Motopp celebrates fifth anniversary with launch of photo book 'Drijfveren'

On Thursday, November 20, we celebrated Motopp’s fifth anniversary with more than two hundred guests.

Over the past five years, we’ve guided hundreds of newcomers into jobs in the Dutch IT market. From day one, Motopp has revolved around motivation and ability.

What do I really want? What am I truly capable of? And what do I need to get there?

We don’t look at where someone comes from, but at where they want to go. That has been our driving force for five years. To celebrate, we spent the past few months working on the photo book Drijfveren, 44 portraits and stories that show what moves people. On November 20, we launched the book during our anniversary celebration. A double celebration.

We are more alike than we think

When you meet someone, you usually don’t see it right away. Differences stand out first: a different jacket, language, or opinion. Only when you spend more time with someone do you discover how similar we truly are.

Most people want roughly the same things. Our desires are modest. We want life to be good enough for ourselves and a little better for our children. We want to contribute and take part. That shared humanity is what Motopp is all about and the reason we created Drijfveren.

Drijfveren

At Motopp, nothing we do is done alone. This book captures 44 people who shaped what Motopp is today over the past five years. Motoppers, partners, municipalities, and our internal team. The photos were taken by Michel Khoury, himself a newcomer from Syria and someone who understands better than anyone why we do what we do. His portraits are real, human, vulnerable, and powerful at the same time.

Noor Baouche spoke with everyone featured in the book about what drives them, what work means to them, and why they do what they do. The essence of those conversations is captured in one quote on the cover.

In the end we all want something very human. A place where you feel welcome, Where you can make a difference.

Jimmy Nelson

For years, we’ve gifted photo books by renowned photographer Jimmy Nelson to our partners. He inspired us to create a book of our own. During the making process, Jimmy coached Michel as a fellow photographer. Jan Princen described his role perfectly: “He pushed us further without even pushing.” It made it even more special that we were able to celebrate part of our fifth anniversary in his studio.

In conversation with Motoppers

We opened the afternoon in Club Birdies with a story from founder Jan about the origins of Motopp.

“Motoppers do it themselves. I don’t write a single line of code. All we do here is help people and encourage others to do the same. It’s not charity. With a small push, Motoppers lift themselves up, like Baron von Münchhausen pulling himself out of the water.”

After that, Motoppers Sarah (PostNL), Nataliia (Deloitte), and Rüstü (NEa) spoke on stage about their experiences.

Nataliia: “When I came to the Netherlands, I felt insecure. The only thing I was sure of was that I was a strong mother. Through the traineeship, I slowly started believing in myself again. Willem, my IT trainer, eventually called me ‘Miss Why’ because I always asked questions. Motopp gave me back my confidence. Now I feel not only like a strong mother, but a strong woman.”

Sarah: “In Pakistan, you’re expected to always say yes to everything a manager asks. At Motopp, I learned that saying ‘no’ is powerful. It means choosing focus, and that leads to better results.”

Jan: “What seems hard often turns out to be easy. But the easy things—like saying ‘no’—often turn out to be the hard ones.”

Rüstü: “In Turkey, I was in the military. Everything was predetermined: wear the uniform, follow orders, don’t talk much. Your own ideas didn’t matter, and there was hardly any room to express them. At the NEa, everything is different. My supervisor said: ‘This is the goal, choose how you want to achieve it.’ That was difficult at first. Here I learned that you’re allowed to make your own choices.”

The book launch

After the conversation with the Motoppers, it was time for the book launch. Jimmy spoke about the project: About Noor and Jan, who sat down with him with grand plans, but also about Michel, who quietly listened. Michel was going through a difficult time. His wife and children were still in Syria, and for a long time it was uncertain whether they would be able to come to the Netherlands.

Jimmy: “I felt his pain. He asked me one day, ‘In such a short time, how do I best communicate with people? How do I get under their skin, to their soul?’ I answered, ‘Share the pain you have. Share that loneliness. And look for the embrace.’”

About the result, Jimmy said: “Without a doubt, extraordinarily beautiful pictures.”

The first copy of the book was presented to Michel Khoury. His love, empathy, openness, and drive turned the project into a work of art.

Michel spoke on stage about the emotional weight of the book: “It was an exceptional experience for me. I was passing a bad period in my life; this book was kind of help for me. I can’t thank Motopp enough. But mostly the people in this book. Humans. I felt my humanity. I felt more human when I was talking to every person. When I was sharing my thoughts, my problems. When I was hearing others’ problems. Everything. Even when people were sharing their vacations, that was hope for me. Hope in a stable life, a better life. I want to thank everybody, Motopp, Jimmy, the people in this book, and my wife who was standing with me from far away.”

What made the evening complete was that Michel’s wife and children arrived in the Netherlands just a few weeks ago and were able to attend the celebration.

Exhibition at Jimmy Nelson Studio

The portraits from the book were exhibited in Jimmy Nelson’s studio. Between Jimmy’s own photos of people from all over the world, stood fourteen easels displaying Michel’s portraits. It was an impressive sight.

Here’s to Many More Years of Motopp

The celebration of five years of Motopp was a beautiful reflection of the past years. We continue with motivation and a deep focus on people.

Jan concluded: “Motopp is about people. Helping people who’ve had bad luck find a place where they can participate and contribute. Helping organizations find good people, people who are desperately needed in a time of aging populations and technological change. And helping society by ensuring people who are too often left on the sidelines can take part. That’s our triple win.”

“I believe we should implement the Motopp method in as many places as possible. Human-centered, potential-focused. Sarah says she learned from us to look at her strengths, and how strong Sarah is. I wish we would all do that. Look at the strengths in ourselves and in others. So that everyone who wants to can contribute in the right place.”