personal management style. As she explains, “I thrive in a fast-paced work environment where deadlines come up quickly and a sense of urgency and excitement permeates the workplace.”
She loves working as part of a close-knit multicultural team, where people from different industries, cultures, and countries work together. As a problem-solver and troubleshooter, Vera loves working with Avantpage’s clients, solving linguistic problems, handling a variety of translation projects, and being exposed to new people and industries. Vera also enjoys working with Avantpage’s translator team, and commented, “Our translators take their jobs seriously … which makes my job that much easier. They are proud of their work, they enjoy what they do … it makes a huge difference in the quality and consistency of the projects we deliver.”
When Vera has free time, she enjoys traveling. Perhaps because of her multicultural background growing up in Holland, she has long had an appreciation of other cultures and a yearning to explore other countries. Vera has traveled extensively in Europe, and her future travel destinations include Japan, South America, and Russia.
To reach Vera with questions about project management, contact Vera Hooijdonk at vera@avantpage.com or at 530-750-2040, x8.