My Story
Find my story below to get a first idea on my professional track record, so far...
After studying Interior Design in Antwerp in the late 90's and a fascinating Erasmus adventure in Milan around 1996, I started in '98 as an interior architect at a small company specialized in design and production of offices for notaries and pharmacies. Thinking about my own business as a designer... one day... I knew I needed to elaborate my sales & management skills on a professional level. For this I chose an educational track in practice at Promedia - 'Yellow Pages', where I took the first steps in B2B sales just before the Millennium.
Looking for more experience in services and relational connections with customers, I started at Konica Business Solutions in the beginning of 2000, where I first started selling, from Regional- over Major- and ultimately quit fast becoming National-Account Manager with TOP500 companies and government institutions in portfolio.
At the time of the merger to Konica Minolta Business Solutions (Belgium) in early 2005 I took the responsibility over the 'Major & National Accounts' Sales Division and together with the General Manager I co-designed the future commercial structure that made the company gain it's leadership position and unique growth performance within the Belgian market.
A few years later (2009), solicited by the General Manager, I founded a new business unit 'Indirect Channel Division', next to the existing Direct Sales oriented structures. This new BU gave the company an active presence at all B2B customer profiles and helped to keep a key position in a saturated market under pressure.
While raising this 'outsider' within the company's direct sales oriented history and culture, this role made me realize important assets for success are the need for inspiring communication, agility, pragmatism, openness and honesty... and determination.
A good 5 years later, when relations between the Belgium and Netherlands organizations became more intense, I transferred the responsibility of the indirect channel to my Dutch colleague to increase synergy on Benelux level for the indirect channel approach.
At that same time, Konica Minolta - within Europe - set the ambition to acquire IT-players and started to develop local priority towards this transition. Therefor I was asked to set up the new division 'Professional Services & PMO' supporting the move to IT within the company. Program and Project Management (Prince2), Business Consultancy and preparing 'the new way of working' within the organization again awoke my passion for continuous evolution & growth and the realization arose that I could help more people and companies with all this knowledge and experience.
When in mid 2017 (after almost 18 years of loyal service) the invitation came to extend my mission to the Netherlands (Amsterdam), however, I resolutely chose to share my passions and talents with others and to start as an independent business expert, trainer and coach. Fundamentum, my own company, is the result of this decision.
From my extensive experience in practice about various disciplines, at senior management levels and international context, I focus today on themes such as sales techniques, communication, efficient working, personal mastery and project/program/transformation management.
As key differentiators in learning & development, I see the 'after-care' of the individual to anchor sustainable growth and personal development. With 1-on-1 coaching as an important added value.
Also, I profoundly believe in a tailor-made approach of each individual/customer, always going back to basics to bring the added value that is necessary to grow structurally, both as an individual and as an organization!
'Building the basics' is my moto.
In addition to coaching and training, I offer strategic advice to entrepreneurs/CxOs/management teams on sales & marketing, future readiness and business development specialties.
Following themes belong to my passion and offering:
- Future readiness (generation-management, digital transformation, edu-track)
- Customer centric communication
- Customer centric working & organizing
- Mission, Vision, Strategy
- Business development
- Change management
- Customer journey
- Coaching (individual, teams)
- Consultative selling
- Effective negotiation & communication
- Feedback (give & receive)
- Personal Mastery
- Presentation techniques
- Working in projects
- Timemanagement
- Sales techniques
My professional timeline in short