If you could have lunch with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be? If Barack Obama and John Keynes are otherwise occupied you should opt for one of these 13 Erasmus School of Economics alumni. They all feature in Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant's list of the top 200 most influential people in the Netherlands.
Honorees on De Volkskrant's list include Laura van Geest (Director, CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis), Frans van Houten (CEO, Philips), Else Bos (CEO, PGGM), and Paul Huijts (Secretary General, Ministry of General Affairs).
Laura van Geest is at number 14 on the list, and the second highest ranking woman. She graduated in General Economics (1989) and Public Administration (1992) from Erasmus University Rotterdam, and is now the Director of CPB.
'Economics makes the world go round,' she says. 'Studying at EUR meant moving to Rotterdam and adopting its no-nonsense mentality. In my work, I benefit from both every day.'
Erasmus School of Economics is one of the world’s leading academic institutions. The 2016 QS World University Rankings – which highlight the world’s top universities based on academic reputation, employer reputation, and research impact – places the School at number 11 in Europe, scoring it particularly well when it comes to Economics/Econometrics.
Here's where the alumni are at:
#14
Laura van Geest
Director, CPB
#18
Frans van Houten
CEO, Philips
#50
Else Bos
CEO, PGGM
#65
Paul Huijts
Secretary General, Ministry of General Affairs
#82
Manon Leijten
Secretary General, Ministry of Finance
#89
Jan Kees de Jager
CFO, KPN
#95
Neelie Kroes
Chairman, Uber Advisory Board
#106
Daniel Ropers
Director, Bol.com
#129
Peter van Mierlo
Board of Directors, PwC
#158
Dick Sluimers
Commissioner NIBC, AkzoNobel
#179
Jolanda Poots-Bijl
CFO, Van Oord
#189
Nout Wellink
Commissionner, PwC
#190
Joost van Heyningen Nanninga
Member of multiple supervisory boards
Text: Manon Sikkel Daelmans