As the conclusion of our "Where are they now?" blog series as well as in celebration of today's NetHope Academy graduation in Haiti, we would like to feature a story from one of our interns graduating as part of our second Haiti Academy class: Gael A. Chrispin Beauboeuf.
I am the system manager for T-cash, Voilà’s mobile money service. I manage issues, troubleshoot any problems that face our team and make requests for new features that we need. T-cash allows Voilà customers to use their phone as wallet to exchange money—whether that means transferring it to their friends and family or using it to pay for food with a cooperating merchant. God blessed me, I am the first intern from my NetHope Academy class to secure a full-time job.
For many of us, our career started with NetHope Academy. Through the program, I had the opportunity to be placed in an internship with the company I always wanted to work for—Voilà, a telecom company in Haiti that is owned by Trilogy International.
I began my internship in the project management office within Voilà because I love management. In the past I’ve often been a leader in associations; I was even the president of my class. I was so excited to work in the IT department of such a huge company, next to experienced IT professionals.
I wanted to make the most of my experience, so I asked my boss if there was any section that needed more support. Within one month, I was transferred to a busier department to help with the heaviest workloads. My time spent with the ServiceDesk team was rewarding because we were the first responders for all problems. It was a lot of hard work, but I learned a lot.
When I was interning with the ServiceDesk team, I saw a database administrator job with T-cash listed on Voilà’s internal website, and I applied for it. My friends said I did not have any chance, that Voilà would never call me and that I should keep working and learning as an intern, but I had already sent in my resume. In the interview I was able to use my skills from NetHope Academy to effectively communicate my experience in leadership, management and mobile money. Three weeks later, I found out I was offered a job; but to be a system manger—the boss of the position I had applied for!
NetHope Academy helped to prepare me for my internship, and now for my job as system manager. It is a really great experience for any young graduate without work experience. I learned how to express myself in a professional way and, for instance, to correctly write an email. Voilà often uses email, and because of NetHope, I am able to correctly respond and to ask the right questions.
To the future NetHope Academy interns, I would tell them that there are a lot of opportunities in the ICT world. It is really a huge field with various components. In this world, you need to be enterprising and proactive. I would also suggest that they work hard every day as IT is a dynamic field, to be confident and to pass certification related to what they like the most. For my part, I see myself as a future IT project manager. So I am working on getting my PMP and ITILv3 exam.
I would like to thank God that He gave my parents the opportunities to take care of me. Secondly I want to thank NetHope for such an incredible program. I hope that by having qualified human resources, Haiti will develop faster, in a better way.
Want to hear more on NetHope Academy interns? Read stories from Paul Junior Jean-Marie and Emmanuella Stimphat on how NetHope Academy changed their lives, one year since their graduation ››
