I joined Van Lanschot Kempen in January 2020 and have been leading the Compliance Office – one of the teams within the Compliance department – since 2022. My team is responsible for coordinating the interactions with supervisory authorities, policy management, compliance training and awareness, and the way we organise and monitor employee integrity within our organisation. For example, in collaboration with various experts, we design our in-house compliance training and make sure new joiners have all the necessary compliance information during their onboarding. We’re often asked for advice on compliance topics by different parts of the business or by the Management Board, and it’s our job to take a clear stance and build evidence for that.

What’s unique about Van Lanschot Kempen is its relatively small size compared with peers: we serve specific client segments and have short lines of communication between the various departments, so there’s not a lot of hierarchy. There’s also plenty of collaboration within the company: everyone knows who to go to for a particular type of expertise. Not just a desk or an email address, but an actual person. All these factors make it easier not only to take decisions but to take responsibility, too.