Put pepper in society

Hans de Boer preaches growth and self-awareness “I made FHI a member of MKB Nederland.” The chairman of VNO-NCW proudly tells his media director when we sit down for a conversation. Hans de Boer has been leader of the largest employers' organization for almost two years now. He will never lose his boyishness, nor deny him, but he is growing older and wiser. Now 61 years young. Publication; Signaling, Text; Kees Groeneveld   How do you like being in The Hague again? "Awesome!" it sounds, enthusiastic as always. “I was away for a few years after my chairmanship of MKB Nederland, but it is really nice to be back.” What's so nice about it? “Well, look, I can be busy with ambition and growth, injecting pepper into society. I think that's great.” How exactly does that work, how do you achieve results? “Effectiveness is a function of quality and acceptance of good ideas. The sacred fire, the belief in one's own abilities must return. We cannot be satisfied with zero growth. We need growth, if only to be able to pay for the energy transition. I don't want to hear anymore that the Netherlands is a small country. We are an agile, medium-sized economy. As a country, we have risen from eight to five in the rankings of the most competitive economies in the world. In terms of productivity, we rank second in Europe. Ambition and self-awareness, that's what it's all about.” What does that mean for the chairman of VNO-NCW? “As VNO-NCW we are looking at the 2017 elections. We emphasize everything that has to do with growth towards the writers of election manifestos. We have now drawn up a growth agenda. At VNO-NCW we have summarized this in three i's, 'investing, innovating and internationalising'. Those i's have been elaborated into ten p's.” De Boer refers to a VNO-NCW document entitled 'The ten P's to make the Netherlands the most prosperous country in the world'. The document in question concerns Persons who live and work, Positioning of the Netherlands, Products that we market, Price level in our country, Persons in the labor market, Place and Ports, Project-based approach and three-in-one, Public -Private Partnership. Can that be made more specific? “We are asking for an additional billion in investments from the government, including for innovation in industry. ICT must play an important role in this. We also want action to create vibrant city centers. The position of Rotterdam and Schiphol must be strengthened. It is very important if we want to continue to play our international role.” Let's go back to VNO-NCW and MKB Nederland, to which the FHI member companies contribute. The two organizations now work together and are located in one building. How does that work? “Lobbying is both our core business. There is a joint back office with 65 professionals in various areas, from taxes to education and innovation. As chairman of VNO-NCW, I concentrate on the growth agenda and technology. Michaël van Straalen mainly focuses on typical SME themes. Together we are in constant consultation with each other. Let me give some examples. There was recently a discussion about the government's innovation instruments. We will then convene a meeting with a number of ministers to discuss how we will deal with this. Take the 5 billion tax plan, we explicitly discuss it. Of course, this means that we must have and maintain the right entrances. We started lobbying for substantial tax cuts more than a year ago, because this was necessary to get domestic spending back up to standard. Look, then you no longer just polish the nails of the treasury, but the treasury itself. The government feels bound by budgetary frameworks. You should honor civil servants for that. They do what they are asked. But it is the citizens' money. We think we should ask for a little more. The percentage of tax revenue used to invest has fallen significantly, from 25% to 18%. A few more points could be added. We have to earn it with that.” Any advice to the technology entrepreneurs? “Huddle close. FHI is a brand in the market, with good entrances that you can use.”