Trainee Security
Discover Trainee Security
Works in Utrecht and from home
Lives in Amsterdam
At VodafoneZiggo since March 2025
How do you protect a company from cybersecurity threats? And how do you ensure operations continue during a crisis? Milou Schiks thrives on questions like these. After completing her master’s in Crisis and Security Management, she wanted to dive deeper into this field. The Security traineeship gave her exactly what she was looking for: dynamism, opportunities to grow, and room to explore her interests.
Action and excitement: that’s what gives Milou energy. While her fellow students chose the government sector, she entered the private sector. "Because everything moves faster there. And there is lots of room for personal initiative. If something happens, I want to know what’s going on, think along, and help solve it. That kind of mindset fits the private sector and certainly VodafoneZiggo."
She heard about this Discover Security traineeship through word of mouth. "It fits perfectly with my background. As a trainee, I work on crisis management, cyber risks, and data security. How do we secure our data as well as possible? What do we do when things go wrong? It’s precisely in moments of crisis that you benefit from good preparation. That’s what I find interesting and what I focus on."
Milou immediately dove deep with her first project, even in an area that wasn’t at the top of her list. Together with the data security team, she investigated how VodafoneZiggo can protect confidential information even better. "At first, the focus was mainly on technology and tools. But I wanted to focus on behavior. How can we make data security truly important to people and get them to act on time?" She went to the security manager and was allowed to steer the project in her direction. "I spoke to directors and different teams and gave presentations to a few hundred colleagues about how to increase awareness. People responded positively, and that was so motivating."
Her curiosity even earned her a behind-the-scenes look at the NATO summit in The Hague: one of the largest security operations in Dutch history. "Through a crisis manager I heard that VodafoneZiggo had a role there as we are part of the critical infrastructure. It seemed like a unique opportunity to observe. I was allowed to join meetings and saw how teams worked together and developed scenarios. It’s already a highlight of my traineeship. Coming straight from university, it’s incredible to be part of something like this."
Now Milou is challenging herself with her out-of-comfort project: an assignment outside her own department. "I wanted to deepen my knowledge of crisis management. I asked a colleague in Customer Operations if I could do a project there. Now I’m working on updating the business continuity plan, a playbook that outlines how to keep services running during a disruption or calamity. Think of an outage, or someone cutting a cable somewhere. How do you ensure that technicians keep operating and the customer service remains reachable? I interview colleagues across departments and gain new insights every day."
Her traineeship has been a smooth landing after her studies. "I receive great guidance and get to know the company from all angles. We also have a tight trainee community. We just had our first intensive two-day training at an amazing location in the woods. That really builds a bond between us." Milou is very active in the community. "I even organized a trainee day in Amsterdam and often attend events."
In a short time Milou has learned a lot, for example, about the power of simple procedures. "It is important to keep crisis and security plans as simple as possible to be flexible. You can’t prepare for every possible scenario, and that’s something you learn by working with experienced colleagues." She is also working on her personal development. "For example, I learned how to get more out of conversations by asking questions in a different way. And also, I followed training on assertiveness and stakeholder management."
Her next step? Earning a security certificate through Unlimited Learning, VodafoneZiggo’s learning platform. In the future, Milou wants to contribute to the safety of the whole of the Netherlands. "At VodafoneZiggo you work on a concrete part of that: we protect communication networks and make sure they stay available, even during a crisis. That is something I want to contribute to, together with other major players."
