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This week, we’re delighted to sit down with Ilja Sterk and Rhys Jopson, two of our project management experts here at Creditsafe.
Get to know them, find out what their role is like, what they love about working at Creditsafe, and one of their project management tips!
Hi, I’m Ilja Sterk, Program Manager on the PMO team at Creditsafe.
I joined Creditsafe through the merger with Graydon over 3 years ago and currently lead several migration programs—most notably Canal II, the program to transition Graydon NL customers to the Creditsafe platform in early 2025. I’m now focused on the migration programs for legacy Graydon data and customers in CSBE and Editus in Luxembourg.
In addition, I serve as the Tech Liaison based in the Netherlands, working with a hybrid team of developers and a project manager.
💡 My favorite project management hack?
When we first started using Copilot to record meetings and generate high-quality summaries—it was a game-changer for saving time and staying on the same page. Now we’re almost at the point where we can fully automate our Project Update reports with AI solutions; things are changing fast.
🎯 What I love about working at Creditsafe
Working with the PMO team, of course, and CS is a company where you can truly create opportunities. There’s a strong focus on personal development and inclusivity, and we’re encouraged to explore new, efficient ways of working—and we’re getting better at it. And of course, the fun factor—we work hard, but we definitely play hard too!
I’m a Technical Program Manager at Creditsafe, and I’ve been here since November 2019. I originally joined to bring more structure to how we deliver programs and projects within Technology —essentially, to prevent things from falling through the cracks and ensure we weren’t relying on to-do lists and good intentions.
Since then, I’ve helped expand the PMO’s reach across the company, supporting teams in Sales & Marketing, Analytics, HR, Product, and our international offices.
My work covers a wide range of areas, from product upgrades and system migrations to office relocations, AI governance, tooling improvements, and cross-functional process enhancements. I work closely with internal teams and external partners to ensure that we truly deliver value to the business—whether it’s coordinating a multi-site office move, rolling out new reporting tools, or shaping our new Product AI initiative tracker. No two days are the same.
One of my favorite project management hacks?
Automate repetitive tasks whenever possible. I use tools like Power Automate, Microsoft Copilot, and Perplexity to streamline reporting and task tracking, connecting Smartsheets, Teams, and Power BI. I also combine our PMO’s structured templates with AI-generated outputs to speed up planning and ensure consistency. The goal is to reduce manual work so I can focus on strategy and delivering real results. The goal is to reduce manual work so I can focus on strategy and delivering real results.
How do you find working at Creditsafe? What’s a highlight for you?
Working at Creditsafe is truly rewarding. The culture encourages ownership and innovation, and I’ve had the chance to lead programs and projects that make a real difference, alongside some incredibly talented colleagues. What stands out most is the collaborative spirit, trust and autonomy—being able to make decisions and drive change!
Our world requires a combination of ambition and innovation to tackle today’s complex challenges—and for any business to stand out from the crowd! Rhys and Ilja both play a pivotal role here at Creditsafe in making this possible, so here’s to them!
We hope you enjoyed learning more about the people who make up the Creditsafe team; you could be one of them! If you’re interested, check out our job openings and follow our LinkedIn page to stay up to date on the latest job openings and news from us.