📱 +31 6 5256 7282
✉ jan-eric@zandbergen-ep.com
Leadership with substance
I combine a technical engineering background with more than three decades in the pharmaceutical industry and direct CEO-level experience in a large manufacturing organisation.
I am not a consultant who observes from the sidelines. I step in, take responsibility and create momentum. Whether as interim CEO, Managing Director or Site Director, I lead people, operations and change when an organisation needs it most.
My leadership is energetic and results-oriented, with attention to the team. I hold people accountable, remove obstacles and build organisations that keep performing after I leave.
The person behind the role
The personal traits and leadership principles that shape how I lead — the side of me you will not find in a job title or track record.
My style
I am not someone who watches the shop. I have never worked in a stable, standstill environment — and I don't intend to start now. I get my energy from organisations in motion: the ones that are building, transforming, or finding their footing.
My style is relational but result-driven. I invest in contact and trust before I make hard decisions — but I do make them. Not everything has to be pleasant. Results have to be delivered. I coach, I listen, and I explain. But when the moment comes, I decide.
Being clear
I believe people perform better when they understand why a change is necessary and how their contribution fits the bigger picture. Before I ask anyone to move, I make sure the "big why" is clear. This is not a slogan — it is how I have led every transformation in my career.
Resistance is normal. I expect it, I respect it, and I work through it with clear communication, consistent behaviour and trust. In my experience, roughly 10% of people are frontrunners who embrace change early. Another 80% will follow when leadership is clear and credible. And 10% will struggle to come along — I speak to them directly, give them a fair chance, and if it is not the right fit, I help them move on. That is not harsh. That is honesty.
My expectations
I do not let people hide. Ownership and responsibility are core values in every team I lead. I give people space, trust and context — and in return I expect them to step up. When someone takes ownership, I back them fully. When someone avoids it, we have a conversation. Quickly.
People first
I translate vision into concrete action. I am comfortable with ambiguity and strategic complexity, but I do not stay in the clouds. I break plans into steps, hold people to agreements and follow up rigorously. At the same time, I keep an eye on relationships and the human side — because without that, change does not last.
From shop floor to ministry
I am as comfortable on the production floor as I am in a boardroom or a government office. Over the years I have engaged stakeholders ranging from operators and team leaders to mayors, ministers and international politicians. I switch naturally between local operational reality and international strategic interests — a skill I developed working in complex matrix organisations where HR, safety and engineering reported into global lines while I was accountable for local results.
Numbers as a navigation tool
I use financial reporting as steering information, not just as a scorecard. My focus is on receivables, failure costs and forecasts — the indicators that tell you early where the pain is coming. I have carried full P&L responsibility, reported to shareholders and supervisory boards, and managed investment projects in the tens of millions. I am not an engineer by role anymore, but I stay close to scope, budget and delivery — because that is where promises are kept or broken.
Pragmatic, not dogmatic
I am pragmatic by nature. I believe in lean principles, the Toyota Production System and operational excellence — but I use them as tools, not as religion. What matters is what works in your organisation, with your people, under your constraints. I bring structure, culture and result-orientation to organisations that are still finding their shape. That is where I do my best work.
Education & development
| Period | Program | Institution |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 — 2024 |
New Board Program Top advanced program on board effectiveness and governance |
Business University Nyenrode |
| 1987 — 1993 | Mechanical Engineering MSc | University of Twente |
Board positions
| Period | Role | Organisation |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 — 2025 | Supervisory Board Member The foundation stimulates personal development of Bachelor's Honours students |
Foundation Honours Biomedical Sciences, University of Utrecht |
Training & certifications
- Ostend International Management Conference
- Leadership Development Program — Nyenrode Business University
- International Management Seminar
- Industrial Management
- NIMA Marketing A — Dutch Institute for Marketing
- Lean Six-Sigma Green Belt — Stanwick
- Merck Production System Leader Development
- Integrated Business Planning — Oliver Wight
- Toyota Production System