Last month, Flexport welcomed approximately 100 engineers, product managers, and designers in Amsterdam for an evening of talks and networking. The event invited the tech community to learn about Flexport’s plans to streamline single-country and European customs for shippers around the world.

Attendees celebrated the expansion of the Flexport engineering team to its fifth office, following San Francisco, Chicago, Shenzhen, and Seattle. Amsterdam is one of twelve global offices total.

A New European Hub

The launch event showcased how Flexport’s culture and daily operations forge a path to easier customs for all shippers.

The choice to establish the team at European headquarters in Amsterdam was an easy one. The office is close to Europe’s largest ocean port in Rotterdam and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, while the city itself maintains connections to all major European markets.

Flexport’s newest engineering office will focus on significant global improvements, like integrating third-party APIs and country-specific declarations, to ease the way for customers doing business in Europe.

Event Highlights

Amsterdam’s tech community heard from executive and senior leadership, in-house engineers, and social-impact organization, Flexport.org.

Chief Technology Officer James Chen kicked things off with high-level insight to what makes Flexport unique:

“At Flexport, we aim to make global trade easier by providing industry-leading user experience that's mirrored with operational excellence. This ensures our shipments are always visible and reach their final destinations on time.”

Next, Jan van Casteren, VP - EMEA, detailed goals and objectives for Europe, including the development of deeper regional services, infrastructure to support global expansion for Flexport and its clients, and the facilitation of trade between Europe and the rest of the world.

Mutahhir Hayat—the first engineering hire in Amsterdam—spoke from the front lines of engineering for customs. He revealed technical plans for the team in Amsterdam and offered a crash course on trade.

Susy Schöneberg closed the night by sharing how Flexport.org initiatives help the environment, including how companies can prevent waste, to spontaneous audience applause.

Interested in a career at Flexport? Check out open positions in Amsterdam or across Europe.