Damen Naval has a new Commercial Director: Harm Kappen. The 58-year-old naval officer is no newcomer to the world of naval shipbuilding, having previously worked at RH Marine for over 13 years and served as the chairman of the Dutch Underwater Knowledge Centre (DUKC) for 11 years. “I am honoured that Roland Briene has asked me to come and work here. I already know many of the new colleagues,” he says.

Harm is married to Bianca and together they have three children: 27-year-old twins Thom and Veerle and 25-year-old Julia. They live in the countryside between Oisterwijk and Moergestel together with their Frisian stabij Leia. “I enjoy running, love a round of golf, am a supporter of Ajax and am busy with our upcoming renovation. Oh, and I’m also going to love gardening after the building works.”

Naval ships are not new to him, as he has sailed on them and, as a user, knows the systems used on board. “I had a very nice time in the navy and sailed a lot. I started as the youngest officer in the Mines Service and later sailed on frigates. While there, I went to Yugoslavia and the Caribbean for, among other things, NATO exercises and anti-drug operations.”

Harm Kappen. Harm Kappen.

After his naval days, Harm worked in the ICT sector for more than a decade, but in 2010 he noticed he missed the maritime world and applied for a job at the then Imtech Marine, the company that became RH Marine in 2015. And now he is ready for the next step. “Having been involved with on-board systems for all those years, it seemed like a nice step to work for a company that is responsible for the final product. Besides, innovation has always been a common thread running through my career. I have always worked for companies that are technically leading and that certainly applied to Damen Naval as well.”

Another reason he found himself tempted to work for Damen Naval is the current Time for Change programme to future-proof the company. “I was stimulated by the process because Time for Change means there is movement in the company and it seems like a fun job to help complete,” Harm explains. “My goal is to get even closer to our customers and get to know them even better – and they us. Time for Change has the ingredients to make this happen and is going to help us streamline our commercial processes and help with our client and project choices. Despite the strong growth we are experiencing, our knowledge, skills and experience are premium, yet scarce commodities. We have to be economical with them.”

There was no time to settle into his new job, as immediately on his first working day Harm boarded a plane to the IMDEX in Singapore. “I had been to the IMDEX before, but not in this role. It was nice to be able to meet colleagues and see how Damen Naval presents itself abroad. The fair was not very busy, but that allowed time to talk to customers and colleagues.”

"I look forward to winning a new order together with my team and treating everyone to cake.” Harm Kappen

Meanwhile, Harm has already had a few weeks in the office and is starting to get to know the company better and better. “What I have seen of it so far is that there is a lot of knowledge and expertise and many passionate and motivated people. The maritime world is contagious; you see people coming back to it. Just look at me. And Damen Naval is also contagious. People are loyal to the company. There is a bit of the same atmosphere as among the crew of a ship. And I look forward to sailing this ship to beautiful places.”

According to Harm, one of the biggest challenges for the company and also for him personally will be to create a balanced workload. “It’s okay to work hard, but it has to remain balanced. That will be a challenge, because successful on the outside means pressure on the inside. My long-term goal is a pleasant working environment and creating the conditions for that. That approach is only really successful when we can be happy with the next assignment without any worries.”

And on that next order Harm is already looking forward a little. “We have obviously won a number of large orders, but I wasn’t part of that. I look forward to winning a new order together with my team and treating everyone to cake.”

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