What if not the organization, but the candidate itself decides whether he or she is fit for the job? Clean2Anywhere is inspired by the concept of ‘Open Hiring’. Our partner Marjolijn Dölle explains how this works.
Clean2Anywhere and Open Hiring, what do those two have in common? That’s what this blog is about. As director of Werksaam Westfriesland, I am a big advocate of ‘Open Hiring’. What is this exactly? This means that you can get a job somewhere without being asked for your CV or cover letter.
Some companies say: ‘If you indicate that you want to work here, if you make the effort to come to us, if you estimate after a tour that you can handle the work and if you think you have the talents and motivation for the job? Then it’s yours.’ If you treat people like this, you let their motivation and passion speak. That’s the most important thing you need; all the knowledge and skills needed for the job, can be learned later.
Everyone is welcome (also without the papers)
The philosophy of Open Hiring comes from the United States and was introduced in the Netherlands by the Start Foundation. In West-Friesland there are now three companies that work with this, and expect that this way of hiring staff will be the norm in a few years. At least for those jobs and workplaces where no specific training requirements apply. It fits in with the trend of social entrepreneurship and in these times of shortage, entrepreneurs cannot stick to the requirements that belong to ‘Superman’ or ‘Mega Mindy’.
At Clean2Anywhere, which builds boats from plastic waste on this beautiful peninsula at the Markermeer, the philosophy of Open Hiring is in its genes*. It is a conviction of the founder and driving force of the foundation, Edwin ter Velde. Even before he ever heard of this concept, he constantly proclaimed that everyone is welcome to come and work on the ship yard. It doesn’t matter which talents you have, there is always a talent that can be used very well for the foundation.
A huge personal growth
This open attitude, this belief in people, makes everyone feel very welcome and valued there. And if you really experience that you are valued, seen and heard, something great happens! Your long hidden talents will blossom and become very visible. This makes that a huge growth spurt occurs in people’s self-confidence and self-esteem.
( *The Clean2Anywhere Foundation is inspired by the Open Hiring concept, but does not work according to the official guidelines. For example, with Open Hiring employers pay a salary from day one; this is not the case with the volunteers of Clean2Anywhere.)
So… what are the results?
As a partner organization of Clean2Anywhere, I can say this first hand. Our coaches from Werksaam Westfriesland guide the volunteers who help building the boats. What started in 2020 with a collaboration to place a few volunteers, has grown into a fantastic reintegration place for groups. Be it young people, migrants or anyone else.
We’ve already seen two group of young people take fantastic steps there. Thanks to their participation in the construction of the Dutch workboats, they now have new prospects for the future. By seeing these people, listening to them, giving them attention and trust, they can believe in a bright future again. This, in combination with a beautiful, low-stimulus environment, meaningful work with tangible results and good guidance, makes that people can fully participate in society again. So beautiful!
Open Hiring a solution for staff shortage
When you look at the shortage on the labor market, especially in technology, we see that some of these young people also move on to a job in this sector. All based on the fact that they got a chance to show their talents, and not because they had a piece of paper in their pocket. So tech companies, take a look at Clean2Anywhere! Who knows, you might be able to solve your staff shortage this way.
Actually, the name Clean2Anywhere should be changed, or at least an addition should be added. Because to me it is clear that Clean2Anywhere welcomes everyone and gives people so much confidence that it is completely Clean4Everybody!
About the author: Marjolijn Dölle is director at WerkSaam Westfriesland, which mediates and coaches people from a (long-term) benefit situation into employment.
Great results at Clean2Anywhere (editor’s note):
This way of working, in combination with intensive guidance by the WerkSaam coaches, translates into real results for these young people: personal development and participation in society. Of the first group, 6 people found paid work during the process, 3 registered for an education, and the rest took ‘steps on the participation ladder’.
In other words: they went through such a development that the step towards paid work became smaller. Like getting used to responsibility and social contacts, arriving at work on time, learning the Dutch language or getting grip on personal problems such as housing, debt or addiction. The second group has not yet finished, but the results are already better.
