Since January 2023, Boudewijn Van Schaïk has been the financial director of Avantium, based in Amsterdam. Registered on Euronext, the chemical company develops and markets technologies that produce materials from sustainable carbon raw materials. Among its innovations: a process of converting sugars based on plants in fartonboxylic acid (FDCA), an element of durable plastic construction. He was previously director of corporate finance at SBM offshore and vice-president, Oil & Gas Asia, at NIBC Bank.
Global finance: What has been the most difficult aspect of your work, so far?
BOUDEWIJN VAN Schaïk: I don’t have a traditional CFO background. The transition of my previous roles in the bank and at the Offshore SBM in oil and gas to a CFO role with a large portfolio was an important step. It was a steep learning curve, with many new responsibilities and activities to manage. Renewable chemistry was entirely new to me. Adaptation to this role and to industry was difficult at the beginning, but it was an exciting journey.
GF: Did you have networks or mentoring systems to support you?
Van Schaik: Yes and no. I had valuable conversations with my former boss, the SBM offshore financial director. I was invited to participate in the CFO Forum, a program offered by INSEAD in collaboration with PwC and Egon Zehnder. It is an exclusive program; I was lucky to be invited last year. The forum brings together a group of financial managers from the Netherlands for a few days, committing to teachers and peers. It was a fantastic experience. When I think about it, I realize that I do not network it as much as I should. Building and taking advantage of a network is incredibly important.
GF: What has occupied most of your time in the past 12 months?
Van Schaik: There are two key areas; The most important is control. This large concept covers processes, procedures, governance and the guarantee of all autonomous functions – that financing, legal or purchases – use in a coherent control framework. It is a question of ensuring that the company has robust controls and counterweights and that everyone follows the established procedures.
This is essential for any organization, but in particular for Avantium, which goes from a company focused on research and development to a company that has and will operate a large flagship chemical factory. This change requires significant changes, with processes, controls, procedures and the evolution of governance to respond to the demands of a growing and maturation organization.
GF: And the second?
Van Schaik: Make sure the company is sufficiently funded. While we evolve and undergo this major transition, one of my main responsibilities, alongside the CEO, is to guarantee the funding necessary to support the growth and operations of the company. [In 2024, Avantium secured $114 million in financing.]
GF: How do you keep happy investors?
Van Schaik: By providing results. However, we are limited to making prospective declarations or providing in -depth advice. It is a delicate balance between managing expectations and shaping perceptions of the future. Transparency and commitment are essential.
For example, when we opened our flagship factory in October, we organized a day dedicated to retail investors. More than 200 attended it, spending the afternoon in a large tent where we had coffee and we got ahead or in small groups. Offering this personal attention and making them feel part of the trip, rather than simple shareholders, is incredibly important.
GF: How do you manage transparency, given the need to protect intellectual property?
Van Schaik: With the outdoor community, we communicate to a much higher level. We are talking about the fundamental properties of the products we develop. What makes him unique? But we do not fall into specific details sensitive to IP around chemistry.
For example, we are not talking about the catalyst we use or the process technology and how it works exactly in our plant. But we tell them about the four stages, where we start with fructose syrup. We are talking about the process – on our chemistry, of our technology – in the way that the average investor will understand, but far from being enough in detail so that in any way whatsoever for a competitor or for anyone looking for interior information from an IP perspective.