Next50 2025: A little less
Sandra Berendsen is the new number one in the Next50, the annual ranking of Management Scope of supervisory talent in the Netherlands. Berendsen is in fact a ‘returner’. She previously was listed in the ranking (number eight in 2019) but took a temporary step back from the Dutch supervisory boards due to personal circumstances. More precisely, duty at home on the dairy farm in Markelo, called. As a result, she resigned from the supervisory boards of ForFarmers and FrieslandCampina to literally and figuratively get her feet wet again, or rather, in overalls behind the milking machines. In an interview, she says about this, ‘I suddenly found myself at night solving a malfunction in the milking robots.’ When calm returned to her farm, Berendsen also made her return to the supervisory board.
Berendsen, who has the rather unique job title ‘dairy farmer/member of supervisory board on her proverbial business card, was member of the supervisory boards at KPMG and FrieslandCampina in 2024. Just before the turn of the year, as of December 2024, another top supervisory board was added: Rabobank. Berendsen now has an impressive portfolio with interesting directorships in ‘food & agri’ and ‘finance’, with a specialization in complex cooperative or partnership environments. This portfolio gives her – with a clear lead over the rest of the pack – a crystal clear and convincing number one ranking in the Next50. In fact, with this portfolio, we will probably not see Berendsen in a next edition of the Next50, she will almost certainly take her position on the Top 100 Commissioners, the ranking of the most influential supervisory board members in the Netherlands. She will also there be a 'returner', as Berendsen was in a modest ninety-third place on that list in 2022.
Balanced top 10
With Berendsen's return to the Next50, a woman is at the top of the ranking again after years (in 2020 it was Laetitia Griffith). That is however no reason for jubilation, as the number of women in the Next50 list has decreased markedly. In 2024, and the year before that, the number of men and women in the Top 50 were exactly equal. This year that balance has been shoved back a few years, the list includes (only) twenty-two women and (no less than) twenty-eight men. A small consolation is that the number of women in the top 10 of the ranking did increase, there now are now five women, and therefore also five men. The past two years’ lists had three women each. One of the women in the top ten is also the highest new entrant on the list after Sandra Berendsen. Fleur Rieter, who is new on the supervisory board of Coöperatie VGZ, is in seventh place.
Fleur Rieter: Risk manager with a social focus
‘Building up a pension is a very social topic. I think it is important to make pensions understandable. The entire system is in transition, and I find it honourable and valuable that I can play an active role in that.’ One of the few who knows all the ins and outs of the old and the new system is econometrician and actuary Fleur Rieter (1969), number seven in the Next50. Rieter has been co-chair of the board of directors of pension provider and asset manager MN for many years, where she is responsible for the programme office for the implementation of the Future Pensions Act. In addition, as CFRO she heads the finance, risk & compliance portfolio. About her work in the pension sector, she once said, ‘I myself notice that the range of challenges under the heading of pension is so varied that you can easily spend an entire career in it without experiencing a single boring day.’
Last year, however, she broadened her horizons by agreeing to a position on the supervisory board of health insurer Coöperatie VGZ. ‘My own field is very interesting, but I would also like to look at other sectors,’ she said.
Chairman of the supervisory board Ron Icke of VGZ said when she took office last October: ‘With Fleur Rieter, we are adding a third professional to our board. Our supervisory competencies in risk management are excellently staffed with her joining, whereby Fleur, as a person with a social focus, has a natural connection with the other five members of the supervisory board.’ VGZ CEO Marjo Vissers-Kuijpers was also delighted with Rieter’s arrival: ‘With Fleur’s arrival and the contribution of her knowledge and experience, we know that we will be strengthened in the coming years in the implementation of our strategy and the further professionalisation of risk management within our organisation.’
Focusing on the top ten reveals an interesting mix of different qualifiers, i.e. ‘young’, ‘old’, ‘experienced’, ‘relatively new’, ‘corporate’, ‘social’, ‘sporty’ and ‘political.’ First, a look at the two remaining places of honour. Second place in the Next50 is reserved for Annette Ottolini (see frame below). Her relatively new position as chairman of the supervisory board of facility service provider Vebego earns her aa significant number of impact points, moving her from nineteenth place last year, to an impressive position on the podium this year.
Annette Ottolini: Upstream on the Maas towards the Rhineland
'Curiosity, commitment, enthusiasm and perseverance form the basis for my life path and career', Annette Ottolini once said in an interview. Ottolini (1958) has been the director at the Rotterdam-based Evides Water Company for ten years, the company that supplies 2.5 million people in the southwest of the Netherlands with drinking water and provides industrial water for companies. As Evides director, Ottolini previously advocated a water transition in the Netherlands - in which safe drinking water is guaranteed to remain available for everyone. As a board member of the charity organisation Water for Life, she is also committed to clean and safe drinking water worldwide.
The head office of Evides is located on the banks of the Maas in Rotterdam. A short distance upstream of that same ‘Meuse’, Ottolini has been chair of the supervisory board at the idiosyncratic Limburg family business Vebego Group since early 2024. The company focuses on cleaning, facility management, landscaping and care. Her new position is the main reason for Ottolini’s rise in the Next50, from number nineteen to number two. ‘Vebego revolves around meaningful work and is therefore the perfect match between social significance and business relevance’, she said when she joined Vebego.
The book Rijnlands sjravele – in which the company is portrayed as being organised according to the Rhineland model, but with a typical Limburg twist (‘sjravele’ is Limburgish for ‘slowly and diffidently finding the way’). In this vision, the employee always comes first. It seems to fit in well with the idealistic Ottolini. ‘In my career, I have been inspired by thinkers such as Manfred Kets de Vries, Deepak Chopra and Brené Brown. Their insights and ideas have given me new perspectives to understand and solve the constant puzzles that arise in life.’ As a schoolchild, she was captivated by the ideas of feminist writers such as Anja Meulenbelt and Simone de Beauvoir. ‘They inspired me to follow my own path and not to be hindered by the norms that apply to women and mothers in society.’
Vandaag Inside
The number three in the ranking is someone from the category 'old hand in the trade' (said with the greatest respect), former Carlsberg CEO Cees 't Hart. After ’t Hart finally left the historic brewery complex in Copenhagen via the equally historic Elephant Gate in 2023, he collected an interesting portfolio of supervisory positions. Among other positions, he is non-executive director at the American food giant Mondelez International, known for brands such as Milka, Oreo, Cadbury and Toblerone, and chairman of the supervisory board at Randstad. The latter position counts the heaviest in our list, because Randstad is located in the Netherlands. In 2024 he fortified his portfolio with a position in the advisory council of the up-and-coming consultancy firm Metyis. In addition, he accepted a number of seemingly less demanding supervisory roles in the social sector, such as at charity organization SOS Children's Villages, where he is chairman of the supervisory board. If 't Hart were to use his extensive experience in the supervisory board of a listed company this year, we could well see him back in the Top 100 Supervisory Board Members. Another interesting name in the top ten is that of business economist and former CEO of Landal Greenparks, Dirk Anbeek. The current supervisory board member of Roompot and Sligro, among others, said ‘yes’ last year – after much thought, we assume – to one of the more unique supervisory board memberships in the Netherlands, at football club Ajax. This is a supervisory board that requires a certain appetite, as in the past the position has often been surrounded by supporter upheaval, emotions running high and mocking comments in programs such as the Dutch Vandaag Inside. Expectations are high, and outgoing chairman of the supervisory board Michael van Praag welcomed the new colleagues on the board saying, ‘They will lead Ajax to new successes.’ With his appointment in the Johan Cruijff Arena, Anbeek rises by a huge margin from number thirty-three last year to number four this year – a position Ajax would, as it is, not want to hold.
Number five, Daniëlle Jansen Heijtmajer, is also making solid progress. She rises from fourteenth to fifth place. This is mainly because of her supervisory role at insurer a.s.r., but she is also a member of the supervisory board of Uber Payments, in addition to her executive role as global director finance, shared services & enterprise risk management of FrieslandCampina.
The top ten also includes a few notable climbers. The Rector Magnificus of the TU in Delft, Tim van der Hagen, who is leaving next year – and in some publications is referred to as ‘controversial’ –, rises from thirteenth to sixth place, partly due to his position on the supervisory board of Gasunie. Peter Bommel (former CEO of Deloitte) also rises (from number seventeen to number eight), mainly by increasingly profiling himself as a sports manager. Bommel, himself once a fanatic hockey player, was already a board member of the Fund for Top Athletes. Since last year, he has also been a board member of the highest sports body in the Netherlands, sports umbrella organisation NOC-NSF.
Newcomers and former politicians
The Next50 has seventeen newcomers this year: ten men and seven women. That is considerably less than last year, when we were introduced to thirty newcomers (sixteen men, fourteen women). The highest new rankings have already been noted (Berendsen at number one, Rieter at seven). Perhaps one of the most well-known names on the list, former PvdA leader and former aspiring prime minister of the Netherlands Diederik Samsom, completes the list of top three newcomers (see frame below). He has been using his knowledge of the energy transition as chairman of the supervisory board of Gasunie, among other things, since 2024.
Diederik Samsom to put his own Green Deal into practice
The lateral entry of former politicians as supervisory board members is a well-known phenomenon in this ranking. This year, there are four former politicians on the list. Other than Samsom, there is former State Secretary for Culture and Media Medy van der Laan (last year twenty third, now ninth), former Minister for Medical Care Martin van Rijn (new at number twenty eight, mainly due to his new position as chairman at DNB) and former State Secretary for Economic Affairs Frank Heemskerk (who dropped from number twenty to number thirty six, a drop that was caused mainly by his departure from the supervisory board of investor Meesman). The colourful local politician Hendrik Jan Biemond (former PvdA councilor in Amsterdam, now new at number forty-two as a new supervisory board member of De Nederlandsche Bank, see frame below) is not taken into consideration here.
Hendrik Jan Biemond: Colourful all-rounder in DNB’s supervisory board
He is perhaps one of the most colourful people in the Next50: Hendrik Jan Biemond, the new supervisory board member of De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB). ‘He can be anything, except mainstream,’ was the recent conclusion of an article about him in the FD. In the past, Biemond was, among other things, a public prosecutor, a lawyer (at Allen & Overy, now A&O Shearman, one of the knowledge partners of Management Scope) and a municipal councillor for the PvdA in his hometown of Amsterdam. He is currently, among other things, a deputy councillor at the Arnhem-Leeuwarden Court of Appeal and a member of the supervisory board of the Holland Festival (Biemond is known as a great art lover). Biemond is considered one of the Netherlands' leading specialists in corporate criminal law. As a public prosecutor, he once prosecuted the Ahold top for a major fraud case. As the 'house lawyer' of supermarket group Jumbo, he assisted, among others, the 'fallen' Jumbo CEO Frits van Eerd. A few years ago, he suddenly and quietly deregistered as a lawyer and handed over the defence of Van Eerd to a colleague.
In recent years, Biemond has managed to get into the press in other ways. As a councillor, he caused a stir by posing in a coloured burqa at Pride Amsterdam. It was in protest against the ‘burqa ban’. ‘I have nothing to do with the burqa,’ Biemond emphasized at the time. ‘But I am even more against the burqa ban.’
Biemond has been taking over from Marry de Gaay Fortman on the DNB Supervisory Board for several months now. The brand-new Supervisory Board Chairman Martin van Rijn (also new to DNB and in the Next50, number twenty-eight) said upon taking office: ‘I am very pleased to welcome Hendrik Jan Biemond. With his arrival, legal expertise within the supervisory board will continue to be strongly represented. Hendrik Jan Biemond brings a great deal of knowledge and experience within the financial sector. As a lawyer and partner at Allen & Overy, he has assisted major financial institutions in the areas of the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act (Wwft) and conduct supervision.’
A milk white list
In recent years, the Next50 has been led by what we somewhat diffidently describe as ‘diverse’, ‘colourful’ or ‘multicultural’ talent. Last year, KPMG supervisory board member Kuldip Singh was the list leader. In 2020, it was the Laetitia Griffith, as mentioned above. Singh has now advanced to the upper regions of the Top 100 Members of Supervisory Board (twelfth place), Griffith is in the list at a steady forty third place. The multicultural honour in the Next50 is upheld this year by Artie Debidien, who grew up in the Westland and comes from a Hindustani family, last year at number thirty, this year at number twenty. She is the only person currently providing some much-needed colour in the otherwise milk white list.
The list also has no mention of foreign influences. Last year, the German Finnish Essimari Kairisto provided some ‘exoticism’ with a second place. But we find her (also) in the Top 100 Members of Supervisory Board (at number twenty-two). The second ‘supervisory migrant’ of the previous year, the Flemish Lieve Declercq, has disappeared from the rankings through a back door, her supervisory portfolio has shown too little movement for too long. This seems to have nipped in the bud a possible cautious trend of scouting for supervisory talent abroad.
Where are the millennials and GenZ?
‘Diversity in age’ also shows negligible progress in the top 50. The generations from the sixties and seventies are still in command, like in previous years. The sixties is particularly well represented with twenty-seven of the supervisory board members on the list, while thirteen are from the seventies. There are also eight supervisory board members from the fifties. Under the slogan ‘you are never too old to be seen as ‘next,’ the Nestor in the list is Bernard Fortuyn, born in 1954 (for many years a member of the board of Siemens Nederland). This chairman of the supervisory board of GasTerra is in an honourable thirty-ninth place.
The youngest in this year’s list is exactly one year older than the youngest in last year’s list. And that has everything to do with the fact that Marijke Folkers-In ’t Hout, born in 1983, is, just like last year, the youngest in the Next50 (last year at number forty-seven, this time number forty-six). In addition to Folkers-In ’t Hout, only one other supervisor from the 1980s is included in the list, Nils den Besten, born in 1982, dairy farmer in Brandwijk (South Holland) and member of the supervisory board of FrieslandCampina. Our conclusion: we are, just like last year, still waiting for the neue Niederländische Welle, or the talented millennials and members of GenZ.
CEOs on the rise
The Top 50 definitely contains a number of interesting ‘new’ names. The second oldest person on the list, Piet Veenema, born in 1955, makes his debut in twenty first place. Veenema, who was CEO of industrial supplier Kendrion for many years, is one of the doyens in the Dutch manufacturing industry. ‘I find the manufacturing process incredibly exciting’, he once said in an interview. ‘Engineers come up with the most special things from scratch. These are developed into prototypes and then two years later into products, by men in white suits. When that process is completed and you have the product in your hands, it gives you a kick.’ Since last year, he has also been using his experience in the manufacturing industry with a supervisory board membership at manufacturing company Hydratec, which was seen as an important takeover target for Ten Cate in 2024. He was already active as a member of the supervisory board of industrial supplier Aalberts.
One place lower at number twenty-two is Birgit Otto, former operational director of Schiphol and ex-interim-coo of ProRail. She has been on the supervisory board of airline Transavia since last year and was already on the supervisory board of Royal FloraHolland and IHC Merwede Holland. Another interesting newcomer: econometrician Else Bos at number twenty-four (read also the interview with Else Bos: 'Creating space for real dialogue is at the basis of the advisory role'), who joined the supervisory board of Van Lanschot Kempen as a new financial prodigy.
Also interesting is the rise of the (former) CEOs. Marc van Gelder, former CEO of Mediq, enters at number thirty thanks to, among other things, a supervisory position at construction company Heijmans. Taco de Haan, CEO of Stork until 2024, is at number forty-eight, mainly thanks to an appointment as a member of the supervisory board of consultancy and engineering firm Royal HaskoningDHV. Ingrid Faber, CEO of family business Faber Groep, enters the list thanks to a new supervisory board membership (chair) at Gulpener Bierbrouwerij. Faber was already on the supervisory board of construction company Dura Vermeer and packaging company Paardekooper.
Grocers
What about the flow of ‘talent’ to the Top 100 commissioners? Nine supervisory board members from last year’s list have been promoted to the Top 100 commissioners. They are the previously mentioned Kuldip Singh (twelfth in the Top 100 commissioners) and Essimari Kairisto (number twenty-two). And in addition: Kim Smit (number thirty-one), Resi Becker (number seventy), Marga de Jager (number seventy-three), Lard Friese (number eighty-five), William Bontes (number ninety-one), Peter de Wit (number ninety-four) and Theo Brink (number ninety-seven).
That brings us to the wish list for the next edition of the Next50. This can best be described with the age-old question to the Dutch grocer ‘can we have an ounce more?’ Can we have a few more women in supervisory roles? Can we have a little more colour? And can we have them a little younger?
This analysis was published in Management Scope 03 2025.