Our consultants speak: Luuk Spanjaards

Supply Value is an independent consultancy in the field of Procurement, Supply Chain and Digital. Our employees and partners are the basis for our success: as they grow, Supply Value grows as a company.

Curious about what our consultants experience? In this section 'our consultants talk' they share their experiences. This time we introduce Luke. Luuk is a consultant in the field of Supply Chain & Operations. He advises on (network) collaboration, organizational structure and performance management. In this insight, Luuk explains how he approaches this and what experience helps him in this.

About Luuk's work as a consultant

I started as a consultant at Supply Value in October 2019, after I completed the master Organizational Design & Development at Radboud University in Nijmegen. The master focuses on designing organizational structures and managing the associated changes in such a way that on the one hand the primary process is affected as little as possible by external disturbances, while on the other hand the work remains meaningful and challenging for the employees. A very people-oriented focus, which I am fortunate to see in the way we work at Supply Value.

Below is a selection of the assignments that Luuk has completed so far.

Every ten minutes a train Rotterdam-Schiphol-Arnhem (ProRail / NS)
Since February 2020 I have been participating in a collaboration program between ProRail and NS in which we are implementing all kinds of measures that make it possible to go from 4 to 6 Intercity trains per hour per 2022 timetable on the route between Rotterdam, Schiphol and Arnhem. I believe in public transport as a means of transport of the future, so I am proud to play a role in increasing the capacity of public transport to meet the increasing demand. I find that I have experienced a very steep learning curve during my time with the program, which has helped me expand my role in the program.

I started out with mainly supporting tasks, but was soon able to pick up things like coming up with a plan to measure the effect of each measure, or co-designing and executing a 14-week learning cycle in which we test the new timetable in practice. I particularly enjoyed doing the latter: by collecting what people wanted to learn in the operation and then using the existing structures to set up a learning cycle that fits in with this, we were able to learn a lot. I got a lot of energy from asking the employees who make sure that the trains run on time every day outside about how they think their own work could be improved: it's wonderful to see how well people want to think along and cooperate with each other. what good ideas they come up with when you ask them.

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Learned lessons

The most important lesson I have learned since working at Supply Value is that if you listen to people and give them the freedom and resources to do their own work smarter and smarter, you will be amazed at the beautiful things that can lead to. I see that every day within Supply Value itself, where we give colleagues all the space they need to develop themselves and the organization further. That's what makes working here so much fun, and it's also contributed to my extremely steep learning curve.

Another important lesson I have learned is that collaboration between organizations is often difficult, but can be very rewarding if you set it up properly and make good agreements with each other. I believe that any social challenge can be solved by finding the common goal and working towards it together.

Rotate pictures and go out

Although I get a lot of energy from my work, I also need some relaxation. There's no better way for me to unwind than to stretch out on the couch with my favorite music playing across the living room from my record player. I am also someone who likes to be outside. Fortunately, in Nijmegen I have plenty of opportunities for walking or cycling through the nearby woods or in the floodplains along the Waal, and even to work out outside.

Would you also like to work at Supply Value? 

Does this sound interesting to you and do you want to work for a fast-growing organization? We are looking for colleagues!