Key insights in this case study:
Today is a good day to solve the talent skills gap.
Established in 2013, AnyCoin Direct was one of the first crypto brokers to enter the Dutch market. The scale-up currently employs 40 people; mostly young professionals who enjoy every opportunity to grow and develop themselves. Astrid Blaak is responsible for all things HR and explains how she engages GoodHabitz to fill talent skill gaps. Curious? Scroll down and get inspired by AnyCoin Direct’s story!
Bridging the skills gap at AnyCoin Direct.
The value of narrowing the talent gap.
Skills gaps, Astrid? “Indeed. Crypto is a young industry that employs many young people,” she explains. “We frequently see people moving up because they are good at what they do. But that does not necessarily mean they're good leaders as well. So, that's an example of a skills gap.” AnyCoin Direct uses GoodHabitz’ training courses to broaden the competencies of its staff members. “The training drives awareness and self-reflection. This way, you’ll look at yourself from a different perspective and realise what steps to take to develop, both personally and professionally.”
Astrid is keen to emphasise that, even though she may sound like a GoodHabitz marketer, she definitely is objective. According to her, the young professionals are particularly eager to continue developing themselves and master a broad set of skills. She continues: “and that is where GoodHabitz really meets their needs. With the broad range of training courses, they can help any professional grow – no matter what position they hold.”
"Obviously, we expect more from a manager than from an assistant – and these courses give our talent the right tools.”
Bridging the gap from support agent to manager in 3 months.
Astrid purposely engages the courses and Masterclasses to help employees reach take their personal development goals to the next level. “One of our colleagues grew from support agent to manager in three months. She's extremely diligent and good at what she does, but obviously, we expect more from a manager than from an assistant. The courses ‘Coaching Management’ and ‘Get A Grip, Clear Your Mind’, helped her to see that too.
So, who better ask about the results than Laura, the support agent herself?
“I’ve been working at the AnyCoin Direct customer support department for five years now. Especially in the last year, things went super quick,” says Laura. “I first went from customer support agent to team lead. Three months later I was customer support manager! I can tell you, that turns your world upside down, both at home and at work. There was a lot to deal with all of a sudden.”
Gradually, Laura eased into her new role and everything around it, and she does not keep her learnings to herself. “I experiment together with the entire team to find out what works and what does not.”
She continues: “It blew my mind to see I was really becoming more creative. A training course like ‘Coaching Management’ allowed me to look at myself and my work from a completely different perspective, which led our team to come up with radically new solutions as well. And once you’ve had a taste of that success, you only want more,” she says with a smile.
"Developing yourself benefits the entire team.”
Creating double impact together with GoodHabitz.
Astrid continues: “I keep being amazed by how successful working with GoodHabitz is,” she says with a smile. “The Netflix way of studying – chopping up a course into bite-sized chunks – works really well. And the training never contains any redundant information. Participants learn exactly what they need to know.”
But Astrid’s enthusiasm is not shared by everyone, and in truth, that is fine with her. “Not all employees are as pumped as I am. It could be their expectations, or perhaps they have other needs. But such a situation usually sets the stage for a conversation that allows us to understand each other better. This way, we can offer a more suitable option. When we eventually choose training that allows the employee to move forward, both the individual and the organisation benefits. It is great to have that double impact. This is why GoodHabitz and AnyCoin Direct are such a great match.”
Of course, we're eager to hear whether any courses are especially popular at AnyCoin – compulsory or not. Astrid: “Every six months we suggest two, three courses. Together with the employee, we select one that must be completed. This way the training is really tailored to the individual. But apart from that, everyone can study any course they like. We’ve set no limits and neither has GoodHabitz.”
“GoodHabitz’ courses have become integral to our organisation."
In Astrid’s experience, giving someone the freedom to find a course that suits them can lead to surprising outcomes. “It happens that cool gamers often start their training with self-awareness courses. But we also have finance officers who want to improve their Excel skills even more. It’s all fine with us!”
Although it seems a little obvious that AnyCoin will continue working with GoodHabitz, we still wanted to check. “Definitely,” she laughs. “It’s become integral to our organisation. I can have people study with external providers or hire trainers to come here – but that means employees are not working for an entire day, while we pay a huge chunk in training fees on top of that. We give our talent the freedom to develop themselves, and they are inspired by that; they feel that it is part of their job, that gets done during their working hours. And that is great because, in the end, we all benefit.”
