- The challenge
- Building out the commercial side of a national federation within the 2021–2028 strategy.
- The choice
- As a member of the management team, together with the commercial team, setting up the sponsorship programme, growing the team, creating new propositions and translating the strategy into execution.
- What changed
- Over four years, Carlijn built out the federation's commercial side. Visible examples: a relaunched waterpolo.nl that brings together stories, match information and livestreams, the podcast Van mini tot medaille about the road from first lesson to elite sport, and a partnership with smart, ASV and Driessen Mobility Lease as official mobility partners.
From the inside out
Carlijn Hofland.
Commercial Strategist & Interim Director
Carlijn looks at your organisation the way a director does. She knows what a commercial ambition asks of leadership, collaboration and execution, because she has held that role herself. She brings people behind one direction and stays until it shows in roles, decisions and behaviour.
“She gets employees and teams to rise above themselves by giving them space and trust.”
Track record.
- The challenge
- Lindorff and Intrum Justitia merged and the new name became Intrum, the group of the former Intrum Justitia. Two organisations had to become one brand and one story, in an organisation that was becoming more international.
- The choice
- Carlijn guided the rebranding during and after the merger and kept setting the marketing and communications direction. As the company became more international, her responsibilities grew with it.
- What changed
- Carlijn translated market needs and customer behaviour into a new value proposition, for existing clients as well as new clients and markets, with the aim of a sustainably profitable pipeline. She continued to set the marketing and communications course through the merger, and also had final responsibility for bringing two offices together in one new building.
“She is able to take conceptual commercial ideas all the way to execution, with an eye for detail while never losing sight of the bigger picture.”
“Sometimes, just sometimes, you have the privilege of working with a colleague who brings joy to work. Carlijn is that colleague! She can motivate entire departments with her positive energy and sociable nature.”
- The challenge
- Organisations usually have plenty of plans and ideas. It gets stuck in the translation: execution doesn't get going, the positioning no longer fits the growth, marketing and sales don't work from one direction, or there are many opportunities and too little focus.
- The choice
- Not advising from the sidelines, but making sharp choices together and staying until something changes. Through four propositions: strategic direction and positioning, from strategy to momentum, marketing and sales acceleration, and interim senior expertise.
- What changed
- A clear direction and clear positioning that leadership, marketing, communications and sales can steer by. People who understand the direction, know their role and put the strategy into practice. And temporary senior firepower, with an organisation that can carry on independently afterwards.
Carlijn leads external projects at By CJQ with the same approach as at STOF. When a challenge outgrows one person, By CJQ can scale up through STOF. The Positioning Sprint at By CJQ is the same as the one at STOF.
How she works.
Carlijn operates between the boardroom and day-to-day operations. Together with the team, she makes sure the chosen path is clear, so that everyone knows what it means for roles, decisions and behaviour. The end goal is that it can run on its own. She works from strategy to results, moves fast, reaches sharp choices and makes sure her team delivers, through trust and space rather than control.
Where Carlijn makes the difference
- Commercial strategy and business development
- Leadership and interim management
- Partnerships and stakeholder management
- Change and strategy implementation