Most organisations do not suffer from lack of data. They suffer from fragmented decisions, unclear ownership and the pressure to move before the problem is properly understood.
I work with leadership teams and founders on decisions that are too important to get wrong — whether the question is a major investment, an acquisition, a strategy review or an AI agenda that needs grounding in reality.
Decision quality at the intersection of operating reality, people and digital leverage.
I like solving problems. Any problem, really — but the ones I find most interesting sit at the intersection of strategy, operations, people and digital. Where the answer isn't obvious, the stakes are real, and getting it wrong costs something.
I spent seventeen years at Shell inside some of the most complex decision environments in the energy industry — technical, commercial, strategic. Then built WhiteSpace Solutions from scratch, applying AI and optimisation to hard planning problems across oil & gas, healthcare and logistics. I've been on both sides: the operator under pressure to decide, and the person brought in to help structure it.
What I've learned is that most difficult decisions aren't hard because of missing data. They're hard because the problem isn't properly framed, the trade-offs aren't honest, or the people in the room aren't fully aligned on what they're actually deciding.
When you work with me, you won't get a framework and a slide deck. You'll get my honest view — on the problem, the options, and what I'd do if it were my decision. That's what I'm here for.
I'm not a career consultant. I've spent more time making decisions under pressure than advising on them — and that changes how I work. I don't bring a methodology. If you want validation, I'm probably not the right person. I bring a point of view and my honest opinion.
Most problems I get called in on aren't really about strategy or process. They're about not having the right conversation before committing. I help leadership teams have that conversation.
Most difficult decisions are hard because the wrong question is on the table. I help you reframe — whether it's a major investment, an acquisition, a strategy review or a direction the board isn't aligned on. Frame it right, and the answer often becomes clearer than expected.
For leadership teams, boards and founders facing decisions that are too important to get wrong.
Planning processes that have fragmented across teams, lost ownership or stopped connecting to real decisions. I'll help you find where it's breaking down — not just the symptom, but the underlying structure — and rebuild it in a way the organisation can actually run.
For asset-intensive organisations where planning complexity is creating operational drag.
AI and digital tools can genuinely change what's possible — but only if the decision problem is clear first. I'll help you separate the real opportunities from the noise, ground the value case in operating reality, and build a roadmap worth believing.
For organisations that sense AI could help, but need clarity on where and how before committing.
Sometimes you don't need a project — you need a conversation with someone who'll be straight with you. I work with founders and senior leaders as a regular sounding board: no agenda, no deliverable, just honest challenge on whatever's in front of you.
For founders and executives who need a trusted thinking partner outside their immediate circle.
Work is advisory and independent: short, clearly scoped and senior-led. Scope agreed upfront. No implementation roles. Good advisory work should reduce complexity, not introduce dependency.
The situations vary — operational, strategic, digital. The common thread is that moving faster without first getting the problem right would cost more than it saves.
Your leadership team is approaching a significant capital commitment — field development, acquisition, new market entry — with competing options and no shared frame for the trade-offs. I'll help you restructure the decision, clarify the real constraints, and surface the assumptions that are doing most of the work. You'll go into the investment committee with a cleaner case and a clear owner for the remaining uncertainty.
Your planning process has fragmented across teams, each working from different data and different views of capacity. What looks like a scheduling or process problem is usually a decision-ownership problem. I'll help you find where the gaps are, redesign the planning rhythm, and connect it to a decision structure your team can actually run.
You've invested time and money in an AI or digital roadmap that isn't moving. The blockers are rarely technical — they're upstream: unclear objectives, disputed ownership, a value case nobody fully believes. I'll help you work backwards from the decisions that actually matter and rebuild the roadmap around opportunities that are concrete and defensible.
You're considering an acquisition, a strategic pivot or a significant change in direction — and you need someone to pressure-test the logic before you commit. I'll help you work through whether the move actually solves the underlying problem, what the decision looks like if the preferred option falls away, and where your real walk-away position is.
Over two decades working in and with asset-intensive organisations, primarily in Oil & Gas, at the intersection of operations, planning and digital decision support.
Seventeen years across reservoir engineering, field development planning, asset management and major project delivery — including involvement in portfolio strategy, resource allocation and investment prioritisation at business unit level. The most important thing I learned wasn't technical — it was how large organisations lose the quality of their own decisions: through complexity, silos, time pressure and unclear accountability. I left with a deep understanding of what good decision structures look like, and what it costs when they break down.
Built a software consulting company that applied advanced algorithms, optimisation and AI to complex planning problems in oil & gas, healthcare, logistics and supply chains. Worked directly with leadership teams on portfolio decisions, field development planning and scheduling optimisation. What I learned — the hard way — is that the software is rarely the real challenge. The harder problem is always human: how people make decisions, what incentives are actually driving behaviour, and whether the organisation is genuinely willing to change how it works. You can build the best algorithm in the world and still fail if nobody trusts it, owns it, or changes anything because of it.
Now working across organisations and sectors as an independent advisor, without implementation dependency or commercial agenda. Combining two decades of operational and technical depth with a focus on the thing that matters most: helping leadership teams get the important decisions right, before they commit.
Every capability starts with a recurring challenge I've observed while advising leadership teams.
Alongside my advisory work, I'm developing practical AI capabilities that help organisations make and steward better decisions.
Most engagements begin with a short conversation. If you're facing a decision or planning challenge worth discussing, email me directly or use the form below.
Based in The Netherlands. Engaging internationally.
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