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September 21, 2004
Bart Martens
Culminis is only nine months old and we have
been asked to spread our wings around the globe,
starting with Europe, Africa and the Middle East
(EMEA). We are also starting to explore South
America and Asia. This fast-paced expansion is
truly a testament to the performance of the
US-team and a strong statement as to the trust
Microsoft has in Culminis.
I am
very pleased to join the Culminis team as
Executive Director EMEA as of September 1.
Actually, I have been involved with the company
for the past 5 months, working here in The
Netherlands as part of the EMEA council and
providing the US team with input about the
European communities and their wishes and needs.
In my professional career I have a long track
record in Telecommunications and ICT. In my last
position I was Business Development Manager with
an ISV, responsible for the relationship with
Microsoft and other large corporations.
In
addition to my normal day-to-day job, I am
hooked by Pocket PC's and have worked to build
momentum with the Benelux Pocket PC and
Smartphone-Club. In three years we have
increased our member list from 3 to 38,000, and
we are currently offering daily news, tips,
reviews and an extensive forum. My active
participation was noticed and has provided me
with an MVP-award.
My
view is that success comes from good
communication, staying focused on logical goals
or targets and always keeping a win/win strategy
in mind. “Win/win”, in this case, means that we
are committed to building a collaborative
partnership between our IT Professional
membership and our sponsors that will produce
sustainable and measurable benefits for all. All
parties must “win” in order for success to
occur.
Part
of my approach will be not only to embrace more
communities in EMEA and take the cultural
differences and languages into account, but also
to bring more solution providers on board. Don’t
forget we are here to support you, if you have
any idea or initiative, just take a moment to
let us know and we guarantee a prompt follow-up.
Culminis will also be present at the
SQL Server Day on October 26 in Brussels and
at the
IT Forum in Copenhagen November 15-19. Meet
with us and learn to ride the “wave of change”.
Starting October 1, Culminis EMEA will have its
headquarters established in Maastricht, located
in the southern part of The Netherlands.
 Maastricht,
that unique city on the Meuse
Modern Maastricht, that unique, multifaceted
city on the Meuse, is built on centuries-old
foundations, the earliest laid by the Romans,
who established the first settlement here in 50
B.C. This is what gives Maastricht its special
quality. Behind the heritage of the Middle Ages
and the Maasland Architecture, is a modern,
extroverted, uniquely European city. Known, of
course, for the “Treaty of Maastricht” in 1992
and the top-government OSCE-meeting in 2003, but
particularly renowned for its genial hospitality
and openness.
Maastricht, the oldest city in the Netherlands
with over 1,660 monuments, has traditionally
been an industrial and commercial city.
Ceramics, paper and glass supported the city’s
economy for many decades and still do. Its
household names include Tregra, Mora, Sphinx,
Sappi, Enci, Thomas Regout, but also companies
like Mercedes-Benz and Vodafone in recent times.
In the last couple of years Maastricht has
transformed itself into a center for knowledge
service industries. The government, health care,
life sciences, education, tourism and business
services are now important sectors here. In
addition to its special atmosphere, Maastricht
also offers companies other attractive
facilities, e.g. effective accessibility, links
to the international railway and road network,
an airport, attractive industrial sites and a
varied potential workforce. International
companies, just like Culminis, have discovered
Maastricht as a springboard for Europe. Within a
radius of 300 km around Maastricht, there are
100 million consumers and 200,000 companies. The
inhabitants of Maastricht speak Dutch, German,
French, English and the local dialect “het
Mestreechs”. |