It began to spark from both sides

9 January 2023 | 2 minutes of reading time

ID&T is "the biggest party factory in the Netherlands and beyond," said CTO Michael Guntenaar. Since 2018, the entertainment company (organizer of dance events and active in more than 135 countries) has partnered with i-spark. What began as an ordinary client-contractor relationship evolved into a full-fledged partnership in which it sparks back and forth.

Why did ID&T partner with i-spark?

"We were looking in 2018 for a company that could help us with our dashboarding. Then you start Googling, and that's how I ended up at i-spark. Of course, there are also companies in the Randstad that do what they do and probably just as well. But the down-to-earth and personal attitude of these Groningen people makes all the difference to me. I thrive on that and it also suits ID&T perfectly: don't bullshit but clean up and go for it together.'

"Down-to-earth and personal, that fits ID&T perfectly."

So it clicks between you?

"You could call ID&T a 'big small company,' with about 180 employees within a motley collection of events. We are results-driven and try to organize ourselves very flat, with as little politics and hierarchy as possible. A kind of "working family. Our people are autonomous, responsible and involved, and that's how they are in their power. We find that incredibly important and it contributes to creativity. I-spark has the same vision of how to organize and that clicks.'

"We're kind of a 'working family'"

What makes i-spark different?

"Whereas in the beginning we just commissioned 'make this for me,' our collaboration with i-spark went more and more into the partner angle. And that's where things began to spark from both sides. Look, at our data partner before 2018, there were very good people who could do everything we asked. But at i-spark, you get more than what you ask for. You share each other's vision, think critically with each other, and that spark moves you forward.

"That spark takes you further."

How is it working so far?

'We mainly work with Jeroen and Jorke. These know us inside and out. And that works. Downside of that personal involvement, of course, is scalability: if someone is sick, they can't push out any other colleague. But if that happens once, we always find a solution by mutual agreement.

"Personal engagement does not scale."

What do you wish for the future?

'The most important thing for our cooperation in the future is to keep it personal. Keep challenging each other and keep strengthening each other.'