"The 'thank you' letters that we get from patients...it really hammers home the point of how our migraine therapy could make a difference in people's lives."

Arney Sieling is Senior Firmware Engineer at Salvia.

How often does an engineer get the perfect opportunity at just the right point in his career? Arney Sieling from South Africa came to Salvia through a circuitous route that involved changing countries. Arney suggested the Netherlands, a country with cultural connections to South Africa and where he has family. Arney had an advantage: he’s an embedded design engineer with a degree from the University of Pretoria and a serious CV. He’d worked in neurostimulation for an advanced medtech company, so he had significant marketable experience.

That was key when a recruiter came calling, and he ended up at another multinational company in Eindhoven. But the corporate culture was not for him. So, when he saw the position at Salvia, he didn’t hesitate to apply.

For an engineer who’s literally been there, done that, how do you keep him stimulated? By giving him duties above and beyond. “At Salvia, I get the opportunity to work on a lot of different problems. I’m mainly writing embedded software,” Arney said. But he also gets to collaborate with colleagues on risk assessment and other challenges.

Arney is a rare combination of objective analytical engineer and engaged team player. “But I would say I’m also very pragmatic,” he said, able to set aside emotions to solve problems. “And I think I’m really good at making that separation; not getting stuck into why we have this problem but how we get past it." Moving forward means engineering an effective product that’s accessible to everyone who needs it. That means overcoming a lot of technical challenges. “Sometimes, it gets a bit frustrating. But of course, as soon as soon as you find the solution, then it's really rewarding.”

Salvia's device is not yet approved for commercial use. We make no claims about safety or effectiveness.