Manon and Cara on the MDP: Growing as a professional and as a person
The Mourik Development Program (MDP) is a special programme for young potentials within Mourik Belgium and the Netherlands. Over two years, participants follow four intensive training modules, focusing on themes such as cooperation, leadership and self-entrepreneurship. They also work on a business case and build a valuable network.
Manon Casiez works as a calculator and Cara Princen as an independent site manager for the construction department. Manon is about to take her final module, while Cara has just completed her first. How did they experience the MDP and what insights do they take away?
The first meeting and the business case
For Cara, the invitation came as a surprise. "I had never heard of the MDP and didn't really know what it entailed. I had seen Tom Van Laer's challenge cup pass by once, but that was all." After a phone call with Manon, who was already participating in the programme and was enthusiastic, she decided to go for it. "I thought: what have I got to lose? I can only learn from it." However, one aspect surprised her: "You can't be reached for three days and I hadn't counted on that."
Manon had been asked before, but did not feel ready then. "When they asked me again later, I saw it fit. Now I have to take one more module and then it's over. I got a lot out of it and two years is long enough to get something out of it."
In addition to the training modules, participants work on a group assignment. Manon: "Between January and June, we are given a business case. Last year, my case was about the new legislation on water quality. This year, I'm looking at Mourik's site strategy. Cara examines how software programmes used by Mourik Industry in the Netherlands can be used more efficiently.
Manon emphasises that group work offers a great opportunity to develop yourself: "You can choose a role that suits you, or just something completely different. I was team leader the first year, which was outside my comfort zone, but that went well in the end. This year I chose to be a note-taker." Cara adds: "I am now a communicator, a role that is still fairly within my strengths. Fortunately, we work with a buddy system, so you always have someone to fall back on."
From theory to practice
The MDP offers more than theoretical knowledge. Cara: "What has stuck with me most is an exercise where I had to talk to someone with a totally opposite character. That was super interesting. In everyday life I wouldn't go into that in depth, but here I really learned to understand how others think."
For Manon, a physical assignment was an eye-opener: "I thought I mainly needed to become more verbally assertive, but I discovered that my body language is just as important. During a stressful assignment, I was the only one helped, without having asked for it. Afterwards, I asked why and the answer was: 'I saw you needed a push.' That got me thinking."
Prepare to get to know not only others, but especially yourself. You will get opportunities, but you have to seize them yourself.
The lessons from the MDP are also applicable at work. Cara says: "I learned how to better deal with people who think differently from me. What makes sense to me may not make sense to someone else at all." Manon also notices a difference: "When I return from a module, colleagues always say that I have become exactly louder. (Laughs) In my job as a calculator, I often sit at the table with experienced people. Now I occupy more space and dare more. That helps me to present quotations more strongly."
Finally, Manon has a clear message for those considering participating: "Prepare to get to know not only others, but especially yourself. You will get opportunities, but you have to seize them yourself." Cara concurs: "You have to open up, both to yourself and to others. Only then will you really get something out of it."
