Belgium
I am able to help companies to reach their business goals with sound strategic-, operational-, and change leadership in different types of missions. Over time, I have gathered vast experience through either permanent, interim management, or consultancy assignments. Those ranged from cross-functional Project and Program management, and multi-country functional leadership in notably Sales & Marketing, and Business Operations, to a multi-site CEO-role in a large, complex organization with full P&L-accountability. I have developed particular expertise in Change Management, Organizational Transformation, Restructuring and Reorganization, Site and Production Relocation, as well as Business Integration (related to either internal mergers, or external acquisitions). Furthermore, I have obtained a sound overall understanding of Supply Chain Management. The companies I have worked for varied greatly in terms of Type of Customers (B2B + B2C), Size (from the internet start-up, to the private-equity or family-owned small and medium-sized firms, and large stock-exchange listed multinationals), as well as Sector (Transport and Logistics services, Wholesale + Retail Distribution, Manufacturing, Healthcare services, and On-line Management services). I practice mostly a facilitative leadership style with high levels of empathy and listening skills in order to federate, inspire, coach and develop teams around common goals. Furthermore, I have developed sound overall business insight and financial acumen. And, I possess strong analysis- and decision-making skills, organizational capabilities, and communication- and social skills. Personality-wise, I am an energetic, positive, forward-looking person, who is pragmatic, solution-oriented, tenacious, hands-on, resilient, and highly engaged. In the course of my career I have developed a firm belief in "my" 7 key drivers to achieve sustainable growth in top-and-bottom line results, which are: 1. Employee Care, 2. Customer Focus, 3. Team Work, 4. First Class Quality, 5. Innovation, 6. Organizational Efficiency and Effectiveness, and 7. Continuous Performance Improvement. As a true European with a high level of multi-cultural awareness (having lived in 6 countries, and speaking 5 languages), my next professional challenges will continue to be in Western Europe, via permanent, interim or fractional leadership missions, whether in managing structural change and transformation, driving performance turn-around, business integration, and organizational development, or ensuring interim business continuity and crisis management.
Missions included: Transformation mission at Cover Flooring in The Netherlands on behalf of its Belgian mother company De Saedeleir Textile Group to significantly recover its %-EBITDA and improve its return-on-assets, by making structural improvements in notably the operational, commercial, and financial areas. Introduced a series of quick-wins, and 20+ actions needing more time / effort in areas like business planning, procurement, strategic development, stock management, systems, etc. Development of a pragmatic marketing + sales plan “rest of 2026”, and setting the basis to start a “+50% revenue growth plan” over a 30-month period. Turn-around mission as Area Director at Ziegler (Transport & Logistics) with P&L-responsibility for the eastern half of Belgium to reverse significant, and worsening structurally negative financial results. 45 own staff, plus various distribution subcontractors and international partners, 9 m€ annual turnover. Ensured day-to-day operational and commercial management. Achieved -352 k€ quick-win, full-year equivalent cost savings. Improved the organizational structure to make it more streamlined, with clearer roles + responsibilities, reinforced sales, and some internal staff changes. Developed a turn-around plan for 2025 “rest-of-year” along 14 themes. Change mission at Schumacher Europe in Belgium (20 m€ revenue, part of Schumacher Electric, a 200 m€ revenue, Private Equity-owned US company) - Interim leadership of the relocation of a significant part of local production to a sister company in China. Improved the initially planned approach, resulting in additional annual COGS savings of -530 k€, and quadrupling the positive impact on the overall % gross margin to nearly +4%-points. Extension of the mission to also the development of a Gross Margin Boost program for 2024 consisting of 10 initiatives, and the leadership of some. Upon request of the Group's CEO and COO, support was also provided in transforming the global supply chain.
Overall strategic and operational leadership of a private hospital (multi-site, 800+ direct and associated staff, 75 m€-plus revenue), and the responsibility of both the joint strategic development with a partner hospital within the German- speaking community of East Belgium, as well as together towards an associated hospital within the MOVE-Network. Representation of the hospital towards the regional government. Held various non-executive Board positions at both local, regional, as national level. Initiated and led the development of a new vision, mission, and strategy 2023-25, followed by its tactical execution as of 2023 along 7 key themes: Medical Service Offer, Staff and Partners, Processes, Infrastructure, IT, Communication, and Finance. Turned around a significant, and structural financial results deficit from a 2022 forecast of nearly -4 m€ towards break-even in 2023, including non-medical staff reduction by -30 FTE’s. Restructured and reorganized the "satellite" sites (incl. a site closure, service offer re-distribution + extension, renovation, etc.).
Missions have included: Change mission at Landewyck in Luxemburg - Leadership of a Strategic Program to construct a new FMCG factory (80 m€ Capex / Opex), move from two existing production facilities to the new location (machines, stocks, and 300 staff), and close down the old sites. Created the Program Management Office (PMO) approach (15 part-time functional project leaders from the company’s middle management, a part-time external industry specialist, and the accompanying business processes and tools). Reported directly into the group CEO as Program Sponsor. Led the ongoing program management of the corresponding 24 projects, as well as the team building and development of the project managers, plus the alignment with internal and external senior stakeholders. Additionally, upon request of the group's CEO + COO, an audit was made of the end-to-end customer value chain (“order-to-cash”) Europe-wide, with special focus on the supply chain, followed by recommendations for short and medium-term improvements. Also, coaching was provided to the local management of a factory in Germany (100 staff) regarding the development of their mid-term business planning. Consultancy mission at Kitchen Concept (leader in professional kitchen installations and maintenance in central Belgium) - Strategic marketing / business development project in order to create a sustainable growth path. Furthermore, coaching was provided to both the owner / CEO, and his functional leaders in the execution. Change mission at the parcel division of PostNL for its subsidiary in Belgium - Interim leadership of a portfolio of 10+ projects in Business Operations in order to support and facilitate e-Commerce driven, strong double-digit commercial business growth (30%-plus).
Extension from previous crisis management mission: Following sale of CFM to the Van Marcke group (one of Europe's leading wholesalers in sanitary & HVAC) in October 2013, performed a positive BU-performance Turn-Around (2013/15), and ensured the commercial part of an Integration project (2015/16) to align + blend in CFM with both the Van Marcke group and Luxsan (Van Marcke's other local commercial entity), whilst migrating at the same time to the group IT-system incl. new CRM-system implementation.