Jan Vaessen and Magda Veenendaal started their Engaging Programmes in 2010. They mostly work with highly qualified professionals in science and industry, and work globally with multidisciplinary and international teams. Read on for feedback from two successful programmes.
Kick-off workshops at Top Institute Food & Nutrition
Top Institute Food & Nutrition commissioned Engaging Programmes to get a series of about 25 projects started. These projects entailed the cooperation of team members from science and industry to develop knowledge on relevant topics in the agro, food and health field.
Both our industrial and scientific partners see the speed – sometimes 8 to 9 months – and the focus generated by the kick-off workshops. The project plan has become tangible and the project team now has a face. Our objectives were to unify the team and to start the process: these have been more than achieved.
– Marion Coeleman, HR manager Top Institute Food & Nutrition
Apart from unifying the team and getting process started, Engaging Programmes’ efforts also led to:
- a thorough sharing of the ’Project Investigators’ knowledge with the project team members
- improved strategic decision making in the projects as a result of a more realistic understanding of the impact of important decisions
Various workshops at AkzoNobel
AkzoNobel approached Engaging Programmes for a number of complex projects entailing product and process innovations in paints, coatings and speciality chemicals. This programme involved both kick-off workshops as well as a series of mid-term accelerators whose objective was to give the projects extra impetus.
Jan Vaessen helped us create a project plan for one of our major RD&I projects. The history and the complicated steering structure of the project meant that we needed more than the standard project planning process. Jan was very flexible, adapting his approach to the needs of the team, and he was able to engage the whole team in the planning process. In the end the team delivered a timeline that was supported by all its members. This timeline has proven to be instrumental in further steering the project.
– Thijs de Groot, Innovation Technologist, AkzoNobel
Apart from good project planning, Engaging Programmes’ efforts also led to:
- greater control over the project’s progress as a result of clear, useful KPIs and points for decision making
- greater clarity of the complicated supervisory structure within the organisation
Other examples
Jan Vaessen and Magda Veenendaal would be pleased to tell you more about other projects that they have worked on. If required, they will also supply references.
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