Building Tilburg’s Future: An Inside Look at the Municipality’s Economic Mission
We spoke with Fatima Perjan, policy advisor for Economy & Labor Market, and Camilla Hakkens, corporate recruiter, at the Municipality of Tilburg. Together, they offered a look into the city’s economic ambitions, the challenges ahead, and why working for the municipality is far more dynamic, and impactful, than many students might expect. We also discussed the relationship between the municipality and students, which is of growing importance within Tilburg.
A large organization with a clear purpose
Tilburg is one of the larger municipalities in the Netherlands, employing more than 2,500 people across 19 departments. The Economy & Labor Market department alone consists of around 90 employees, ranging from policy advisors to account managers who work directly with companies on Tilburg’s business parks.
“It’s a big organization with complex tasks,” Fatima explains. “But that also means you can genuinely contribute to the city. You see what happens around you, and you know you played a part in it.”
Camilla experiences that same sense of impact from her work in recruitment: “Everything you see being built, such as roads, public spaces, new facilities, there are people behind it whom we recruited. You drive through the city and think: we helped make this happen.”
The Economic Strategy 2050: Tilburg’s long-term vision
Tilburg’s economic ambitions are laid out in its Economic Strategy 2050, also known as The Economic Route to Broad Prosperity. This long-term plan outlines how the city aims to further develop a sustainable, inclusive and innovative economy.
The strategy is built around three main pillars: creating a strong and attractive business climate, accelerating transitions around sustainability and circularity, and advancing human-centred technology. Talent is a key success factor in making these ambitions a reality, and this is where a significant part of Fatima’s role lies.
The first pillar is creating a strong and attractive business climate. The municipality invests in infrastructure, available business space, and partnerships to help companies grow and thrive. Fatima points out that Tilburg has many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), but that these businesses are often less visible to students. “They don’t always have the resources to attend career events or promote themselves,” she says. “As a municipality, we try to help bridge that gap.”
The second pillar focuses on transitions such as sustainability and circularity. Tilburg is investing in renewable energy, circular production, and more sustainable business parks. These developments create demand for new knowledge, skills, and jobs and are closely connected to wider transitions such as digitalisation and inclusion.
The third pillar is human-centred technology. The city of Tilburg takes a leading role in developments focused on people, behaviour, and society in relation to digital technology. Human-centred technology puts people at the centre of AI innovation processes, focusing on applications and solutions that can make people’s lives easier and improve the interaction between people and technology.
Above all, Fatima stresses the importance of people. Attracting and retaining talent is an essential success factor for achieving the ambitions within all three pillars. As she puts it: “You can have all the ambitions in the world, but without people, nothing happens. Talent is the key to everything.”
Keeping students in Tilburg: a challenge with potential
Although Tilburg University attracts thousands of students, many leave the city after graduation. Fatima sees this as a missed opportunity: “We educate so much talent here. It would be amazing if more students stayed to work in Tilburg.”
Camilla notices the same trend in recruitment: “Students often meet big companies from Eindhoven, Amsterdam, or Den Bosch at career events. Those names are familiar, so they naturally gravitate toward them. Meanwhile, Tilburg has fantastic companies, but they’re not always visible.”
The municipality is working to change that by connecting local businesses to student events and making the city’s opportunities more accessible. Another step in order to be more in contact with students, is with the use of student ambassadors, who raise awareness of key issues and foster dialogue between students and the city.
“There’s more here than people think,” Fatima says. “You just have to know where to look.”
A rapidly changing labor market
A significant part of Fatima’s work focuses on ensuring that Tilburg’s workforce can keep up with economic changes. The city has a relatively large number of low-paid jobs and residents receiving social assistance. At the same time, transitions such as sustainability, digitalisation and inclusion are changing the labour market and creating demand for new knowledge and skills.
“We want to prevent people from falling behind,” Fatima explains. “That means investing in reskilling and lifelong development. Jobs are changing, new jobs are emerging, and we want people to be ready for that.” This is why strengthening digital skills and promoting an inclusive labour market are increasingly important.
Working for the municipality: meaningful, modern, and people-oriented
The recruitment department within the municipality is still relatively new, being only 2.5 years old. Camilla and her team are building policies, designing trainee programs, and shaping how the municipality attracts young talent.
“What I love is the societal impact,” she says. “You’re not working for profit. You’re working for people. That makes the job meaningful.”
Fatima agrees: “You’re contributing to the city you live in. That’s special.”
Why Tilburg is worth considering as a starter
For students exploring their next step, during or after their study, the municipality offers many possibilities:
- Real responsibility from day one
- Projects you can literally see and experience throughout the city
- A supportive environment focused on development
- Opportunities across policy, innovation, sustainability, recruitment, and more different departments
Tilburg’s future depends on talent
Fatima closes our conversation with a clear message: “Tilburg needs its students. The city can only grow if young people stay, participate, and help build the future. Talent is our most important success factor.”