Programme Director Co-Creation, International Startup Ecosystem Specialist, University of Amsterdam and Amsterdam Science Park
After being a corporate ‘intrapreneur’ at companies like Holland Casino in The Netherlands and IAG in Sydney he decided it was time to work with ‘real’ entrepreneurs, hence he took up the role of Head of Global Growth and Mentoring at Cicada Innovations. During his tenure this Sydney based incubator was voted ’Best incubator in the world’ by INBIA for the second time in 5 years. Back in his home country of The Netherlands Arjan is now pursuing his ambitious agenda to connect scientific knowledge to business and social challenges on behalf of the University of Amsterdam and Amsterdam Science Park. As programme director Co-Creation his aim is to accelerate the application of new technologies into workable solutions that have impact. In addition he assists start-up agencies, governments and universities in building thriving entrepreneurial ecosystems worldwide, most recently in Bahrain and Belarus on behalf of ACE Incubator. In Albania he assists local universities in developing their entrepreneurial education capability in order to inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs.
