Active in startups & innovation since 2006 in multiple roles: as entrepreneur, (program) director, mentor, speaker and consultant.

–short bio–

In 2007 I co-founded my first startup, where I experienced the ups and downs of the startup life. After winning a national TV-show in 2009 the media celebrated me as a successful entrepreneur, but four months later I was almost bankrupt and had to reorganize the company. We held on, and sold the company in 2012.

After that I had 10 years of sharing my knowledge. I wrote a book on my first adventure (Startups & Downs, 2014) and shared the lessons in talks (a.o. at TEDxEde, 2014). As trainer & coach I’ve guided hundreds of entrepreneurs and corporate innovation teams; at incubators and at EY VODW & Rabobank. I was co-founder & CEO at a second startup in cybersecurity, and helped municipalities, startups and larger companies as innovation lead to bring ideas to the market. Because that is what triggers me the most and what I have been doing for 20 years: not inventing a good idea, but bringing innovations to society.