The Hague, South Holland, Netherlands
Date of birth: 23 April 1963 | Nationality: Dutch Languages: Dutch, English, French, German; basic Spanish Marital status: Married. Profile Seasoned HR executive and non-executive director with 30+ years’ experience leading people, transformation and governance in complex multinational organisations across energy, banking and retail sectors. Proven track record in board stewardship, executive team development, large-scale restructuring, stakeholder engagement and driving sustainable performance improvements. Recognised for pragmatic, values-driven leadership—authentic, integrity-led and delivery focused—combining commercial acumen with deep HR expertise to enable strategic turnarounds, cultural change and long-term value creation. Experienced chair of Remuneration & Nomination committees and advisor to CEOs on organisation, leadership and people risk in regulated and transition-driven environments. Board & Non-Executive Experience Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) — NED March 2018 – Present (Vienna, Austria & New York, US) Alliander N.V. — Non-Executive Director large utilities company; Chair Remco & Nomco January 2021 – Present (Arnhem, Netherlands). Deutsche Shell AG — Vice Chair / NED September 2013 – August 2020 (Germany) - Non-executive oversight in the complex German governance. Selected Executive Career ABN AMRO N.V. — Chief Human Resources Officer; Member Executive Committee August 2020 – January 2023 (Amsterdam, Netherlands) Royal Dutch Shell (RDS) — Executive Vice President Human Resources, Downstream September 2013 – July 2020 (London, UK) - Led HR for Downstream (~32,000 employees and 70 countries). Royal Dutch Shell (RDS) — Executive Vice President Human Resources, Upstream International July 2009 – August 2013 (The Hague, Netherlands). Royal Dutch Shell — Other Senior HR & Commercial Roles January 2000 – May 2009; earlier roles to 1990 - EVP HR Global Functions; VP HR Information Technology; Global Recruitment Manager. Education Master’s Degree in Civil Law, Leiden University Professional Development & Affiliations - international keynote speaker and chair on leadership. - Ongoing participation in executive education, ESG and HR leadership programs(ao AI driven strategies). Personal - Multilingual: Dutch, English, French, German; basic Spanish. - Values: authenticity, integrity, respect. - Interests: leadership development, energy transition Hobby’s: mountain biking&hiking - Residence: Netherlands & Spain available for international board roles References Available on request
ABNAMRO is a publicly traded organisation, with its HQ in Amsterdam. AAB has a two tier governance model consisting of a supervisory board and an Executive Board. The bank serves clients in the retail, private banking and corporate banking sectors. The Banks ambition is accelerate the transition to an inclusive, circular and sustainable society, its key purpose is “banking for better for generations to come”.
Downstream employs a talented and diverse global workforce, and remains committed to Goal Zero: zero harm to people or the environment from our operations, in line with our core business values. The Shell brand is one of the company’s most prized assets and has been independently valued at more than $30 billion. We have a strong reputation for innovation, performance and quality. We deploy industry-leading technology to differentiate our products, processes and services. With close to 44,000 sites, we are the largest branded fuels retailer in the world. Each day, 500,000 staff meet the fuel and convenience retail needs of 25 million customers in more than 70 countries. And we are the global leader in lubricants, with more than 60 blending and manufacturing plants serving millions of customers through a network of over 2,000 distributors. With a competitive edge in Chemical feedstock's and manufacturing underpinned by advantaged Shell technology, the Chemical business is entering a new period of growth, enabling the increased production of consumer goods such as clothing, plastic products, soaps and detergents, which enhance the lives of millions. Our global Trading & Supply business operates in every major energy market. Shell is one of the largest and most experienced energy merchants in the world, trading in products and commodities including crude oil, refined products, natural gas, LNG, chemicals, biofuels, electric power and CO2 allowances. Across the globe, Shell has an interest in 12 refineries that supply Shell marketing businesses and local wholesalers. The Downstream HR team plays a pivotal role in securing that all the people related competitive differentiators are fully leveraged for the here and now but importantly also for the near future.
The Upstream International business searches for and recovers oil and natural gas from Australasia, Russia/Caspian, Middle East, Europe all the way to our core heartlands in Africa.