Refreshingly authentic: Heineken chief says it's vital just to be yourself

Early in his career, Dolf van den Brink did everything he could to project an image of authority – including wearing spectacles he didn’t need. It wasn’t until he learned to be comfortable in his skin that he began to excel as a leader, he tells Jean-François Manzoni

In 1873, less than a decade after taking over a brewery on Amsterdam’s canals, Gerard Heineken expanded to the port city of Rotterdam, laying the foundations for a global company. Just as a far-flung maritime presence had underpinned the Dutch Global Age, Heineken had the foresight that would turn his beer into a worldwide brand. Today, a blend of locally empowered operations combined with global reach is the recipe behind the Dutch brewer’s 160-year success story. As the world’s second-largest beer company, Heineken operates more than 160 breweries, producing 25 billion liters of beer annually – enough to fill 10,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools – which it sells in over 190 markets. Mirroring Heineken’s global nature, Chief Executive Dolf van den Brink rose through the ranks – and carved out his…

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I by IMD (Digital) - 1 Issue, 16. December 2024

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