Expat Spouses Initiative (ESI) and STE Languages (STE) have joined forces to stimulate and retain international talent amid a competitive employment market.

The aim of the collaboration between ESI and STE Languages is to jointly advance initiatives to develop international talent, and in particular its partners/spouses, with a view to them entering the labour market. The Dutch employment market has an significant need for well-trained professionals and their availability is an important condition for achieving further economic growth. Mastering the Dutch language is very important in order to make good progress towards employment and to get a feeling of being at home.

“The Brainport Eindhoven region and beyond need talent. Everyone wants talent, but sometimes companies hesitate to hire because of language gaps and cultural differences. By working together, we believe we can bridge these gaps and bring worlds together by leveraging the strengths of the international talent pool already present in the region.”, Kavitha Varathan CEO ESI, Mathilde Lageman & Wilfried Gradus, Directors/owners STE Languages.

In recent weeks, the Government and the Region have worked hard to further growth and development of activities in the Brainport Eindhoven area by making an extensive package of measures available. Talent development is central to this package of measures worth €2.5 billion. The plan is to invest extensively in practical and theoretical training, which will further increase the internationalization and economic vitality of the Brainport Eindhoven area, and beyond. This sends out a significant signal to attract and nurture future-proof talent and their spouses.

ESI and STE are fully committed to creating an environment where international talent can grow and develop, become acquainted with Dutch culture and integrate well into the Dutch social and work environment. ESI’s expertise as a professional community lies in unlocking the full potential of international talent whilst STE’s skill lies in providing language and culture training for internationals in the Netherlands.

ESI and STE have a combined network of many thousands of internationals, including more than 4,000 community members at ESI and 5,000 international students annually at STE. Together, this collaboration will have a significant impact on regional internationalization and the domestic job market.

More information and updates about the collaboration between ESI and STE can be found on ESI’s website, www.expatspousesinitiative.org and STE Languages’ website, www.ste.nl.