Online Programme

Herbert Smorenburg has been Managing Director at Choices International Foundation since January 2021. Herbert started his career at Unilever and worked there for 17 years in product development and nutrition & health. His last positions were Nutrition and Health Director Europe and Director Unilever Health Institute Africa, for which he was based in Ghana and South Africa. He joined The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition as Senior Manager of the Netherlands office in 2014. In the last 25 years he has been building bridges between private and public organisations in developing and developed markets, all partnerships with a purpose. Herbert holds an MBA from the Rotterdam School of Management (Erasmus University Rotterdam) and a PhD in physics (Delft). 

Gretchen Rudolph has over 15 years of general banking and finance experience across various regions including Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Upon completing an EMBA from RSM, Gretchen rallied together a group of highly-motivated graduates and together they established Higher Horizons Africa in March 2023. As the Co-Founder and Chairman Gretchen drives the foundation's mission to provide high-potential girls in Africa with access to quality education and mentorship, to enable women empowerment and upliftment of entire communities.

Alessandro Carnati is a seasoned expert in Amazon sales, where he excels in maximizing growth opportunities on the platform. Alessandro shares his expertise with entrepreneurs and e-commerce professionals on LinkedIn, reflecting his passion for the field. Currently serving as COO at Turnover, he leads a team dedicated to driving brand growth on Amazon at both Italian and international levels. Alessandro's commitment to excellence is evidenced by Turnover's distinction as one of the few European agencies certified by Amazon Ads as an Advanced Partner. He is also a recognized speaker at events such as Netcomm, where he shares insights on e-commerce strategies. 

Anouk Mulder started her career in international luxury hotel management before transitioning to the realm of business administration and organizational change. With a BSc in International Business Administration and an MSc in Organisational Change & Consulting (Cum Laude) from RSM, she excels in strategic leadership and team management. Anouk's career journey led her to SAP, where she thrived as an Organisational Change Manager and later as Presales for the Training & Adoption portfolio in diverse German industries. Her excellence in performance earned her accolades as a Top Performer, leading her to broaden her horizons in Switzerland while maintaining her German clientele.  

Anouk de Baat is a dedicated educator, coach, and advocate for personal development and holistic well-being. With a solid educational background in business administration, global business, and stakeholder management, Anouk brings a unique blend of academic expertise and practical insights to her work. 

Having navigated her own journey of self-discovery and growth, Anouk understands the importance of personal development trajectories, family constellations, and neuro linguistic programming (NLP) in unlocking human potential and fostering resilience. 

Prior to her current endeavors, Anouk served as a lecturer, business analyst, and project manager for esteemed institutions such as the university and the tax authority. However, a transformative experience with burnout led her to reevaluate her priorities and pursue a career aligned with her passions and values. 

Drawing from her own experiences, Anouk embarked on an entrepreneurial path focused on education, training, and coaching in personal leadership and development. Through her work, she empowers individuals to overcome challenges, cultivate self-awareness, and unleash their innate potential for growth and fulfillment. 

Anouk is deeply committed to creating supportive and transformative learning experiences that nurture holistic well-being, resilience, and authentic self-expression. With her compassionate approach and expertise in personal development, she inspires others to embark on their own journeys of self-discovery and transformation. 

Harrie Oostingh is a graduated development economist with extensive working experience in over 40 countries in Europe, Latin-America, Asia and Africa. He worked 10 years as country- and regional director in Central America and the Caribbean, responsible for programmes in the field of social protection and social inclusion. In 2007 he started working for Oxfam in The Netherlands, where he worked on a wide range of issues, like social protection, inclusive citizenship, resilient livelihoods, biodiversity and strong local humanitarian actors. He played a key role in large scale resource mobilization, the management of multi-country programs and as interim country director.

In 2023, Harrie Oostingh joined WWF International as Director Program Quality for Europe and North Africa. He is responsible for program development, resource mobilisation and impact in the field of nature conservation, biodiversity, climate adaptation and food security.

Harrie considers himself a professional idealist. He is keen to bring together bright people, capable organisations and new ideas to eradicate social injustice and contribute to a prosperous and green world.

Jacqueline Jansen is a strategist with a project track record across Europe, U.S. and Asia in different industries (mainly life science and energy) in large corporate and external consulting. At her current employer, Bayer AG, Jacqueline has launched, led / was involved in global scale transformations with like-minded colleagues meant to bring the company one step closer to becoming net positive. Together, they contributed to defining the social access strategy in key markets to help 300+ million people or shaping the sustainability direction within Pharma, as first pilots to translate EU ambitions into clear business targets. 

Jacqueline considers herself being responsible and proactive, creatively and actively seeking to inspire leaders and peers into feeling empowered to shape a future business environment, that prospers within our environmental ceiling and social foundation.

If you are interested in the latest industry insights on the path to net positive organisations, you can find “Net positive transformation paper” under the Projects section on Jacqueline’s LinkedIn page, which she co-wrote with several experts across Bayer and thought leaders across other German corporations/associations Jacqueline Jansen.

Hey there! I’m Elena - Senior Manager & Delivery Lead in Tech, mentor and YouTuber.  

I specialize in building & running diverse, high-performing, and sustainable teams that are shaping the future of technologies. As a mentor, I help modern leaders leverage empathetic leadership for their teams to show their best, as well as women in Tech - to navigate their career. 

I live and breathe corporate & IT for 15 years, 7 - in management, the last 5 - at the intersection between Tech and People & Culture.