IT service provider Get There from Leek, Groningen, starts a wonderful new chapter in its existence. After 22 years of developing Get There – with high-quality services such as custom made software and data solutions – the three founders of Get There hand over the leadership and their shares to a younger generation coming from their own ranks.
New generation at the helm of IT company Get There
Founders Auke van der Meulen (Managing Director), Durk Valk (Technical Director), and Eric Martens (Financial Director) are pleased that this strong team will continue to build the company and are confident it will bring a successful future. The new board consists of current shareholder Nico Kluin as general manager, Niels van Bostelen as commercial director, and Frank Hoving as the new technical director. With this change, Niels and Frank join as shareholders. In addition, NOM, an investment and development company for the Northern Netherlands, also joined as shareholder.
Maintaining the company’s independence
Get There has a dedicated team of more than 100 professionals that work for renowned clients in the Northern Netherlands, including CJIB, DUO, and RDW. “This change ensures that we can guarantee the continuity of the company and the sustainable employability of employees”, says Nico Kluin, commercial director and co-shareholder of Get There since 2009. “And that we will not, as we frequently see happening at other ICT companies, be taken over by a large party, swallowed and crumbled. Frank and Niels are young, ambitious and play an important role in setting our course and vision. Together we are able to monitor and continue the Get There formula. Maintaining our independence and offering opportunities for a new generation are important reasons for NOM to become a shareholder and to enable this management buy-out financially.”
Stimulate the development of IT professionals
These are special times for IT service providers like Get There. The market is expanding, resulting in a large supply of work, with an inversely proportional shortage of professionals. This scarcity makes it more important than ever to connect and grow with a new generation of IT professionals. Get There has always highly valued the personal development of colleagues through training, education, and coaching. The new generation of professionals is looking for more than just professional growth. “We see that colleagues like to spend time sparring with each other, helping each other and helping to further develop the company, ” says Frank Hoving. “As the new management, I see it as our task to stimulate and facilitate this even more, as our employees are part of our ambition and we want to steer together with them”.
Typical Northern Dutch sobriety remains
Get There is a real Northern Dutch company. This is reflected in the typical northern sobriety of how employees and the customer portfolio are treated. “Our colleagues mainly live in the northern three provinces, and they do so for a reason. That’s why we, for example, do not send our people to the west of the country”, Nico Kluin clarifies, “that does not suit us”. In the North, there are plenty of customers with challenging and high-profile projects. “Get There is one of the few parties that directly supply the right knowledge, people, and expertise to implementing organizations such as the CJIB, DUO, and RDW”, says Niels van Bostelen. “We have proven our added value in such environments and we will continue to do so in many challenging projects. That’s why we’re always open to welcome new IT specialists in our team.”
