Aart Jan de Geus (born 28 July 1955) is a retired
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
politician of the
Christian Democratic Appeal
The Christian Democratic Appeal ( nl, Christen-Democratisch Appèl, ; CDA) is a Christian-democratic political party in the Netherlands. It was originally formed in 1977 from a confederation of the Catholic People's Party, the Anti-Revolutionary ...
(CDA) party and businessman. He served as Minister of Labor and Social Affairs from 2002 to 2007. Then he worked as Deputy Secretary-General for the
OECD
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate e ...
. From 2012 to 2019, De Geus was
Chairman
The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...
and
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
of the
Bertelsmann Stiftung
The Bertelsmann Stiftung is an independent foundation under private law, based in Gütersloh, Germany. It was founded in 1977 by Reinhard Mohn as the result of social, corporate and fiscal considerations. As the Bertelsmann Stiftung itself h ...
. Since January 2020, he has been Chairman of the Goldschmeding Foundation.
Education
De Geus began studying law at the
Utrecht University
Utrecht University (UU; nl, Universiteit Utrecht, formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2018, it had an enrollme ...
while also training as a bookkeeper. He ended his training after two years in order to concentrate exclusively on his studies. He later transferred to
Erasmus University Rotterdam
Erasmus University Rotterdam (abbreviated as ''EUR'', nl, Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam ) is a public research university located in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The university is named after Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus, a 15th-century humanist ...
, where the law program had a more practical orientation.
After receiving his
Master of Laws
A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...
in 1980, he did post-graduate studies in labor law at
Radboud University Nijmegen
Radboud University (abbreviated as RU, nl, Radboud Universiteit , formerly ''Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen'') is a public research university located in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. The university bears the name of Saint Radboud, a 9th century D ...
.
Career
In 1980, de Geus became a lawyer for the industrial trade union of the
Christelijk Nationaal Vakverbond
The Christian National Trade Union Federation ( nl, Christelijk Nationaal Vakverbond, CNV) is a federation of trade unions of the Netherlands.
History
The CNV was founded on 13 May 1909, in Arnhem as a federation of several Christian unions. It w ...
(CNV). In subsequent years he rose through the organization, eventually joining the board of directors.
In 1988, he joined the umbrella organization of the CNV confederation and was appointed its deputy chairman in 1993. His responsibilities in this position included social security, pensions, health and employment.
He was also a member of the Socioeconomic Advisory Council, the
Dutch government
The politics of the Netherlands take place within the framework of a parliamentary representative democracy, a constitutional monarchy, and a decentralised unitary state.''Civil service systems in Western Europe'' edited by A. J. G. M. Bekke, ...
’s highest body for economic and social policy issues, one that is anchored in the constitution and whose members are appointed by the crown.
In 1998, De Geus became a partner at the corporate consultancy Boer & Croon in Amsterdam. There he worked on projects relating to the welfare state for both public and private institutions.
He also joined the
supervisory board
In corporate governance, a governance board also known as council of delegates are chosen by the stockholders of a company to promote their interests through the governance of the company and to hire and fire the board of directors.
In civil s ...
of the Academic Hospital of Maastricht, the advisory council of the Association of Dutch Health Insurers, and the Council of Churches where he was responsible for social policy issues. He was also a member of the National Refugees Council.
Public office
In the mid-1970s, De Geus joined the youth organization of the Dutch ARP (
Anti-Revolutionary Party
The Anti-Revolutionary Party ( nl, Anti-Revolutionaire Partij, ARP) was a Protestant conservative and Christian democratic political party in the Netherlands. The party was founded in 1879 by Abraham Kuyper, a neo-Calvinist theologian and m ...
), a predecessor of the CDA. Through the years he held various positions in both parties.
In 2002, Jan Peter Balkenende appointed de Geus as minister of social affairs and employment (
first Balkenende cabinet
The first Balkenende cabinet was the executive branch of the Netherlands government from 22 July 2002 until 27 May 2003. The cabinet was formed by the Christian-democratic Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), the nationalistic Pim Fortuyn List (L ...
). He also served as health minister for eight months. He was a member of the Dutch government until 2007 (
second
The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ...
and
third Balkenende cabinet
The third Balkenende cabinet was the executive branch of the Government of the Netherlands from 7 July 2006 until 22 February 2007. The cabinet was formed by the Christian-democratic Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) and the conservative-liberal ...
s).
While in office, de Geus initiated comprehensive social policy reforms with the goal of making the country's
social security
Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...
system more sustainable and including more people in the labor market. For example, he restructured the public- and private-sector job referral systems. He also included local-level governments in the funding structure for social assistance programs.
He was considered a supporter of the country's
polder model, an approach that brings together employers, trade unions and government experts to negotiate wages and working conditions. Despite his earlier activities for the CNV trade union confederation, his relationship with the country's trade unions proved difficult.
In 2004, he withstood a vote of no confidence brought by the opposition Social Democratic, Socialist and Green parties.
In 2007, de Geus was appointed deputy secretary-general of the OECD. In this role he advanced a number of causes including environmentally friendly economic growth. He also criticized the division present in the German job market, above all since it allowed young and well-trained workers to benefit to a greater degree from the country's economic upturn.
Bertelsmann Stiftung
In 2011, the Bertelsmann Stiftung appointed de Geus to its
executive board
A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...
. In 2012, he became the board's chairman when
Gunter Thielen
Gunter Thielen (born 4 August 1942 in Quierschied) was chairman and chief executive officer of the Bertelsmann Stiftung.
He graduated from RWTH Aachen University with a PhD in mechanical engineering and economics. He was a manager at BASF from ...
retired. The Bertelsmann Stiftung thus increased its independence from the Mohn family, owners of the
Bertelsmann
Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA () is a German private multinational conglomerate corporation based in Gütersloh, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is one of the world's largest media conglomerates, and is also active in the service sector and ...
group. As chairman, de Geus launched the initiative to internationalize the foundation's activities. Today, de Geus is responsible for projects relating to Europe, democracy and sustainable economies as well as international megatrends and partnerships.
Other functions
He is responsible for projects relating to Europe, democracy and sustainable economies as well as international megatrends and partnerships.
He previously served as the deputy secretary-general of the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries ...
(OECD).
From 2002 to 2007, he served under Prime Minister
Jan Peter Balkenende
Jan Pieter "Jan Peter" Balkenende Jr. (; born 7 May 1956) is a Dutch politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and jurist who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 22 July 2002 to 14 October 2010.
Balkenende studied H ...
in the Netherlands as minister of social affairs and employment. He is a member of the
Christian Democratic Appeal
The Christian Democratic Appeal ( nl, Christen-Democratisch Appèl, ; CDA) is a Christian-democratic political party in the Netherlands. It was originally formed in 1977 from a confederation of the Catholic People's Party, the Anti-Revolutionary ...
(CDA) party.
Since 2012 De Geus has been a member of the advisory board of the Centre for Higher Education (CHE), in which the Bertelsmann Stiftung holds a 90-percent stake.
In 2014, he was elected chairman of the supervisory board of the Netherlands-based
Triodos Bank
Triodos Bank N.V. is an ethical bank based in the Netherlands with branches in Belgium, Germany, United Kingdom and Spain. It was founded in 1980. Triodos Bank finances companies which it believes add cultural value and benefit to both people a ...
, a leading sustainability bank with offices in Belgium, Germany, the UK and Spain.
Publications
*
Decorations
References
External links
;Official
*
Mr. A.J. (Aart Jan) de GeusParlement & Politiek
{{DEFAULTSORT:Geus, Aart Jan de
1955 births
Living people
Christian Democratic Appeal politicians
Dutch accountants
Dutch chief executives in the finance industry
Dutch corporate directors
Dutch expatriates in France
Dutch expatriates in Germany
Dutch jurists
Dutch lobbyists
Dutch management consultants
Dutch nonprofit directors
Dutch nonprofit executives
Dutch political consultants
Dutch trade union leaders
Erasmus University Rotterdam alumni
Members of the Social and Economic Council
Ministers of Health of the Netherlands
Ministers of Social Affairs of the Netherlands
Ministers of Sport of the Netherlands
Officers of the Order of Orange-Nassau
OECD officials
People from Doorn
Protestant Church Christians from the Netherlands
Reformed Churches Christians from the Netherlands
Radboud University Nijmegen alumni
Utrecht University alumni
20th-century Dutch civil servants
20th-century Dutch politicians
21st-century Dutch businesspeople
21st-century Dutch civil servants
21st-century Dutch politicians