Profile
Distinguished 20+ year career reflects continual advancement. Technologist by education and continued learning, evolved towards a versatile generalist. Demonstrated excellence in R&D, international business development, vendor & account management, and marketing and sales. Entrepreneurial leadership style with highly effective planning, organizational and communication skills including a solutions-oriented approach to problem solving and deal making, with focus on the bottom line. Accomplished senior-level executive with a track record of successful strategic and tactical leadership within the technology industry. Access to distinct, responsive multi-level global network.
Core Strengths & Competencies
• Business development
• Formation of key alliances
• Due diligence / M&A support
• Technology & product roadmap
• Commercial management
• General & BU management • Contract negotiations
• Internat. sales & marketing
• R&D/Project management
• Product development
• Bankability & certification
• Quality management • Intellectual Property protection
• Process development
• Operations management
• Semiconductors & Photovoltaics
• Vendor & account management
• Established during the last 7 years in the solar space 15 strategic partnerships with internationally renowned R&D partners in Australia, Europe and the USA resulting in tangible competitive advantage and commercial successes.
• Initiated, guided and negotiated several acquisitions to a successful closure (technical/commercial DD).
• Prepared and obtained budget acceptance for 4 large capital investment proposals, >€25M (R&D pilot lines).
• Constructed 4 multi-partner collaboration project proposals resulting in ~€20M funding from the State of Saxony.
• Started up and managed a R&D subsidiary in France in light of assessing, certifying and bringing to maturity a disruptive solar module technology, with a €5M budget. In parallel, coordinated and presented the investment proposal for a 500MW PV module factory.
• Initiated and facilitated deal closure that resulted in a PV project pipeline of several hundreds of MW in California.
• Achieved global commercial successes for a large number of PV and semiconductor equipment vendors ($20M+).
• Devised several process and equipment innovations that led to important productivity, safety and yield improvements within Intel’s high-volume Pentium factories.
• Since January 2014 member of the Steering Committee of the European Union Photovoltaics Technology Platform.
Career Summary
• Consultant (2014-Present)
janCONSULT – Management Consulting Technology Markets, Bruges, Belgium
• Executive Director Downstream Division (2011-2014)
ACTIV SOLAR GmbH, Vienna, Austria
o President ACTIV SOLAR, INC., Boston, USA
o Branch Director, ACTIV SOLAR FRANCE, Lyon
• Vice President Product Innovation and Business Development (2007-2011)
ROTH & RAU AG, Chemnitz, Germany
• Managing Director / Vice President International Sales & Marketing (2004 – 2007)
NIMBLE NV, Ghent, Belgium
• Global Business Development Manager (1996 to 2004)
METRON TECHNOLOGY, Amsterdam, Munich, San Jose
• Process Transfer Manager (1994 – 1996)
ALCATEL MICROELECTRONICS, Oudenaarde, Belgium
• Engineering Area Manager & Chairman Joint Engineering Teams (1993 to 1994)
INTEL CORP, Leixlip, Ireland
• Senior Process Development Engineer (1991 to 1993)
INTEL CORP, Santa Clara, California
• Process & Equipment Engineer Ion Implantation and RTP (1988 – 1991) – IMEC, Leuven, Belgium
Qualifications
• Middle Management Programme, Vlerick Management School, Ghent, 2002
• Postgraduate Programme in Corporate Management, Catholic University, Leuven, 1990
• MSc. Industrial Sciences / Microelectronics Engineering, Polytechnic Institute, Ghent, 1987
Language Skills
Dutch (native) • English (full proficiency) • French (excellent) • German (good)
