Circle8 has a new executive board effective immediately, consisting of Gert-Jan Schellingerhout (CEO), Marc Nijhuis (CFO), Pascal van der Hart (Director of Operations) and Wouter Waaijenberg (Director MSP). Mike Korenvaar completes the five-member board as non-executive director and is responsible for the staffing portfolio at shareholder Axiom Partners. The management change follows a changed shareholder structure, which aims to make Circle8, through a targeted buy-and-build strategy, a top-three player in the Dutch staffing market.
New objectives
The renewed shareholder structure brings new objectives and requires a cultural change and a different DNA. Therefore four of the five board members are new faces within Circle8; CFO Marc Nijhuis has worked for the organization for ten years. “After the acquisition by Axiom there is an extra focus on growth and development,” explains CEO Gert‑Jan Schellingerhout. “That is why we have assembled a new team, with each board member acting from his own area of expertise. Circle8 is already a fine organization with a good reputation; it is our challenge to lift the entire group to the next level. With this step we as the board have regained our freedom to undertake, so we are happy to seize that challenge with both hands.” CFO Marc Nijhuis welcomes the developments: “The acquisition by Axiom Partners has created a new dynamic, one I feel very comfortable with. The ambitions are sky-high and you can see that everyone within the organization is keen to do their bit. On a personal level I also click with my new board colleagues, so I look forward to our future together.”
Acquisition strategy
With the five-member executive board, Circle8 wants to become the best of its kind in the Netherlands and Europe, so the organisation is focusing on acquisitions. With the recent takeover of intermediary FixedToday, the new board has put its words into action. Mike Korenvaar: “We don’t so much want to become the largest but the best, although we are aware that this market runs on volume. Through targeted acquisitions we are aiming to broaden flexible work in the widest sense of the word, so that we can continue to serve both our clients and jobseekers optimally.”
Changing market
The need for new DNA within the organization is a direct consequence of the changing flex market. With many years of experience in this market, CEO Schellingerhout and his team have earned their stripes and look to the future with great confidence: “Previously intermediaries were suppliers; now clients expect you to act as a partner. You stand side by side, look ahead together and focus on Total Workforce Management. I have every confidence that, with the current management team, we possess the right experience and qualities to meet those expectations.”
