Essays
Working across borders.
Notes on hiring, leadership, and finding your footing between the US and the Netherlands.
Latest essay · Family & relocation
International schools in the Netherlands: choose the school before the house
Compare five international schools in the Netherlands: 2026–27 fees, curricula, campus locations, admissions, and practical advice for relocating families.
Read essayWhat could make a smaller Dutch salary worth it?
Pay, employment rights, pace, commuting, stress, and everyday life: a practical comparison of tech work in the US and the Netherlands.
Your US hire accepted the offer. Will they stay?
Pay, career scope, team relationships, and life after the move. How Dutch startups can retain their US hires.
Your new hire has a laptop. Do they know how to succeed?
How Dutch tech teams can onboard people relocating from the US: clarity on work, relationships, local context, and the first ninety days.
The offer says relocation. The hire needs a life that works.
Housing, registration, schooling, and first-month logistics: how Dutch startups can support US hires without vague promises or improvised legal advice.
Are you hiring good judgment—or a good interview?
How Dutch startups can run fair, useful interviews with US candidates without copying big-tech loops or mistaking polish for fit.
Your Dutch offer may be worth more than your US candidate can see
Help US candidates understand Dutch leave, holiday allowance, probation, and notice—without turning hiring managers into lawyers.
“We’ll handle the visa” needs someone who actually will
What Dutch tech startups should clarify before promising a US candidate they can move: routes, employer duties, timelines, and advice boundaries.
The title says Staff. What does your startup actually need?
How Dutch startups can read US seniority signals, define the job they need, and avoid hiring the wrong scope by title alone.
Can a Dutch startup afford a Bay Area hire?
How Dutch tech founders can talk about compensation with US candidates without confusing legal thresholds, survey medians, and market offers.
A career that adds up doesn’t have to follow a straight line
Coaching, studying, and exploring the next role can form a clear direction. The work is deciding what belongs together.
The job offer is signed. The move is another project.
A planning checklist for Americans considering work in the Netherlands: identify the questions, find qualified help, and keep records.
Before you ask for more performance, decide what can wait
Clear priorities, explicit decisions, and a useful way to say no. A practical approach to leading across different work expectations.
You hire in English. Can people build a career in it?
Ask where language matters in the actual work: decisions, relationships, responsibilities, and opportunities to progress.
The rejection email is still part of your reputation
What rejection messages communicate, what they don’t, and how hiring teams can be clear without becoming careless.
A job search should leave you energy for the interview
A small system for application portals, verification emails, and follow-ups—so administration stops consuming the search.
“Not enough relevant experience.” Relevant to what?
A familiar domain and transferable judgment are different forms of experience. Help a hiring team see which problem yours can solve.
“Just a chat” can still decide who gets hired
Prepare for a conversational interview without turning it into a rehearsed performance. Warmth and structure can work together.
Your next hire is already judging how you work
Response windows, application limits, and reapplication rules can change your search. Treat the process as useful information.
Make your introduction easy to pass on
A warm introduction starts with a clear, generous request. How to build conversations when your local network is still new.
Your experience crossed the border. Did your seniority?
How to make senior experience clear in a new job market without inflating your title or starting your story over.
If the salary is a mystery, the conversation starts in the wrong place
When the range is missing, ask for it early. A practical approach to pay conversations across the US and Dutch job markets.