Lucas Jellema, CTO of AMIS and a driving force behind progress, has flourished at AMIS | Conclusion. He has been responsible for our technical vision and direction, developing our people’s knowledge and skills, and safeguarding quality and craftsmanship.

At our quarterly meeting, I proudly announced Lucas’s promotion to CTO of Conclusion. A natural next step, given his tireless energy and determination to bring the same momentum to Conclusion that he has brought to AMIS. Broad and deep expertise, a passionate personality, a fantastic presenter, a mentor, someone who can explain things at every level, with genuine attention to the individual. I look back proudly on Lucas’s more than 20 years at AMIS, including 15 years working together.

Lucas beautifully summarised his experiences in his article, ‘An anniversary with the same employer: 20 years of experience’ on conclusion.nl. By his standards, it was rather short. I would like to reflect on his story through AMIS’s core values, which make us a great place to work, a valued partner and a market leader in real-time data. Those five values are passion, mastery, commitment, innovation and courage.

Passion is the foundation: loving your profession. Believing in the power of technology, enjoying the challenge of creating something from nothing, and embracing the constant flow of new developments. Solving the puzzle of making something work within complex structures and dependencies. The creativity of finding solutions and the drive to build them properly through sound engineering. Quality that lasts.

IT runs through Lucas’s life, alongside being a family man, an athlete and much more. Lucas researches, reads, experiments, builds, discusses and presents his insights and experiences. He starts early and organises knowledge-sharing sessions in the evenings. You can only sustain that when you are truly passionate about what you do. Passion is contagious: nothing is more inspiring than working together on something you love.

Mastery takes craftsmanship to the next level. It means continuing where others stop. Being good at something means understanding it thoroughly, applying it and enriching it with the elements around it. Reliable, future-proof IT, good algorithms, code, infrastructure, non-functional requirements, definitions of ready and done, standards, best practices, productivity and delivery processes. IT is defined by complexity and interconnectedness, and by finding an appropriate answer to every challenge. Above all, mastery lies in sharing knowledge.

Lucas’s contribution to the AMIS Technology Blog is phenomenal, as are the results: more than 17 years of knowledge, attracting thousands of visitors every day. Lucas has always invested time in sharing knowledge: at AMIS, within Conclusion, at conferences, with customers, and through blogs, articles and books. It has become a core value in its own right: at AMIS, sharing knowledge matters more than possessing it.

Commitment to colleagues, to the people at our customers, to our purpose and to society. AMIS is a people business: technology works, but people determine the outcome. Understanding why you do what you do, for the customer, yourself, each other and the organisation. Openness, respect and appreciation for one another’s strengths, limitations and circumstances. For years, we have explained the meaning of AMIS through the idea of friendship: enjoyment, being able to rely on one another, shared interests, selflessness, trust and, above all, wanting the best for each other.

Lucas contributes enormously to this commitment. He encourages understanding of people and their circumstances, looking beyond what we immediately see or hear. He learns, connects and seeks harmony. When that does not come naturally, he talks about it, as friends do. Only your closest friends dare to challenge you and say what you would rather not hear. That makes friendships stronger.

Innovation is the foundation of IT. In a relatively young field, change happens quickly. People at AMIS must be willing to reinvent themselves every five years. For us, innovation means recognising new possibilities and understanding how to use them to make organisations better, faster, more cost-effective and more efficient, reduce risks, or even devise and implement entirely new business models. Lucas is an innovator. He knows what is happening and what is coming. He wants to understand what technology can do, how it works, where its strengths lie and what needs to be considered. AMIS and Lucas: driving progress.

Courage is needed to step outside your comfort zone, try something new, let something go, overcome resistance and challenge conventions. Our courage comes from the conviction that things can always be better, that we want to improve and challenge the status quo. Courage means daring to trust, asking for help and doing what others only talk about, guided by trust, knowledge, experience and intuition. Lucas is no daredevil. He believes in his own abilities, in technology and in the power of collaboration. He encourages others to build their confidence and get started, take those first steps and dare to say what matters. That makes him a wonderful colleague and an ideal partner for taking on ambitious challenges together.

Five of Lucas’s character traits, five AMIS core values, have helped us achieve successes we are proud of: impressive customer references, an excellent company and a place where talent flourishes. When someone leaves after an exceptionally long time with us, having grown professionally and personally, in their role, experience, knowledge and skills, we feel proud. We feel the pain of saying goodbye, while also celebrating that growth. That certainly applies to Lucas.

Lucas, once an AMIS colleague, always an AMIS colleague! A proud member of our ‘history wall’, featuring everyone who has helped shape, develop and represent AMIS for ten years or more. I am proud to have been your colleague, Lucas, and to remain one. In a different role that suits you perfectly, with the same core values, the same intentions and the same intensity. Thank you for everything you have meant to us, everything you have meant to me, and everything you will continue to do for and with us!