For 6 months, our Scapta clan got to know a new Scapta intern. Jamie Van Gossum, 24 years old, a programming student, immersed himself in the wonderful world of Dynamics 365 & Power Platform over a period of 6 months. What did these 6 months mean for Jamie? What project did he complete during this time? Intern Jamie will guide you through his journey!
Hi, meet:
Jamie Van Gossum 😎 24 years old
Internship programming💪
In his element at the gym 🏋️ & on a motocross bike when things need to pick up speed 🏍️
How long were you involved with the Scaptanes?
From November 2022 to June 2023.
How did you end up at Scapta?
I learned about Scapta at the PXL University College Handshake Event early last year. I felt an immediate connection. So, hesitation was not an option and I immediately applied for an internship. And voilà, here I am now!
What do you find important in a good internship?
First and foremost, a pleasant environment and colleagues you feel comfortable with, this is a must because you spend a lot of time during your internship, and of course, the most important thing, gaining knowledge and learning!
How did your first internship days go?
Great! I was received very well, and there was a friendly atmosphere that made me feel at ease. Once I knew what my project entailed and which technologies I would be working with, I immersed myself in the world of Dynamics 365 and PowerApps.
Can you tell me more about this internship project?
My graduation thesis focused on the Customer Self-Service Portal. A portal created for Scapta's customers to handle their support requests as quickly and efficiently as possible. In doing so, I made use of Power Pages and Power Apps, which were completely new to me.
Feet in a new field! Always fun to learn something new, I think.
That was absolutely it!
The customer self-service portal, then... tell me more!
The idea behind the customer self-service portal is that customers can register their own support requests, allowing Scapta's support department to focus solely on resolving and processing cases. Currently, customers first call Scapta, after which the support department has to create a case in CRM and only then can they provide an answer to their problem, which is very time-consuming. This step is therefore no longer necessary thanks to the self-service portal.
Efficient, in my opinion! What can customers still see & do in this portal?
Customers can see which cases they have already created, which are open, and which have been handled by our support department. Additionally, through the ‘support contract’ button, customers can see which contract they own, how many cases they have in total, and how many cases they can still create. And last but not least, customers can purchase new cases through the ‘shop’. All win-wins, if you ask me!
Certainly! What are the main benefits of this for the customer and for Scapta?
Customer satisfaction! The customer's goal is to reduce the response time for support inquiries, enabling them to receive quicker answers to their questions.
For Scapta, it's much more time-efficient. The support department can now fully focus on resolving and processing cases.
Nice project! Is it intended to be implemented soon?
It is indeed intended that this will go live, but it is not yet clear when.
What were the biggest challenges and learning opportunities within this project?
Especially the research into Power Pages required a lot of time and effort. Especially because no one within the company possessed the necessary knowledge about it. Perseverance and self-discipline were therefore a must to be able to realize this.
My learning moment was primarily investing more time in the planning phase; this makes everything easier in the next phase and allowed me to work more efficiently.
Now that your internship is nearing its end, do you feel you've been able to develop into a captain and are ready for the workplace?
I definitely feel that way. I can confidently say that the project has been successfully completed! The technologies were new to both me and my colleagues. The fact that I was the first to do this within Scapta fills me with pride. The necessary independence and perseverance that I was able to demonstrate indicate to me that I am ready for it.
Sure, if I had to describe my "internship" in one sentence or word, it would be: Learning.
An ideal internship with lots to learn and great colleagues!