Ackermans & van Haaren is a family business that has been in operation for five generations. The company remains true to its family values since its founding.
Father-in-law and brother-in-law
On May 19, 1865, Nicolaas van Haaren married Maria Luyben. They had five children, but Maria Luyben passed away shortly after the birth of Gijsbertus in 1872.
In 1876, Hendrik Willem Ackermans entered the service of his fellow villager Nicolaas van Haaren. That same year, Nicolaas van Haaren remarried the sister of Hendrik Willem Ackermans, Elisabeth (picture below).
On 6 May 1890, Hendrik Willem Ackermans married Elisabeth van Haaren in ’s-Hertogenbosch, daughter of Nicolaas van Haaren (picture below).
The close and good family ties between Nicolaas van Haaren and Hendrik Willem Ackermans, his brother-in-law and, from 1890, also his son-in-law, played a decisive role in the emergence and development of the company Ackermans & van Haaren. For the “petite histoire”: in his diaries, Hendrik Willem Ackermans never spoke of brother-in-law, but always of “daddy van Haaren.”
The family ties go even further: Nicolaas van Haaren’s sister, Maria, married Hendrik Van Baren. Along with their descendants they also played an important role in the development of the company.
From generation to generation
In the first decades of its history, Ackermans & van Haaren operated under various organization structures: co-operative enterprises, partnerships ("maatschappen"), temporary associations,...). In 1924, the "SA Entreprises Ackermans & van Haaren" was created as a limited company under Belgian law. Since then, the roles of chairman (of the board of directors) and CEO (managing director) are clearly defined, which allows us to list the following "gallery".
Chairman of the board of directors
- 1924-1945: Hendrik WIllem Ackermans
- 1945-1967: Jan Ackermans
- 1967-1980: Henri Ackermans
- 1981-1985: Lucrèce Ackermans
- 1985-1995: Henri Willaert
- 1995-2006: Erik van Baren
- 2006-2011: Alain Dieryck
- 2011-2016: Jacques Delen*
- 2016-(): Luc Bertrand
CEO - managing director - chairman of the executive committee
- 1924-1927: Hendrik Willem Ackermans
- 1927-1956: Simon Fransen Daalmeijer*
- 1956-1973: Jean De Heem*
- 1974-1981: Paul van Haaren (as CEO of Dredging International)
- 1975-1990: Simon Deckers*
- 1990-1995: Erik van Baren and Luc Bertrand
- 1995-2016: Luc Bertrand
- 2016-2022: Jan Suykens*
- 2022-(): John-Eric Bertrand and Piet Dejonghe*
(*) not related to the families Ackermans, van Haaren or van Baren.
Today and tomorrow
The founding families have a clearly defined family strategy, characterized by consistently maintaining a long-term vision, combined with sound financial policies, openness to every opportunity, and diversification. Since the company's establishment, the family shareholders have always held the majority in the board of directors, with the approval of the general meeting. This allows them to oversee the implementation of the family strategy by a professional management team, which is evaluated based on its merits. When selecting family members for the board of directors, quality and experience take priority. For several decades, family members have no longer constituted the majority of the management. They prefer to fulfill their role from within the board of directors.
Still today, a number of members of the board of directors are descendants of Nicolaas van Haaren, Hendrik Willem Ackermans or Hendrik Van Baren.
- Luc Bertrand, chairman of the board) is married to Fabienne Ackermans, who is the great-granddaughter of Hendrik Willem Ackermans and Elisabeth van Haaren.
- Frederic van Haaren, member of the board of directors, is the great-grandson of Nicolaas van Haaren and Elisabeth Ackermans.
- Thierry van Baren, member of the board of directors, is the great-great-grandson of Hendrik Van Baren and Maria van Haaren.
- Pierre Willaert, member of the board of directors, was named after his grandfather Pierre Willaert, who was married to Elisabeth van Haaren, the granddaughter of Nicolaas van Haaren.
- Julien Pestiaux, member of the board of directors, is a descendant of Hendrik Willem Ackermans, who was the great-grandfather of Julien Pestiaux' mother.
- John-Eric Bertrand, co-CEO, is the son of Luc Bertrand and Fabienne Ackermans, the great-granddaughter of Hendrik Willem Ackermans.