Staff
Staff
VentureLab Twente has a dedicated staff that offers you all the necessary help and support to start a high-growth technology company. Meet the people who run the daily operation of VentureLab Twente.
Ellen Donkers – Programme Developer at VentureLab Twente
As a programme developer at VentureLab Twente ( 0,2 fte) Ellen Donkers’ main responsibilities include the design, development and implementation of the training programme and the tools and instruments to support it. As a PhD at Nikos (0,8 fte) her research interests include Adult Learning and Education, Professional Development, (Supporting) Entrepreneurial Learning, Learning Communities and Self-directed Learning. Since 1997 she’s held several positions at Ford Motor Company (Purchasing, Material Control, Business Analyst and Change Management) and Twente University (Curriculum Design, Project Coordination). Donkers holds a professional Bsc in Commercial Science and Business Administration, (Business Interpreting) from KHLIM, Belgium and an Msc in Educational Science and Technology (Curriculum and Instruction) from Twente University.
Edith van Eijk – Office Manager at VentureLab Twente
She acts as the focal point for administration, planning, and coordination of VentureLab Twente activities.
Ruud Koopman – Coach Coordinator at VentureLab Twente
As coach coordinator at VentureLab Twente Ruud Koopman’s main responsibilities include coach selection, matching with participants and further contacts with the coaches of VLT. His interests include technology, management, entrepreneurial learning, politics, regional development, as well as several hobbies. He is educated in aeronautical engineering and industrial organisation. After having served in the army as an officer, he did several projects in quality (ISO 9000) en logistics. He also became a teacher at Saxion (University of Applied Science) in organisation management and later became head of that department. In 1996 he became a member of the team that designed Small Business & Retail Management in Enschede. This educational programme has been selected as the best in the Netherlands for more than ten years. From 2003 until 2007 Ruud Koopman was a member of the regional parliament (Provinciale Staten).
Hèla Klaczynski– Educational designer at VentureLab Twente
As Legal Expert at VentureLab Twente Hèla Klaczynski is the contact concerning arrangements for foreign participants (Visa and Housing) and fund-finding for all participants. Her further tasks concern Nikos, where she manages the secretariat and coordinates projects in which Nikos and VentureLab Twente cooperate. This function is based on many years’ experience in staff-support at the University of Twente, starting at the Policy Development Unit, and then continued at Nikos via the Graduate School Twente, Registrars Office and Nobem. Hèla has a Bachelor in Dutch and International Law and Legislation (Saxion University College Enschede). Her main goal is to further develop her skills in services concerning law and legislation.
Jeroen Kraaijenbrink - Research manager and trainer at VentureLab TwenteJeroen is an assistant professor at NIKOS, the Dutch Institute for Knowledge Intensive Entrepreneurship of the University of Twente.
His research focuses on the question how strategic managers and entrepreneurs can be facilitated in taking the right actions under conditions of uncertainty. Jeroen teaches courses on strategy, knowledge management and entrepreneurship in the MSc programmes of Business Administration and Business Information Technology and to entrepreneurs and managers at VentureLab Twente and the Twente School of Management (TSM). Kraaienbrink holds an MSc and a PhD in Industrial Engineering and Management and an MSc in Public Administration from the University of Twente.
Annemarie Ridder - Communication manager at VentureLab Twente
Annemarie Ridder is the external communication specialist for VentureLab Twente and NIKOS, the Dutch Institute for Knowledge Intensive Entrepreneurship of the University of Twente. Ridder holds a professional Bsc in International Marketing and an MSc in applied Communication Sciences
Her research interests include entrepreneurial intentions and female entrepreneurship. Before joining NIKOS she worked as a project assistant with the Technology Transfer Office at the University of Twente. Previously she held positions in SME’s in B2B and B2C areas and (semi-) public organisations.
Mariska Roersen – Programme Monitor at VentureLab Twente
Mariska monitors the progress of VentureLab Twente participants and the VentureLab programme as a whole. Her activities are directed towards making and keeping VentureLab Twente transparent, in order to assist management and to increase the performance of and interaction between participants. In her work for NIKOS, her interests are international management, marketing and innovation. She researches market orientation, analyses innovation competences of companies and is involved in various collaborations with Russian universities. Mariska has a MSc in Business Administration from the University of Twente.
Heike Stockschlader-Spenkelink – Financial Manager at VentureLab Twente.
Renske Stroet - Educational designer at VentureLab Twente.
As a program developer Renske’s main responsibilities include the design, development and implementation of the training program. Her main goal is to ensure that the transfer of knowledge to practice is as easy as possible. Moreover she focusses on the design and development of several instruments to enable VentureLab Participants to get the most out of the program. Renske is also responsible for the scheduling of the training sessions in our program.
In her former job as a learning and development consultant Renske mainly worked for banks and insurance companies. In this job she designed and developed several learning interventions (e.g. gaming simulations) and did research on learning environments. Renske holds a bachelors and masters degree in Communication Sciences and a masters degree in Human Resource Development (HRD).
Our participants say...
You learn so much here. How to find and use relevant networks, for example. How to protect your ideas. The discussions with other entrepreneurs are also useful. I’d recommend it to anyone.
Marc Peters
