Except is an organization of multi-disciplinary experts working passionately toward realizing a flourishing and resilient future. Our ambition is high, our standards are even higher, and we only work with those who share this ambition. Want to work with us? Please read the following to see if you fit and how to apply.
We only accept applications for the open vacancies listed to the right.
Except's passion for change
Please watch this short documentary, revealing Except and how we work with our partners. The film runs for about 12 minutes and will give you an overview of who we are, our philosophy and mission, and get a feeling for how we work.
How we work
Except's mission of "creating the foundation of a sustainable future" extends to how we work as individuals. This way of working is not for everyone, and the following should be considered when approaching us:
- We work hard and operate at the forefront of pioneering solutions - stamina, flexibility, creativity, professionality, and forward-thinking are a must.
- We give freedom and flexibility in work hours and space and expect responsibility in return.
- While we enable you to work anywhere, anytime, we value our time working together.
- Each Tuesday, we organize a shared lunch and work together in Utrecht / Ho Chi Minh City.
- Teams work daily from our office in Utrecht, and various places in Ho Chi Minh City.
- We give space for self-expression and development, to learn new skills, grow within the organization, and expect you to provide a cutting-edge performance in return.
- We operate within a flat hierarchy; employees are expected to be self-motivated, organized, and encouraged to initiate and contribute to any project and be responsible for following it through.
- Sometimes international travel is necessary - have your passport ready!
- We speak English at the office.
- We maintain a 4-day work week - generally Monday to Thursday.
- We provide public transportation and bicycle allowances for commuting.
Interns and traineeships
We are open to a limited number of trainee positions each year. These are not your straightforward run-of-the-mill internships and are at least six months and you'll be pushed to your limits and receive a lot of freedom and responsibility.
You become a part of the team, like anyone else, and we want you to stay with a salaried job if it works out well - the goal of our traineeship program. If that sounds like something you'd be interested in, please read on.
For trainee applications, answer the separate questions at the end of your application. Trainees receive €500 monthly (net) and a public transport card. Unfortunately, we can't sponsor visas for trainees.
Our work ethic
Every day more people decide to start working on a sustainable future. When Except began in the late 90s, interest in sustainability was only beginning to permeate society. Now, hundreds of thousands, if not millions, are contributing to the global momentum.
At the same time, many realize that having good intentions and you're 'ou're''isn't' isn't good enough. Figuring out wh't the''right' thing is, requires hard work, thorough research, and a good serving of creativity. Our daily job is to find solutions for problems more complicated than anything humanity has faced before.
Working at Except means loving working with data and numbers and figuring out paths through what at first may seem impossible situations. You love subjects as disparate as finance, design, and chemistry and love working collaboratively and independently.
The Except community consists of people who thrive on this kind of work. We are specialist generalists and generalist specialists. WWe'recritical, love challenges, work late hours (by choice!), and push the frontier with every project.
Collaboration and working together
We are a group of hard-working, passionate, and committed individuals with a strong vision and the capacity and responsibility to realize it.
Except is our glue, the streamline of our work, guaranteeing quality and providing tools, knowledge, and the support we need to do big projects as well as small ones.
Symbiosis in Development (SiD), our systems thinking in-house developed framework provides us with the central sustainability methodology we all use and help build, called
Most of us have been interested in and involved in sustainability for the majority of our lives. We live, breathe, and relish in the complexities and the opportunities that this exciting field offers.
Are we accepting new team members?
Except prides itself on being innovative, agile, and efficient. To stay that way, we restrict the size of our organization and reserve the introduction of new professionals to exceptional individuals. You may apply, but you will have to show us how you can contribute.
We need you to read this page's entirety to apply and follow its instructions carefully - this also proves that you're willing to read long, boring documents!
See how you fit Except by considering the following criteria. In your application, make sure to touch upon these points directly and explain how you connect with them:
- What disciplines do you master? How and why do you excel?
- Do you have the time and energy to invest in learning the necessary tools, processes, standards, and methods and making yourself fit alongside us?
- Are you joining us to stay, work full time, grow, commit to the long term and forge trusting relationships with Except? Are you ready to form this alliance?
- Do you communicate fluently in English, both written and spoken?
- What role in a team setting do you prefer?
- What is your passion, where do you want your life to go, and how could you personally use Except to achieve your dreams?
- Are you applying as a trainee for a minimum of 6 months at our main office in Utrecht? Please make sure to show the quality of your work and how you want to establish yourself within the team.
Additional questions for traineeship applications:
- We have a fixed, small trainee monthly compensation of €500. How will you support yourself in the six months+ as a trainee?
- Which aspects of your skillset do you want to develop further as a trainee?
- Trainees work at the office. Do you live in the Netherlands, and if not, how do you see this happening for yourself?
- Do you hope to gain a working position with us after your traineeship? What kind of role do you see for yourself?
How to Apply
Please note: we're currently not accepting any new applications.
To apply, send an email to work@except.nl with the subject line 'Exceptional member application.' Any applications sent to other mail addresses or missing information from the list below will be filtered out. Be sure to include:
- An introductory/motivational letter describing how and why you would like to work with Except.
- A clear description of how you fit the points described above (max 1 page)
- Your CV
- A portfolio (if applicable)
The process takes time and patience from both your and our end. We receive many applications, we accept only a few, but there's always room for that special someone. What is important to us is the process of application. To speed up this process, please follow the process carefully and precisely.