Craig Plaatjes

Global Product Manager | IMD MBA | ex-Consultant Engineer | Creative Thinker | Registered Professional Engineer (ECSA)

The Hague, South Holland, Netherlands

About

A South African engineer, artist, speaker, product manager, and all-round deep thinker based in The Netherlands. I find tremendous joy when I combine my problem-solving and analytical skills with my creative and expressive attributes. In fact, this balance of analytics and creativity led me to pursue my undergraduate degree in electrical and computer engineering and my master’s in business administration. I thrive in the proverbial grey area! My mixture of seemingly unrelated skills allow me to connect dots where links are not obvious, and to bring clarity in the face of obscurity. I find that product management is great role for me to use this ability to be the glue between different stakeholders and to bring value to a plethora of different personas with varying needs. I am deeply passionate about continuous self-development, lifelong learning, and creating a positive impact on the lives of others. I live by my personal motto that it is never too late to become the person you’ve always wanted to be. Countries I’ve lived: South Africa, Switzerland, The Netherlands Countries I’ve visited: Argentina, Bahamas, Chile, Czech Republic, England, France, Germany, Italy, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, The Netherlands, Reunion Island, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Swaziland, Switzerland, UAE, USA

Experience

  • Global Product Manager at Kipp & Zonen
    Apr 2026 - Present · 4 mos

  • Global Product Manager at OTT HydroMet
    Mar 2023 - May 2026 · 3 yrs 3 mos

    Focused on product manangement and product innovation in the Solar Energy industry.

  • MBA Candidate at IMD
    Jan 2022 - Dec 2022 · 1 yr

    Graduated with Honors I was a full-time MBA candidate at the Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland. I was focused on sharpening and refining my leadership skills, business acumen and interpersonal skills.

  • Professional Engineering Consultant at Zutari
    Jul 2020 - Nov 2021 · 1 yr 5 mos

    I was a registered professional electrical, control, and instrumentation engineer. I worked on projects in the water, oil & gas, and renewable energy industries. I engage with clients to discern their needs and provide solutions to their complex engineering problems. I did detailed design work; oversaw the design work of junior engineers; did detailed technical and feasibility analysis; managed project coordination and delivery; developed in-depth presentations and reports.

  • Aurecon (Cape Town Area, South Africa)
    • Electrical Engineer
      Feb 2018 - Jun 2020 · 2 yrs 5 mos

      I was electrical, control and instrumentation engineer at Aurecon before the change of Aurecon Africa to Zutari.

    • Graduate Electrical Engineer
      Feb 2017 - Feb 2018 · 1 yr 1 mo

      Graduate Electrical Engineer focused on electrical, control, and instrumentation design work in the water, wastewater, and oil & gas industries.