Employee in the Spotlight

In the Spotlight: Guus de Wit

At adesso, we believe our people are the heart of our success. That’s why we’re proud to share the stories of our colleagues in ‘Employee in the Spotlight.’ Today, we’re excited to introduce you to Guus de Wit, a dedicated adesso consultant.

In this story, Guus shares insights about his work, what inspires him, and the projects he’s most proud of. His story offers an authentic glimpse into what it means to be part of adesso—a place where we work together towards growth and innovation, with care and commitment to one another.

Work Insights

What is your role with your client, and what does it involve?

Officially, I’m a DevOps Engineer at Rabobank. In practice, I primarily handle backend work, and as a team, we are responsible for maintaining and running our services.

How long have you been working at adesso, and what do you enjoy most about your role and working at adesso?

I’ve been with adesso for 3 years, with the last 2 years at Rabobank. In our team at Rabobank, we have a "Unicorn Day" every two weeks, where we get to choose what we want to work on. It allows us to experiment with new technologies and create POCs for innovative ideas.

What I love about adesso is the open and friendly atmosphere, where after a knowledge-sharing evening, we dive into the game cabinet and continue socializing over drinks.

Can you share a project you're particularly proud of and why?

Two projects that started during our Unicorn Days have since become open source and are now available on GitHub. RET is a smart CLI application that enables context-driven actions, and the Shadow Tool assists with migrating to a new backend (for example, from a legacy system to something more modern). We began by creating something that excited us, and these projects have since grown into tools that everyone can use.

How do you stay motivated and inspired in your work?

I love diving into complex problems and finding elegant solutions. Our largest service is called by nearly 60 applications and handles thousands of requests per second. This means we always have to consider the potential impact of any changes and can’t just take the most obvious route. The drive to do this well is what keeps me motivated.

What’s the best professional advice you’ve ever received?

In my quest for perfect solutions, I sometimes get in my own way by overthinking all the possible options. A key piece of advice for me was to quickly develop an idea and share it with the team. This often sparks discussions that help us arrive at even better solutions more quickly.

How do you see the future of your field or industry?

In recent years, the pace of change in AI has accelerated significantly. What I’ve noticed while using tools like Copilot is that simple tasks are completed much faster, leaving more mental capacity for complex logic. I believe that using these tools will soon become almost essential, though they won’t completely replace our work just yet.

Beyond the Desk

What do you enjoy doing in your free time?

I’m a fan of playing board games and reading books. I often listen to audiobooks and podcasts, which allows me to combine them with driving or working out. I’m also frequently at the bouldering gym, where I can combine my love for puzzles with physical challenges.

Do you have a hidden talent or hobby that we might not know about?

For the past year, I’ve been taking bachata lessons. I’ve had a few dance lessons before, but never as consistently as this. I wouldn’t say I’m very good at it yet, but I think I’m starting to get the hang of it!

What’s your favorite place to unwind after a long workday?

This summer, temporary padel courts were set up at the Jaarbeurs. We try to go there every week with colleagues. After a long day at my desk, running around for an hour is definitely a good idea!

What’s something on your bucket list that you’d love to do?

I’ve always had the idea of packing my bags, heading to the airport, and buying a plane ticket on the spot, though I’m not sure if I’d actually go through with it. I’m pretty laid-back when it comes to vacations—I'm fine with spending a week lounging on a beach—so maybe it’s doable.

Professional Passions and Personal Pleasures

What’s the most valuable lesson you’ve learned? It can be personal or professional.

It’s okay to make mistakes. What’s more important is to evaluate what went wrong afterward and try to prevent it from happening again.

What’s your favorite way to start the workday?

I like to keep Teams off for the first half-hour so I’m not disturbed by messages. I often have ideas after work, and this way, I can start working on them right away.

Do you have a work-related guilty pleasure (such as a particular podcast or snack)? If so, what is it?

I really enjoy creating systems to keep things organized. I do this at work, for my board game collection, and (much to my girlfriend’s annoyance) even in our cutlery drawer. I find inspiration in productivity podcasts like “Cortex".