As Ecosystem Services, initiator of the NL@MWC community and program, we believe strong ecosystems are built by connecting people, knowledge, and opportunities. That is why we are continuously looking for new ways to strengthen collaboration within the Dutch tech and innovation ecosystem.
Today, we are proud to announce a new partnership with Nicole van Haelst to create a dedicated Talent Pool for the NL@MWC ecosystem. The Pool opens up for the profiles that are most wanted by the collective of the NL@MWC members.
Collective Talent Challenges, Collective Solutions
The initiative aims to connect professionals, young talent, startups, scale-ups, corporates, and ecosystem partners through talent acquisition activities and the quarterly community gatherings organized by Ecosystem Services. These sessions already serve as a trusted meeting point for organizations active within the NL@MWC network and will now increasingly become a platform to align needs and expectations of both talent and employers.
“At Ecosystem Services, we are always looking at ways to strengthen the ecosystem,” says Anke. “We increasingly notice that many organizations within our network are facing similar challenges when it comes to attracting new talent, training and retaining them. By approaching this collectively, we believe we can create significantly more value, at lower cost. A collective effort will make a bigger pool of professionals to choose from for ALL and for each member individually. This is exactly where Nicole van Haelst comes in.”
Nicole van Haelst Joins the Initiative
Nicole van Haelst brings decades of experience at the intersection of talent intelligence, investment strategy, innovation ecosystems, and international business development. As founder of the International Community Platform (ICP), she helped position regions such as The Hague, Rotterdam, Zuid-Limburg and Twente as attractive global talent hubs and has worked internationally – the Nordics, Italy, Eastern Africa – on strategies focused on talent attraction, onboarding, and retention.
Her philosophy is simple but powerful: in today’s competitive market, ecosystems grow stronger when organizations turn from competing for talent to sharing their efforts.
“The strongest ecosystems are the ones that collectively attract, onboard, and retain talent,” says Nicole van Haelst. “Talent is not only looking for a job, but for opportunity, growth, a good life for partner and family, a vibrant community, and long-term perspective. When companies within an ecosystem join forces, you create a much stronger and more attractive environment for both international and local talent.”
A Talent Pool Beyond Recruitment
The Talent Pool program is designed to go beyond traditional ‘career programs’. The ambition is to co-create a data and demand driven approach where knowledge sharing, introductions, mentoring, collaboration, and long-term talent development become part of the value the NL@MWC community offers its clients: NL@MWC and their (future) staff.
Building Long-Term Ecosystem Value
According to Mark Beermann, this next step is a natural evolution of what the NL@MWC platform has always stood for. “NL@MWC has always been about bringing the right people together around innovation, collaboration, and international growth,” says Mark Beermann. “Adding a talent and knowledge dimension strengthens the long-term value of the ecosystem for everyone involved, from startups and scale-ups to partners, investors, and future talent.”
Over the coming months, Ecosystem Services and Nicole van Haelst will further develop the initiative.
The initiative reflects the broader ambition of NL@MWC: creating lasting value for the Dutch innovation ecosystem by building stronger connections between people, ideas, talent, and opportunity worldwide.
We look forward to welcoming you to Utrecht on 9 September.
Partners
