Cássio Xavier Silva, TNO Trainee

“I heard about the TNO Trainee Programme when I was doing my Master’s degree thesis last year, in the Energy Transition unit, on reducing CO2 emissions in industry. I already knew then that I wanted to continue working at TNO. There are so many career opportunities here, in so many different roles and fields. They’re all really interesting, but I wondered which one suited me best. And what else was possible within TNO?“

A colleague who was part of the TNO Trainee Programme said that if I had an open and inquisitive outlook, I would be an ideal candidate. I made it through the selection procedure and two months ago I started, as a scientist innovator with TNO in the Wind Energy department.”

Fresh perspective

“As a trainee, you’re a full member of the team. In my department, my colleagues see me as a scientist and we are learning to work well together. Unlike my colleagues, I’m not a specialist. But having a fresh, broad perspective is also important for making connections between knowledge and people.

“My first trainee spot links up well with my expertise and ambitions. I’m a junior project leader for the calibration of a wind sensor that will be used in a large wind energy project. In another project – to investigate the application of wind energy in the agricultural sector – I’m more of a scientist innovator.

having an open and inquisitive outlook, makes you an ideal candidate.

“After this, I’ll be working in two more departments, probably as a project leader, consultant or business developer. Each of those roles has its own responsibilities and challenges. This is a great opportunity for me to discover how I can contribute the maximum to TNO’s strategic goals and to a sustainable world.”

Good team

“There are six of us in my trainee cohort, and we make a good team. With our varied backgrounds, interests, development goals and personalities, we complement one another really well. We’re going to do great things together! We devote one day a week to personal development and another half to our trainee project. The research managers pitched their projects to us last week. We’ll choose the project that’ll allow us to contribute the maximum to the organisation and show what we can do.

“I’m spending part of my personal development time on learning Dutch. And there’s a coach who counsels us about our other development goals. An employer who invests in your personal development – that sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it?

”TNO operates at the interface between science and industry, and that’s precisely what I’m looking for. I want to develop new technology that has applications but that doesn’t need to be immediately profitable. That’s how we create the best innovations.”