Linda Rovekamp - COO

The third interview in a series of upcoming interviews:
an interesting conversation with Linda Rovekamp. As Global Manager Household Moves from September 2020 to December 2022 within De Haan, she passionately managed the teams that take care of national, European and international household effects removals. Linda is COO of De Haan as of January 1, 2023.

"If we create healthy partnerships, learn from each other and support each other, we will achieve much more"

Linda, can you kindly introduce yourself first please?

“I was born in Beijing, China  and mainly grew up in Asia as a Third culture expat child. Moving every few years, it was part of life and not really new to me. I graduated high school  in China and then moved to the USA to go on to college and around my 20^th I decided it was time to move to the Netherlands. I am very grateful for my international upbringing. I have been fortunate and am very grateful to have been able to experience many different nationalities and cultures, making me the person I am today. 
After moving to the Netherlands, I started working in the hospitality industry, and ended up in the transport and logistical sector. I started in the moving industry about 18 years ago, being drawn to working on an international level. I was able to connect well with the people who were moving. Sharing the international experiences, traveling and expat life of my own early years, I understood what people were going through, their enthusiasm  for working and creating a home  abroad. 
I have made sure to experience all areas of an international relocation, learning the business, starting with secretarial work, performing surveys at residences, sales, but also the learning the move coordination part, managing large contracts as well as facilitating services to suppliers and partners.

I have been working for De Haan relocation since September 2018 when I started as Manager Corporate Desk. Everyone at De Haan that I spoke to before deciding to take the job,  had the same passion for the moving profession. So that really appealed to me. From the beginning, the feeling at De Haan has been a family feeling. The two years have flown by!” 

In September 2020 your responsibility grew to Global Manager Household Moves. What do you like about the specific work this position entails?

“In this designation you are responsible for the international and national household removals department. I think it is a great honor to represent that responsibility, we have a great team! Together with my team, our Management Team, the moving crews, HR, Finance and Projects department, I truly see that we stand for reliability, quality and passion here at De Haan. This is very close to my personal values​​: do what you say, be honest, transparent, be humble and above all be passionate, which is why I enjoy my job so much”.

What have the past months in 2020 been like for you?

“You notice that this is a very challenging time we are all in globally. On the one hand, as a Manager, you stand for protecting your teams. Keeping their interest at heart is very important,  so we provide them where we can with resources to ensure that everyone stays healthy and that we can carry out our jobs in a safe way. On the other hand, you must ensure that the company can continue on. Sometimes you have to make difficult decisions and this sometimes means you even have to say no or draw the line.
One of my responsibilities is to keep the teams motivated. Despite the fact that stricter rules and measures apply, we do what we can to maintain contact with our people, accounts, customers, partners and suppliers. Staying informed about what else is happening in the market and listening carefully to the wishes and concerns of people, but also making sure to stick to the facts and numbers and then managing accordingly. In this uncertain period, this  sometimes entails that a decision that was made at the beginning of the week is not going to work and you have to act differently at the end of the week. Being flexible is significant in managing a team, working and dealing with accounts, customers, partners and suppliers. It is constantly having to  anticipate, listen to your gut feeling, evaluating figures and keeping in touch. Open communication, really listening to each other is essential in these times”.

How can we provide our customers the best possible support? What need of information you encounter?

“You notice that many of our (expat) clients are in an uncertain situation. They do not know where they stand since they are waiting for work permits, visas, etcetera because many of the countries may, or may not, be fully or partially in lockdown. In order to meet customer needs for information, we now call customers more often to advise them. Even if we do not always have the answer straight away, we say so honestly to the customer and revert back to them. I regularly speak with partners, coordinate, double check critical information within the Netherlands and abroad, but at the same time no one can see into the future”.

Does the market show opportunities as a result of the pandemic?

“What I see is that the investment De Haan made years ago in our own people, our own resources and our own equipment, including developing our own people, is now more important than ever and has paid off! It is important that you have people around you in your organization who feel the same way, want to deliver the same quality, have the same passion. This mindset is important to our accounts, customers, partners and suppliers.
Additionally, I hope that through the better cooperation that is now emerging between partners, more cooperation will take place in the future, helping and supporting each other more”.

Is there anything else from your experiences, that has not been discussed, you would like to share with the readers?

“I actually think that the important topic of 'partnership, working together' is not discussed enough in our industry. The more you interact with each other, instead of becoming even more competitive towards each other than before, the longer and the better you can move forward  together. Read the  history books: when countries work together, they can overcome much more than when countries work against each other. If we do it together, create healthy partnerships, strengthen them, learn from each other, support each other, we will achieve much more!  I am personally convinced that companies that are currently collaborating and working together  and looking for open communication will end up better in the long term”.