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Remember that time when you saw something for the first time and you didn’t automatically accept it? Now put a newcomer into a corporate meeting and watch their face. Not the polite nodding but the actual expression. The slight pause when the tenth slide appears. The confusion when the group spends twenty minutes rephrasing the same point. The silent question hanging in the air: “Is this really…

Ever strolled through Amsterdam with a stroopwafel in hand, or squeezed into a café alongside twenty locals and their bikes? If so, you’ve felt it: the Dutch vibe. It’s not just the canals or the clogs—it’s the way people talk, work, and do business. After years of soaking up global corporate cultures, I can tell you: the Dutch have something special going on. It’s that signature mix of blunt…

Media anxiety When growing up in the 80’s and 90’s of the last century, life was easy, simple and one dimensional. At least in my perception it was. We had one Dutch News channel, we had the BBC, German ZDF and French RTBF. The news we watched was neutral and objective, at least we thought it was. The gravity of the shocking images was softened as to protect us from the cruelty of war. The world…

Hello, my friends and business relations, or both! Today, we are diving into the mysterious realm of networking and the immeasurable value of friends. Get ready for a barrel of laughs and some unexpected life lessons! Picture this: you are at a networking event, armed with your well-rehearsed elevator pitch and your best “professional” smile. You are mingling, schmoozing, and trying to remember…

If you haven’t been living under a rock in the last few months, you have heard of Chat GPT3. Just in case, this is by far the best Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool that ever hit the market. It’s mind blowing! As an example, I just asked it to write me a blog about what Chat GPT could mean to Procurement, and this is what it wrote: “Chatting with GPT: The Future of Procurement is…

A good question was raised at last week’s Procurement Leaders Congress in Singapore: why is it in a lot of companies still not a natural given that Procurement has a seat in all major purchases? Nobody ever forgets to invite Legal or Finance but for some reason Procurement has to muscle their way in. Why is that? I think this has to do with a couple of reasons. The more technical a product or…

I read the most shocking thing last week. Somebody posted a sad story that he and his son started University at the same time a few years ago. His son died in a car crash and the father was so distraught that he gave up his studies. After a while he realized that he could best honor his son by finishing his study and get his degree. An he did! This is not the shocking part but a beautiful and…

Millennials at work? Then beware of jokes

I read this beautiful article in the NRC journal, unfortunately in Dutch and thought to myself that this was so good that I needed to translate it into English and share. As an ‘office boomer’, how do you deal with young colleagues at work? Work harder on your jokes and realize that you are a dinosaur, writes Japke-d. Bouma. Twenty years ago, you put a vacancy on a website and then hordes of…

I love the acting performance of Kevin Spacey, he is a genius. I am a big fan of most of Michael Jackson’s music. Maradona was one of the best football players ever, Marc Overmars was a great player and is a fantastic club manager. Can we still say that? We now know that a lot of our heroes have a dark side. And so do we. Is a Picasso something we shouldn’t admire and love knowing that the…

If there is one thing COVID has taught us, it’s to appreciate what we have got. All of our life we have been striving for more. More money, more status, more holidays, more of everything! We have now been taught humility and appreciation of what we have again, to value our health and family, like never before. Many moons ago, I met my late father in law. I was young and couldn’t understand his…

How to be that added value to your client? What is the best way of showing your excellent service level? Promise what you deliver and deliver what you promised. No matter how much we all would like to have a smooth running operation and clients who never complain; there will always be hick ups in any supply chain! Open up to your client and show him that you are in control and solving the…

Send in the clowns…

It’s been a crazy year. How many times have we read that already. And the year isn’t even over. The holiday season is coming and many people are worried if they will be able to spend it with their loved ones.

People have died this year as a result of this new plague. We have been locked up in our houses, could barely see our friends and family and we’re not even allowed to touch and kiss each…

Are you talented or experienced? When you look at job recruitment ads you are either one or the other. Or do they really mean young and old? It’s time to have a clear definition and proper use of these two qualifications.

Whenever you read that a company is looking for a talented person you automatically assume that they are looking for a young person, who is just starting out in the business…