“Be yourself and think big.”
Koen has been with nVent for more than a decade. He first joined the Raychem Corporation (now the nVent RAYCHEM brand), which produced the world’s first commercially successful electric self-regulating heat tracing cable. He joined the company because of its excellent reputation and stayed for some great growth opportunities. Many years later, Koen is excited to continue to be part of a brand with a rich, century-old legacy of connecting and protecting electrical systems, making them more efficient, more resilient, and safer.
Koen has held many roles throughout his journey. “I started as regional product manager for industrial heating systems and after five years, I was given the opportunity to become the Europe, Middle East, Africa and India (EMEAI) marketing manager and to join the regional leadership team,“ he says.
No two days are alike for Koen. He says, “a typical day for me now includes balancing sales support activities such as product pricing, competitive assessments, lead generation, training, client visits, presentations, etc. with strategic marketing activities such as market trends, product roadmaps, product launches, brand awareness campaigns, digitization of customer/user experiences, creating new value propositions and more.”
There are two career highlights that he is passionate about discussing as they allowed him to think more broadly and creatively than he had before. The first was the development of a new heat tracing cable with high power retention (HPR) technology in 2021. “For a second time, we set a new industry standard by creating a cable with superior performance and longer design life,” said Koen. “We even obtained an independently verified mark for the performance claim with an international certification agency!”
The second highlight occurred in 2022 with the 50th anniversary of the nVent RAYCHEM self-regulating heat tracing cables, which is still considered heat tracing industry-leading solution. “It was great to develop the different multi-channel campaign elements with my colleagues, and to see the positive impact it had on our employees, channel partners and customers,” said Koen.
Innovation and Adaptability is an nVent value that propels Koen to bring bold ideas to nVent each day. He says all employees can bring creative ideas and see them put into action to help drive business success. “Our company stands for innovation, and every new product launch is the living proof of it,” said Koen.
Koen says he likes the hybrid working model nVent offers so that he can be flexible in taking care of work and life at home. He says he also enjoys some of the health perks in his Leuven, Belgium office. Fresh seasonal fruit is provided to employees free of charge during the summer, and in the winter they enjoy hot soup. The local office also supports employee well-being by providing reimbursement toward sports club memberships.
Koen’s advice to those considering joining nVent: “Be yourself and think big.”