Ruud Berends has built a distinguished career in the music industry as co-founder and Head of Agenda of the International Festival Forum (IFF) in London and as Head of ESNS Conference & ETEP / ESNS Exchange. He is also known as an expert advisor for Westway Lab in Portugal and EEMC in Romania. Berends began his journey by co-founding youth Centre Debarak in Zutphen. Later, he co-founded and co-owned an international booking agency called Paperclip Agency in Nijmegen, The Netherlands.

Berends spent several years as the project manager of various Dutch Music Export organizations and executive producer of the Dutch Impact Parties. Additionally, he served as a project manager at ADE (Amsterdam Dance Event) at Festival/Convention and as a consulent for the export program for the Dutch entertainment industry at Buma Cultuur. He also held key positions such as International Marketing, Head of Sales at ESNS and Conference Coordinator at Eurosonic Noorderslag.

Berends has vast experience in the music industry, including advising international music festivals and events, promoting musicians and bands to a global audience, and collaborating with industry professionals to establish successful events. He remains passionate about fostering growth for the music industry and influencing a sense of community throughout the industry.