Meet ACA Group’s Cloud Team!
Usually, they are behind the screens, but this time we are giving them screen time! Meet the architects, engineers and consultants from our Cloud Team. What do they love about their job? Which projects are they working on? And fast forward to 2050: what does the future hold for cloud technology? “It will be like electricity” and “A European company will challenge America”: talk about setting the tone!
Meet the Cloud Team!
“We are Kubernetes pioneers”
Bregt Coenen
Cloud Architect
Bregt is responsible for designing and implementing Kubernetes and CloudNative solutions.
He helps colleagues out with complex issues and helps to realize OpsKlaar's vision. With his in-depth knowledge of container technologies, he plays a crucial role in cloud-native innovation within the team.
What do you like about ACA?
The freedom to explore new technologies. The variety of projects. And the team’s focus on quality.
Milestone?
ACA was one of the first companies to work with Kubernetes, making us a pioneer in our sector.
The cloud in 2050...
Will have more cohesion between different cloud providers, making integrations easier. A further rise of AI-driven automation will make cloud management almost completely autonomous.
Favorite quote?
“Have you tried turning it off and on again?”
“I get the chance to expand my knowledge”
Ugur Akkar
Cloud Engineer
Ugur optimizes cloud environments and helps customers with technical challenges. He also contributes to team dynamics and knowledge sharing within the team.
What do you like about ACA?
The strong sense of camaraderie, the open corporate culture, and the many opportunities for advancement.
Milestone?
Obtaining various certifications: this enables me to further deepen my expertise. And my five-year work anniversary here at ACA.
The cloud in 2050...
Cloud platforms will be set up and managed fully automatically with AI, without the need for human intervention.
Favorite quote?
“Hello, IT. Have you tried turning it off and on again?”
“My favorite project: migrating Olympus Mobility to EKS”
Abdulkadir Yavuz
Cloud Consultant
Abdulkadir primarily works as a consultant for large companies and public organizations, where he takes care of infrastructure management and DevOps tasks. His expertise lies in cloud migrations and automating processes for optimal efficiency.
What do you like about ACA?
The colleagues’ willingness to always help and share knowledge with each other.
Milestone?
The successful migration to EKS for Olympus Mobility, which has enabled us to make a major impact on the efficiency and stability of the infrastructure.
The cloud in 2050...
The emergence of quantum computing as a crucial factor in computing. This will exponentially increase processing power and open up new possibilities for complex calculations.
Favorite quote?
“No time better than the present.”
“Implementation of GitOps with Flux and ArgoCD”
Jonas Brisart
DevOps Engineer
Jonas automates processes on both the development and infrastructure sides. He ensures that software development and operations are seamlessly aligned.
What do you like about ACA?
The strong team spirit, the technological challenges, and the opportunity to explore new tools and methodologies.
Milestone?
The implementation of GitOps with Flux and ArgoCD, both for customers and internally at ACA. The result: more efficient and secure management of infrastructure and applications.
The cloud in 2050...
AI will play an even greater role in managing and optimizing cloud resources, enabling self-learning systems to automatically select the most efficient configurations.
Favorite quote?
“The future belongs to those who master the cloud.”
“A successful Kubernetes integration at a leading pharmaceutical company”
Jeroen Hartgers
Cloud Consultant
Jeroen works as a consultant for our big clients and manages Kubernetes stacks and monitoring solutions. He ensures that the infrastructure works securely and efficiently, and is scalable.
What do you like about ACA?
Working with nice and reliable colleagues. And the opportunity to implement innovative solutions.
Milestone?
We got the Kubernetes platform to work at a global player in the pharmaceutical industry. Making maintenance a lot easier. This has also enabled us to significantly improve the reliability and scalability of the applications.
The cloud in 2050...
IT systems that fit together like Lego blocks, but with increasing complexity behind the scenes that remains largely hidden from users.
Favorite quote?
“Do what you have to do until you can do what you want to do.”
“The cloud will be like electricity”
Patrik Söderström
Cloud Consultant
Patrik uses his years of IT experience to support customers with Azure FinOps and Infrastructure as Code. He helps organizations optimize their cloud costs and implement scalable solutions.
What do you like about ACA?
The ambitious and motivated colleagues who inspire and challenge each other.
Milestone?
The go-live of the Argus application for OVAM in the Azure environment. A project in which we played an important role in the architecture and implementation.
The cloud in 2050...
The cloud will be like electricity: self-evident and always operational. Without users having to worry about the underlying complexity.
Favorite quote?
“Whether you think you can, or you think you can't—you're right.”
“Orchestration and scaling will run autonomously”
Johan Soetewey
Cloud Consultant
Johan is responsible for designing and developing cloud environments with a focus on Microsoft Azure. He works on platform engineering using Terraform, Kubernetes, and Cloud Native technologies. Together with his team, he improves these platforms and supports customers and developers.
What do you like about ACA?
The great work culture. Hard work is combined with fun and room for personal development. The passion I feel among my colleagues for the profession. The diverse projects.
Milestone?
Successfully convincing a customer to migrate entirely to the cloud, with us as their guide.
The cloud in 2050...
Platform engineering and cloud-native tooling will become even more important. In 2050, developers will be able to generate applications using a simple prompt, with orchestration and scaling running autonomously.
Favorite quote?
“Stay hungry, stay foolish”
“The dynamics of a small team, the power of a big company”
Roel Van Steenberghe
Cloud Project Manager
Roel is responsible for the team that develops solutions in Google Cloud. His eight years of experience in Google Cloud, combined with his 15 years of experience in IT, make for an interesting cocktail of ideas.
What do you like about ACA?
Maintaining the dynamics of a small team in a large environment is difficult. But ACA manages to do so remarkably well.
Milestone?
ACA's acquisition of vBridge, which enabled us to make Opsklaar even stronger.
The cloud in 2050...
The world seems to be spinning faster and faster, and we can't even imagine, let alone predict, the role of AI in the cloud in 2050. Companies will therefore need cloud infrastructure that allows them to respond very quickly to changing legislation, products, or geopolitics. Open standards and protocols will become even more important.
Favorite quote?
“Great minds think alike, fools never differ.”
“We migrated an entire on-premise environment to Google Cloud”
Joost De Wilde
Cloud Engineer
Joost specializes in designing, implementing, and optimizing environments within the Google Cloud Platform. He ensures that every cloud solution is not only functional and high-performing, but also meets the highest security standards.
What do you like about ACA?
Working together with colleagues and the trust you are given. Everyone tries to get the best out of themselves and is always willing to help. In addition, it doesn't always have to be serious: the atmosphere here is great.
Milestone?
Migrating an entire on-premise environment to Google Cloud. We used the optimizations and possibilities offered by the cloud to create an environment that is future proof.
The cloud in 2050...
A strategic combination of cloud and on-premises infrastructure. Data availability and security will be a priority.
Favorite quote?
"Stop the madness!"
“The cloud will evolve into an invisible infrastructure”
Rune De Donder
Cloud Engineer
Specialized in Google Cloud applications, with a specific focus on systems that process a high number of requests per second (RPS). To this end, he designs high-level scaling setups that make smart use of serverless components.
What do you like about ACA?
My colleagues’ in-depth technical expertise and the opportunity to work on complex and challenging projects. The focus here is not only on delivering solutions but also on striving for technical perfection and innovation.
Milestone?
The successful completion of a large-scale cloud migration. This project required years of preparation and meticulous planning. And that I was able to improve the quality of life (QOL) of developers.
The cloud in 2050...
By 2050, the cloud will have evolved into a completely invisible infrastructure. I predict an era in which developers will be able to focus exclusively on building applications, without having to worry about the underlying infrastructure, thanks to advanced and automated platforms. Security will no longer be a separate task, but fully integrated into every aspect of cloud architecture.
Favorite quote?
“Software is eating the world”
“A European cloud company will take up the gloves against the big names in America”
Peter Jans
Manager Cloud & DevOps Team
As Lead, Peter is involved in the strategic, commercial, and operational aspects within the team. He acts as a mentor and coach and ensures that both the business and customers receive optimal support. In addition, he safeguards the technological vision and encourages continuous innovation.
What do you like about ACA?
That my role is so versatile. The room for personal growth you get here. And working with strong, motivated people who challenge each other to get the best out of themselves. Combining different domains (software, infrastructure, platforms, tools, data, AI, partners) in a single digital transformation for the customer.
Milestone?
The technological innovation and the team’s growth over the years. We have built a strong and autonomous cloud team that customers trust to handle their strategic projects.
The cloud in 2050…
More automation and support from AI, a lot more of security tools and services out of the box, standardization of prices, and the emergence of a fully-fledged European cloud alternative that will compete with the big players. The cloud will become much more of a commodity and will be highly automated for simple tasks without the help of third parties. The same goes for software development. However, I still expect to see a fluctuating trend between centralization (in the public cloud) and localization (on premise).
Favorite quote?
“Actions speak louder than words.”
Want to put all that expertise to work for your project?
We offer you the knowledge and tools to:
- Make your IT environment more efficient, secure, and cost-effective.
- Optimize your applications and infrastructure for the cloud.
- Accelerate innovation and growth within your organization.
- Relieve you of the operational responsibility of ensuring an available, secure, high-performing, and stable IT.
- Give you peace of mind so you can focus on your core business.
Or would you like to work on our customers' cloud projects as part of our Cloud Team?
