TechLab by Bol

What this episode covers • The moment you have to stop coding and start coaching • The surprising amount of administration (so many spreadsheets! 📊) • How to build trust when your former peers are now your direct reports • The #1 tip for new managers: walking meetings • What no one tells you: office politics and the art of influence

Ever wondered who guides the technical direction for a company with over 1,300 microservices? In this episode, we sit down with Enterprise Architects Eleanor and Alexandra to demystify their role. We explore how they bring structure to massive scale, enable smarter decisions with Architecture Decision Records (ADRs), and why they believe that at bol.com, every engineer is an architect. What this episode covers • What Enterprise Architecture actually is at bol.com • From chaos to clarity: How ADRs (Architecture Decision Records) stop the "Who decided this?!" debates • Measuring architecture fitness: Using data to score encapsulation and reduce team coupling • The RAPID model: How we make big, enterprise-level decisions in weeks, not months • AI as the 6th team member: How we use AI to automate documentation and create podcasts

oin us behind the scenes of Space Summit, Bol.com’s internal tech conference—where product and tech become speakers, crew, and innovators for a day. This year’s edition? Bigger, bolder, and now open to the entire product team for the first time! What this episode covers

Probably the most asked question so far. Who are the people behind the hilarious social media accounts from bol? A group of Gen-Z's or interns? Who is Gerda and what are the things they face from day to day. What this episode covers

What this episode covers

Ever wished you could test wild ideas without months of meetings? In this episode, we crack open Bol.com’s design sprint playbook—where cross-functional teams turn chaos into shippable solutions in just one week. Perfect for: Product teams, designers, agile coaches, and anyone tired of "analysis paralysis." What this episode covers

Ever wondered how product teams avoid building features nobody wants? Meet Laura and Joep, Bol.com's product analytics experts, who reveal how data stops wasted effort and fuels smart decisions. Learn why a "fake door test" is their secret weapon and how failed experiments are actually wins in disguise! What this episode covers 🔍 What you’ll learn: ✅ Why "good enough" data beats perfect (but late) analysis ✅ How a fake door test saved months of wasted engineering time ✅ The 4 key skills every product analyst needs ✅ Why failed experiments are secretly wins

This week, Ernst and Daniel from Queer Bol share how they're transforming workplaces - not with big policies, but through real, everyday actions. Like that time an educational poster in the bathroom made a colleague say: "I never knew this - thank you for opening my eyes." "It's not just about acceptance," says Daniel. "It's about creating space where people can truly be themselves." From rainbow pins to brave conversations, this is how small changes make big impact.

What happens when you dedicate a day to breaking things on purpose? Chaos Day! Join us as Bart Stroeken and Quido Meijer from Bol.com dive into the world of Chaos Engineering—a discipline focused on building confidence in your systems by intentionally causing failures. Learn how Bol.com organizes Chaos Days, the surprising findings they’ve uncovered, and how you can apply these lessons to your own systems. What this episode covers

Join us in this deep dive with Lars and On from Bol.com as they share their incredible journey of adopting GraphQL in one of the largest e-commerce platforms in the Netherlands and Belgium. Discover how they tackled architectural challenges, influenced teams, and built a thriving GraphQL community within their organization. Whether you're a developer, tech lead, or just curious about GraphQL, this episode is packed with insights, lessons, and practical tips you won’t want to miss! What this episode covers Key Topics Covered: GraphQL Conf 2024 Talk

Why is it crucial to track your cloud expenses? In this episode, we chat with two experts about mastering Cloud FinOps—how to monitor costs effectively and scale without breaking the bank. Plus, plenty of laughs and lively discussions along the way! What this episode covers Get ready to explore the essentials of Cloud FinOps! This episode dives into why managing cloud expenses is a must and reveals tips for monitoring and scaling effectively. Packed with insights and humor, it’s a perfect blend of knowledge and fun. Tune in and join the conversation!

What this episode covers In this episode, we’re joined by our talented friends from the design community, Cansu and Wendy! The dynamic between engineers and designers is endlessly fascinating—and sometimes, a little chaotic. How can these two worlds collaborate more effectively? What are the biggest challenges (and funniest moments) that arise? We dig into the details, share some laughs, and uncover insights to help bridge the gap. Tune in and enjoy the ride!

What this episode covers Join us for an inspiring and in-depth conversation with Ronald van Rijn, Senior Director of Engineering at bol.com (http://bol.com/), as he reflects on his first 100 days in the role. Ronald shares insights from his journey—starting as a passionate programmer with a Commodore 64 to becoming a leader of over 900 engineers. Discover how his experience as a former CTO, volleyball athlete, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu enthusiast shapes his leadership style and problem-solving approach. Learn how he tackles challenges like scaling technology teams, fostering impactful innovation, and creating an environment where engineers thrive. Tune in to hear about his plans for bol.com (http://bol.com/)'s future and valuable lessons in navigating discomfort and change.

What this episode covers In this episode, we dive into the world of canary releases—a modern deployment strategy that minimizes risk while delivering new features to users. Joined by Sonja Nesic and Diego Lira, we explore how tools like Argo Rollouts empower teams to test in production safely, offering seamless integration with Kubernetes environments. Learn how automatic rollbacks can safeguard your deployments and why progressive delivery is becoming a must-have for agile teams. Whether you're new to canary releases or looking to refine your strategy, this conversation is packed with insights and best practices to elevate your DevOps game.

In this episode, we dive into the crucial topic of Accessibility in Tech with special guests Leanne Scheepers, an engineer with a passion for inclusive design, and Niels Peter Foppe, our lead product designer and driving force behind accessibility at bol. Together, we explore how accessibility is approached at bol.com, from strategy and implementation to the practical tips and tricks that can make a real difference. Join us as we discuss the challenges, solutions, and key insights that can help tech teams everywhere make their products accessible for all. Whether you’re a developer, designer, or just interested in inclusivity, this episode has something for everyone! Guests Connect with Leanne Scheepers: • LinkedIn Connect with Niels-Peter Foppen: • LinkedIn Notes European Accessibility Act (2025): https://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=1202 WCAG: https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG22/ Level Level webwinkel toegankelijkheids onderzoek 2023: https://level-level.com/nl/webwinkel-onderzoek-2023/#h-resultaten-de-top-15

What this episode covers In this episode of TechLab, we're diving deep into the world of data engineering! Join us as we chat with Robin, a data scientist from bol.com, who shares how his team tackled complex data pipeline challenges by using layered approaches and innovative solutions like Apache Airflow. Robin makes it easy to understand by comparing data workflows to baking bread (yes, really!) and highlights how his team built a robust, reliable system to handle critical logistics data for bol.com. Tune in for insights, laughs, and some surprising analogies that bring data science to life! Guests Connect with Robin van Schaik: • LinkedIn Notes

Join us as we explore performance testing with experts Nithya and Marcel from bol. They share insights on ensuring system reliability during peak seasons through chaos engineering and isolated testing. Discover best practices, tools, and strategies to tackle performance challenges and enhance user experience. Tune in for valuable tips from industry professionals! Guests Connect with Nithya Thirugnanasundaram LinkedIn Connect with Marcel Blok LinkedIn Connect with Tim Beeren: BlogTwitter Connect with Anthony Moendir: TwitterLinkedIn Notes

On this episode we're joined by Bart Enkelaar and Rob Klein Gunnewiek as the experts on SRE! This talk will cover lots of SRE principles, insights and innovations within the teams at Bol. Next to that, we've had a lovely chat with lots of laughter. So enough reasons to grab a nice drinks and enjoy the episode! Guests Connect with Bart Enkelaar: LinkedInConnect with Rob Klein Gunnewiek: LinkedInConnect with Tim Beeren: BlogTwitterConnect with Anthony Moendir: Twitter Notes

What this episode covers On this episode, Lee September joins us to tell his inspiring story on Neurodiversity and Leadership. He shares his personal journey from engineer to management and how being neurodivergent played a role within this story. From personal growth to being inclusive to anyone. Knowing when to read the room and adjusting accordingly to put everyone in their strengths. Guests Connect with Lee September: LinkedInInstagramConnect with Tim Beeren: BlogTwitterConnect with Anthony Moendir: Twitter Notes More information on Neurodiversity: https://www.instagram.com/neurodivers.showhttps://www.instagram.com/youthneurocoachhttps://www.instagram.com/hsp_worldhttps://www.instagram.com/hsptoolshttps://youtube.com/@psych2go

Today we're joined by Rogier Lommers, a Space Tech Lead within Bol who has been working on the roll-out of Distributed Tracing at scale. We'll dive into the initiative and how this currently works in production. Next to this, Rogier shares some insightful tips on how to start. What this episode covers In this episode, we explore distributed tracing in microservices architecture, covering how it enhances observability and helps quickly identify issues in large-scale systems. We discuss the basics of distributed tracing, practical tips for implementation, and the benefits of tools like Google Cloud Trace. Perfect for developers looking to improve system performance and streamline their debugging process. Guests Connect with Rogier Lommers: • Website • Linkedin Connect with Tim Beeren: • Blog • Twitter Connect with Anthony Moendir: • Twitter Notes