Niels Knegtmans studied at Eindhoven University of Technology where he obtained both his Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering and his Master’s degree in Innovation Management. During the last half year of his Master, Niels worked part-time at De Vroedt & Thierry. After graduating in mid-2023, he joined the firm full-time as executive researcher/ junior consultant. In this role, he supports De Vroedt & Thierry’s partners in the search for future-proof (top) talent and leaders and regulators in a digital world. At the same time, he deals with the digital transformation of core processes.

Niels’ vision
Due to my background at Eindhoven University of Technology, I am focused on process optimization and innovation. The complexity of the issues we face in this day and age and the pace of world change is increasing exponentially. It takes a lot from organizations/companies to stay competitive in this world. They have to keep their organization profitable and more sustainable while simultaneously innovating. In order for companies to innovate and become future-proof they require future-proof leaders and managers.

The leaders of the future face the challenge of properly utilizing the human capital. Because of the radical changes and the fast pace of these changes, the best leaders distinguish themselves by having a high learning capacity, working smarter than their competitors and by adapting faster. In the words of Arie de Geus, “The ability to learn faster than your competitors may be your only sustainable advantage.”

Selecting the right future-proof leaders within a specific context is what makes the work at De Vroedt & Thierry so interesting and challenging for me.