Melissa van Damme started her career at Delhaize Belgium when she was only 17 years old. Her brother had worked at the company for a while and encouraged her to apply for a job too. And so she did. Back then, Melissa would never have suspected that today, 18 years later, she would still be with the supermarket chain. “This company had a very positive impact on my self-confidence.”
Understandably,some people can become less motivated after working at the same organization for almost two decades, and they might not approach their jobs as enthusiastically as they did in the beginning. And that's not surprising – after all, 18 years is an incredibly long time. However, Melissa still enjoys her work as a Logistic Employee immensely.
"My main responsibility is to ensure that everything in this part of the warehouse – namely, fresh goods like vegetables, bread, eggs, and dairy products – is loaded onto the trucks on time so they can start their journey. The trucks line up outside the warehouse and follow a tight schedule. They must all depart as planned with the exact right cargo on board. As the right-hand ‘woman’ of the Team Coach, I make sure that everything works out perfectly.”
Melissa’s working day starts at noon. By then, the first-order pickers, drivers, and carriers are already hard at work. Her task is to ensure that her team members have the input and tools they need to perform their tasks effectively. "Due to all the small issues that can arise, the first hour of the job is always the most chaotic. Everyone needs to be in the right place, devices need to be set to the right language, and carriers must be on the correct trucks. And all of this must happen without any delays, of course. I'm sort of a jack-of-all-trades who needs to be everywhere at once, answering questions, solving problems, and ensuring people get their work done.
I love the hustle and bustle that comes with my job. The more there is to do, the happier I am and the more I’m in my element. I find that one of the most enjoyable aspects of my job is all that commotion.”
Fortunately for Melissa, there's plenty of commotion in the warehouse where she works. On an average day, there are around 500 people buzzing about. "My colleagues are one of the biggest reasons why I still enjoy my job after all this time. I do fun activities with some people from my team outside of work, too. Over the past few years, I've made several good friends at the company. In fact, I met my husband here! The first year after we met, we were just colleagues, but then the love started to blossom. He's also been working for Delhaize for a long time (17 years), but only here in Zellik over the last few years."
A personal transformation
Since starting at the company, I've experienced significant personal growth. When I first walked through the doors of Delhaize Belgium, I was a timid and insecure 17-year-old. But that girl is gone. My colleagues now affectionately call me the "sunshine" around here. I always bring cheerful and confident vibes to the workplace and I think Delhaize has played a major role in this transformation. As a young girl, I often felt that whatever I did wasn't good enough. At Delhaize, though, I’ve never had that feeling.
On the contrary, I've always been given a huge amount of trust here. They often say, "Just let Melissa handle it, and it'll turn out just fine." And indeed, it always does. My time here has truly shaped me into a completely different person." With daily shifts until 7:30pm, Melissa doesn’t have much time left to spend with her four-year-old son, Louis, during the week. So the weekends are dedicated entirely to family time (except for the one each month when she's on duty). "What we do on weekends doesn't really matter as long as we're together. We might go to the playground or the pool… anything is great. I also enjoy cooking more elaborate dishes on weekends – something I never have time for during the week. That time to do what I love with the people I love is simply the best.”
Name: Melissa van Damme (1986)
Started working at Delhaize Belgium: December 2005
Living with: My husband, Gilles, and our son, Louis
Hobbies: Baking (cookies and cupcakes)
Wake me up in the middle of the night for: A glass of good wine
Favorite holiday destination: Greece
Life-changing event: The birth of Louis
Best advice I’ve ever received: To keep believing in myself
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