Gert-Jan van de Poll

Principal Sustainability Strategy Advisory at Dune Partners | Private Equity, Sustainable Finance, Advisory

Zeist, Utrecht, Netherlands

About

Impact-driven sustainability and finance professional with a track record of pragmatically embedding sustainability into private equity strategies and companies. Skilled at shaping sustainability initiatives, translating them into actionable plans, and driving momentum to deliver long-term value creation.

Experience

  • Dune Partners ()
    • Principal
      Jul 2026 - Present · 1 mo

    • Manager
      Jul 2025 - Jul 2026 · 1 yr 1 mo

  • Holtara (an Apex Group company) ()
    • Manager ESG & Sustainability Strategy Advisory
      Apr 2024 - Jun 2025 · 1 yr 3 mos

      (Holtara, previously known as Spring Associates and MJ Hudson) Strategy consulting on sustainability for investors (private equity, venture capital), scale-ups, mid-market companies, and listed corporates. Client-facing: - Led ESG strategy development and implementation for mid-market private equity firms and their portfolio companies, including ESG reporting frameworks and advising on standards (e.g., SASB, EDCI, SFDR PAI, CSRD, GHG Protocol, and more). - Advised VP Capital, an impact-first family office, for five years on ESG and impact strategies, impact due diligence, reporting, and strategic shift towards impact investing. - Led ESG data analytics for a top global private equity firm, processing 300k+ data points across 250+ portfolio companies for their public sustainability report. - Supported portfolio companies with measuring Scope 1, 2, and 3 carbon footprints, developing decarbonisation roadmaps, and setting SBTi targets with management teams. Internal: - Member of Holtara’s senior leadership team, responsible for business development, line management, thought leadership, and internal ESG knowledge sharing. - Built CSRD advisory services and platform suite, leading business development from scratch and supporting 30+ international companies with CSRD compliance. - Created a fully automated Scope 1, 2, and 3 carbon calculator aligned with the GHG Protocol, and a carbon intensity proxy tool for estimating carbon footprints with limited data.

    • (Sr.) Associate ESG & Sustainability
      Aug 2022 - Apr 2024 · 1 yr 9 mos

      Midway through the period, progressed from Associate to Senior Associate

    • (Sr.) Consultant ESG & Sustainability
      Jun 2021 - Aug 2022 · 1 yr 3 mos

      Midway through the period, progressed from Consultant to Senior Consultant

  • Project Assistant at Kearney
    Nov 2020 - Dec 2020 · 2 mos

    Management consulting with a focus on operational improvement and strategic planning, including: - Performing supplier procurement analyses for a major industrial parts distributor; and - Identifying and prioritising strategic topics for the Executive Board agenda of a major insurer.

  • Financial Consultant at Slingerstroom
    Jun 2018 - Dec 2020 · 2 yrs 7 mos

    Financial consulting with a focus on business valuations, financing applications, and solving strategic business problems. Examples of activities include: - Valuing a greenfield biogas plant and supporting fundraising activities through roadshows; - Building an automated financial model for a bioplastics manufacturer; and - Conducting vendor-side due diligence for the sale of an industrial hemp producer

  • Rijksuniversiteit Groningen ()
    • Student Assistant
      Sep 2018 - Aug 2020 · 2 yrs

    • Teaching Assistant
      Sep 2016 - Jul 2019 · 2 yrs 11 mos

      Preparing and teaching coursework to classes of up to 30 first-year and pre-master students in Foundational Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, and Finance courses, as well as assisting academics in the grading of associated assignments and exams.