Refresh Magazine

What do you love about your job?
I get to do very varied and challenging work
at a fast-growing organisation that's a
trendsetter on the world market. I can
honestly say that no two days are the same.
As the person who is ultimately accountable,
I try to organise processes in such a way that
activities run smoothly and my colleagues are
doing work that is suited to them. Everyone
has their own role on the team and mine is,
among other things, to make certain that
people enjoy coming to work. That's
important to me and it's something I enjoy.
Aartsenfruit is also a good fit for me because
the core values of respect and trust and the
concepts of order, decency and discipline are
writ large in our organisation. That aligns
perfectly with my own attitude to life and
work. An orderly and structured approach is
crucial in my job.
Looking ahead to the next five years,
what would you like to achieve or
improve at aartsenfruit?
I feel it's important for our organisation to
work towards a common purpose, to know
what we want to achieve and how we're
going to achieve it. That is really a simple
and very natural process. After all, you
expect to discuss questions like ‘What
could we do better’ and ‘What steps are
we going to take’ as a normal part of work.
As a member of the management board it
is crucial that I motivate employees to
change where needed and to improve how
we work on an ongoing basis. In the years
ahead, I will focus on doing that in IT.
How will you achieve this, and what
do you need to succeed?
Continuous improvement is already
integral to aartsenfruit. That's not
something I do alone, but that we all do
together, keeping each other on our toes,
setting boundaries, and continuously
learning and improving. Having the right
people in the right jobs and recruitment
factor into this too.
How long have you been working at
aartsenfruit?
Since 1 September 2014.
What’s your educational background
and where did you work before
joining aartsenfruit?
I went to secondary school in Ede and then
moved to Breda with my parents. After that
I did a degree in accountancy at the
Hogeschool West-Brabant [now Avans
University of Applied Sciences, ed.], and
completed the course at NIVRA-Nyenrode
to become a registered accountant. Before
joining aartsenfruit, I worked as an external
accountant at Deloitte for six and a half
years and then at KPMG for eleven and a
half years.
You have seen the inner workings of
many companies. How does
aartsenfruit differ from comparable
firms in the Netherlands, in your
view?
As an accountant I have audited, analysed
and advised many firms. Aartsenfruit is a
real family company, where continuity and
passing on the business from one
generation to the next ripples out to the
relationship with employees. Whereas the
general trend is towards shorter contracts,
employees at family businesses tend to
stay for decades. That's true at aartsenfruit,
too. That loyalty is reinforced by our open
lines of communication between
management and staff. Also, family-run
businesses typify a brand of leadership that
takes clear, decisive action when called for.
These factors, I believe, play an enormous
role in aartsenfruit's success as a business.
As a child, what did you want to be
when you grew up?
Would you believe that I can't even
remember? I do recall the difficulty of
choosing between economics and a
technical field. As far back as I can
remember I've had an affinity with maths
and economics, but also with technology.
Basically, I want to understand how
things work.
What are your hobbies?
Riding my motorcycle, which I've been
doing for 15 years now. I haven't got much
time for it, unfortunately, but my Honda is
always ready to take off. Besides that
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