Mohamad's sustainability challenge at start-up GEHECO

Since the beginning of this year, Mohamad Alkenaan has been working as a research and development engineer at GEHECO. GEHECO is a start-up in Delft developing a method to heat houses in a smart and sustainable way with water heat pumps. ‘This is a fantastic job. I research things that don’t exist yet and get to go completely wild with ideas.’

With an engineering degree in his pocket, Syrian Mohamad fled to the Netherlands in 2022. He spent a year on the asylum seekers’ shelter boat “Galaxy” in Amsterdam. ‘I already knew then that I wanted to live near Delft. There are many technical companies in Delft, where I could find a challenging job,’ Mohamad says.

New job via LinkedIn
In 2023, he moved to Delft and got in touch with Werkse! through the municipality. ‘If I’m very honest, at first I didn’t really understand what Werkse! was. It seemed like one organisation to me.’

Mohamad found his job at GEHECO himself through LinkedIn. ‘I saw a position that interested me and applied. It was initially voluntary, but since September I have been hired as a paid employee.’

‘In that procedure, Werkse! helped. I don’t know exactly how application procedures are supposed to go in the Netherlands. Werkse! checked whether my contract was drawn up properly and whether the terms of employment were correct. That was very nice.’ It seems a good idea to Mohamad if Werkse! specialises in that area for highly educated newcomers. ‘I could just fine them

Support from Werkse! for highly skilled newcomers
Werkse! has a special team that assists status holders with integration and the first steps towards employment. Thanks to the experience knowledge of Mohamad and other newcomers, Werkse! can improve these services. Since August 2023, the Statusholders team at Werkse! has been providing training to statusholders to familiarise them with the labour market in the Netherlands. It deals with application procedures, contracts, culture and making a CV and application letter.