John A. van Duursen

Postbus 17223,

1001 JE

Nederland+31 (0) 6 22600737

Born: Amsterdam, September 20th ‘71 Marital status: unmarried

Personal description:

Entrepreneurial, internationally oriented and enthusiastic personality who unites his commercial- and business talents with international development aid issues and sustainable development.

Relevant work experience

2003 – now; Research project on ‘Sustainable commodity trading’ – To identify and assess convergences of interest for stakeholders in the cocoa chain, in order to attain wider sustainable production and increased farm income. A 2-month field trip to Ghana was included. See

Key words:

Agricultural economics, commodity-trading, (economic benefits of) sustainable chain management, fair trade, corporate social responsibility, farm productivity, product quality, traceability, organisational capacity, integrated pest management

2003;Project coordinator ‘Environmental Performance Indicators (EPI) in European Ports’. - to develop and assess a set of environmental performance indicators that can be used in the context of our client (benchmarking, internal improvement, European Commission), the ECOPORTS project (see or

2000 – 2002; Account management at D-Office Holding (venture ING Bank). A innovative concept with respect to flex working. As account manager, I had the following responsibilities:

Research and acquisition, inform potential customers and express the vision of the new way of (flex) working, account management aimed at the top 500 companies in the Netherlands, observe new opportunities and support the development of new initiatives that strengthen and enlarge the market position of D-Office and to achieve sales results.

1999 – 2000; PA Consulting Group (an international management consultancy- and technology firm).

Life-Science Platform; ‘BioPartner’ for the Ministry of Economic Affairs in Holland.

A relocation project, working in an international team; analysing different scenarios, guiding, supporting and fully preparing a relocation-decision for a multinational company.

1994 – 1998; Private entrepreneurship, having set up 2 companies;

  • JobNed - a project agency, specialised in project management and the execution of qualitative- and quantitative market research (face-to-face, telemarketing) and visual traffic research. Our clients were municipalities, (international) market research agencies and commercial production firms. Yearly turnover of app. €. 80.000,00 with 250 temporary workers.
  • Syntony - an IT service company, mainly focussing on the individual end-users (private and professional) of computer systems; on-site installation of hard- and software, offering telephonic helpdesk support and providing practical, customer-oriented training with a national coverage. The client portfolio consisted mainly of computer manufacturers. Yearly turnover of €. 600.000,00 with 8 fixed and 30 flexible employees.
  • As one of the two founders, I have been both the initiator and the owner of all the different functions and developments of growth within both organisations.

1991 – 1992; Internships;

  • Performed an in-depth market research for a consortium of French, independent subsidiaries of Bolls Benelux Two months in France and two months in the Netherlands.
  • Multifaceted work experience at Nestlé Holland, Foodservice department.

Educational background

2002 – 2003; European Postgraduate Course in Environmental Management (EPCEM) at the Institute for Environmental Issues (IVM) of the VU University in Amsterdam. See

1993 – 1999; Master in International Business at the Maastricht University - ‘strategy and innovation, project management, internal organisation and cross-cultural marketing’ One semester at the l’Université des Sciences Sociales et Economiques at Toulouse (France).

  • Marketing degree (NIMA A).
  • Intensive language training French at the NIOW in The Hague.

Skills

  • Presentation skills, Meeting skills, Interview techniques, Leadership- and communication skills.Basic consulting skills, problem solving disciplines and Rapid Business Improvement.
  • Well-developed social and interpersonal skills
  • Entrepreneurial and Negotiation skills
  • Adaptation skills (with respect to culture, climate and language)
  • Advanced computer skills: MS Office (extended version), Lotus Notes and Internet.

Languages

Dutch - Native tongue.

  • English - Excellent.
  • French - Good.
  • Spanish - Reasonable.
  • Bahasa Indonesia - Poor.

Extra Curricular

-Several volunteering projects concerning eco-tourism, nature conservation and biological research in respectively Costa Rica, Honduras and Guatemala.

-Various work - and travel experiences in Southeast Asia, Australia, the US, Brazil, the Ukraine and European countries.

-Various sports, active member of a student’s association and a main role in a musical.

Personal characteristics

-Entrepreneurial, team-player, multi-lingual, initiative/pro-active, flexible, commercial, enthusiastic, result driven, and strong communicative/social skills

References, diploma’s, grade lists and/or reports are available upon request

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