HOGENT

Heilige Maagdcollege

HIBO

Europe West wavespace Foundry lead at EY  -  Facilitator  -  Innovation Enabler

In my capacity at EY wavespace Venturespace, I specialized in equipping clients with optimal strategies for organizing and advancing their ventures. My responsibilities included the creation and implementation of standardized processes tailored to ideate, incubate, and launch growth-oriented products, services, and businesses. I actively facilitated client engagement through workshops, employing design thinking, lean startup, and agile methodologies to enhance project outcomes. Leveraging extensive industry knowledge and strategic alliances, I provided comprehensive support across all stages of the innovation journey. This role involved introducing clients to new capabilities, alongside a robust framework to swiftly develop, market, and scale innovative solutions.

- Lead a multidisciplinary team in delivering innovative solutions for clients across Europe.
- Spearhead strategic initiatives to enhance market positioning and operational efficiency.
- Foster dynamic collaborations between startups and corporate clients, driving growth and innovation.
- Manage high-impact projects and mentor emerging talent to accelerate their success.
- Develop and implement comprehensive business strategies that align with client objectives and market trends.

 Europe West EY wavespace VentureSpace Lead

As the Leader of the Antwerp wavespace team at EY, I spearhead corporate innovation sessions within a global network of growth and innovation centers dedicated to helping businesses excel in the Transformative Age. Our wavespace centers provide creative, collaborative environments where multidisciplinary teams tackle the challenges and opportunities posed by disruptive technologies and evolving digital trends. In my role, I strategically design and lead immersive workshops and experiences that position client teams for significant breakthroughs.

At EY wavespace™ in Antwerp, we specialize in fostering open innovation and facilitating dynamic collaborations between corporations and startups. I guide projects through all stages of innovation—from ideation and concept development to prototyping, co-creation, and showcasing. Our clients benefit from tailored access to expert insights in open innovation, co-creation with startups and scale-ups, and specialized knowledge in technology and change management, ensuring they are equipped for success in today's rapidly changing market.

EY wavespace™ Antwerp Lead

Unlock your organization’s full potential with tailored consulting services designed to drive innovation, support startups, enhance marketing strategies, and inspire leadership.

Aesiris

Owner

I am actively involved in mentoring young companies at Start it @KBC, Belgium’s largest start-up community. My role focuses on guiding these emerging businesses in developing robust go-to-market strategies and securing necessary investments. Start it @KBC is renowned for its accelerator program that nurtures innovative and scalable entrepreneurship, providing crucial support to ensure the growth and success of start-ups across various industries.
Start it @KBC is an accelerator programme that supports and promotes innovative and scalable entrepreneurship. Representing around 550 start-ups, it is the largest start-up community in Belgium.

Start it @kbc

Mentor

Fight2Survive - Krav Maga Defensive Tactics

Krav Maga is a practical and tactical system that teaches how to prevent, deal and overcome all kinds of violence and attacks. 

I have grown the club to the largest self-defense club in West-Flanders, by use of growth marketing tactics. We offer self-defense classes, seminars targeted at women, and teambuilding exercises. 

For more information, visit www.fight2survive.be

KMG - Krav Maga Global

Instructor

The Factory is driven by innovation & intrapreneurship and will innovate EY and its customers from within, in a sustainable way, on a continuous basis. The Factory is: 

Corporate Innovation 
We offer our expertise and knowhow in the field of corporate innovation to our clients. We are the go-to partner for all corporate innovation related projects and programs.

EYnovation™
EYnovation is our way of investing in the future of young and ambitious entrepreneurs. We guide startups and scaleups through all their growth stages with strategic, legal and financial expertise. 

Innovation @ EY
Our first focus is to innovate EY from within, in an efficient and sustainable way. We  create an attractive environment for our innovative intrapreneurs to enable them to build new teams and services.

Senior Manager - Innovation enabler @ EY The Factory 

I am project managing European innovation programs with open calls to fund innovative European startups, monitoring/coaching these startups through business support, business model clinics, focused workshops, living lab validation, and providing exposure to business communities, VCs and investors.

- Managed accelerator projects focused on European startups in high-tech sectors.
- Developed strategic frameworks to support startup growth and market entry.
- Facilitated workshops and seminars to promote open innovation and collaborative strategies.

EITHEALTH - Product Market Fit
Entering a new market as a health start-up requires correct market insights, knowledge of regulation, adequate contacts and a possible re-fit of your product and/or business model to the necessities of that market. Through the EIT Health Accelerator, our product market fit program is offering startups a market scan in European markets. 

AGILE IOT (Horizon 2020)
SMEs and Startups active in the IoT domain will have the opportunity to build products and services on top of AGILE IOT's hardware and software. Through two open calls participants will be able to receive funding (up to 50k each) for building hardware and software on top of AGILE components. 

WEAR (Horizon 2020)
Open Call Management: WEAR (Wearable technologists Engage with Artists for Responsible Innovation) Sustain is a 2 year, €3m project, funded by the European Commission Horizon 2020 research and innovation initiative to engage art, design and creative industries to work more closely with technology and engineering industries.

City Of Things open call (VLAIO)
The Flemish government provides 4M€ to give all cities and municipalities the opportunity to start implementing smart city applications. imec's City of Things group will - as part the covenant with the Flemish Government - provide strategic and technical support to them to support interoperability and open standards.

imec

Project Management

FIWARE is a technology acceleration program initiated by the European Commission that offered startups & SMEs the opportunity to receive up to 150k€ funding (equity free) when building internet & mobile apps based on the FIWARE technology. Besides funding and technical support, selected projects will also receive training sessions, coaching & mentoring based on their needs.

For iMinds I worked on 3 of the FIWARE Accelerators/incubators: 
* CreatiFI - creative & cultural sector - www.creatifi.eu.
* FInish - food supply chain - transport / logistics / retail - www.finish-project.eu.
* FI-C3 - connected content - Care & Well-being / smart cities - www.fic3.eu.

I was involved in project managing these acceleration projects, working on call management, and monitoring/coaching the selected projects. This includes supporting the candidates in developing new innovative applications for their sector through business support, business model clinics, focused workshops and living lab validation, ensuring European exposure of the selected projects to potential business partners, target business communities, VCs and investors.

Companies that I actively worked with ranged from food to game design: Artomatix (IR), TheOplayer (BE), Graphystories (BE), traffic.direct (BE), UXprobe (BE), Videobot (IR), BLITAB (AU), LeeLuu Labs (FI), Lume Games (FI), digital worx (DE), Vicancy(BE), TheFridge.TV (BE), Treev (DE), Bovicom (BE), HearDis!(DE), Foodpairing (BE), Limecraft (BE), Small Town Heroes (BE), CleverLions (NL), OJOO (BE), ReportLab (UK), sCool (BE), Lucian (IT), EVAPP (IT), Foooder (BE), Minze Health (BE), Gociety (NL), VoiceItt (IL)

iMinds

Project Management FIWARE

Intel Capital is the venture Capital arm of Intel Corporation, investing in innovative growth companies. 

Role:
Responsible for all Intel Capital marketing actions in the wider EMEA region (Europe, Middle East, Africa). 
Created and executed on the marketing plan, driving sponsorships, relations with the press and marketing programs to increase the image and visibility of Intel Capital in the region. 
Responsible for all business development events from Intel Capital in EMEA, such as participation in industry events, speakerships, as well as the organization of the Intel Capital Technology Days

Results & key events:
I was in charge of Intel Capital’s Technology Day programme in EMEA, where I orchestrated business development meetings between the startups in our portfolio and corporate customers (telco, automotive, banking and other sectors), resulting in additional business for out portfolio companies. 
I drove a low cost, high impact speakership program increasing Intel Capital’s image and visibility,  including keynotes, panels and fireside chats at VC, PE, Startup events across the region.	
I launched Intel Capital’s Turkey office.

Intel Capital

Marketing Manager EMEA

As a corporate Events Manager I coordinate Intel's presence at Industry Trade Shows and Intel events.

Results & key events: 
led a team of internal colleagues and agencies for the whole event organisation, including communication around the events, the strategy of the events and the organization of trade show booths. 
Organized EMEA IDF (Intel Developer Forum), Intel booths at Telecom World, Mobile World Congress, Gitex, and various other trade shows; organized Intel’s REC (Retails Executive Conference) and consulted the local sales teams on their events.

Corporate Events Manager

In this role I was working on brand Leadership Initiatives for EMEA in the Intel Communications Group, creating the plans to increase brand visibility of Intel products across Europe.

Brand Leadership Initiatives Manager EMEA

As Marketing Communications Manager for the Platform Networks Group, I drove the uptake of Intel networking products in the B2B segment.

Marketing Communications Manager

During this period, I had successive responsibility in three areas: 
Product Manager REX Business Unit at Xircom Europe. I launched the the REX product line in the EMEA region. 
Customer marketeer, launching our Bluetooth product line in the European market.
After the acquisition of Xircom by Intel, I took on the role of Product Manager for the Combo, modem products and Connection Kits.

Xircom

Product Manager

At Yucom it was my responsibility to drive customers to use our services: drive intense usage of our portal, develop the user community and set up internet projects. One of these projects was the YuFriends community, which was one of the first Belgian online interactive community building projects. In order to increase our userbase I set up community development and user acquisition projects in cooperation with partners like Sony and De Morgen.  

Yucom was a free Internet provider in Belgium, a joint-venture between by  British Telecom and Banque Bruxelles Lambert (BBL). The company was offering free internet access, an online shopping platform, and an online bank account  in cooperation with BBL.  It was acquired by Tiscali/Scarlet in 2001.

Yucom

Portal and Community Manager

Organising all events, print production and the European part of the Xircom Web Site. 

I made sure that all product related materials including datasheets and brochures showcasing the Xircom products were created with the proper messaging, localised towards the European market.

Next to this, I also organised all events, coordinating our participation in industry trade shows, seminars and manged other events like distributor meetings- including overall responsibility for organization, budget responsibility and staffing.

Senior Marketing Specialist

This function included assisting the communication manager in all internal and external communication for Belgium. This in all fields of communications such as printed materials, newsletter, promotion, press, public relations and publicity, and some administrative tasks.

Johnny Waterschoot