Johan van der Poel

Early drive

At twelve I was training with Olympic ambitions in beach volleyball while running a small design business on the side. Balancing both gave me an early taste of independence: the discipline of sport, the creativity of entrepreneurship, and the responsibility of building something myself. That mix has shaped how I work ever since.

Learning different languages

I studied Industrial Design Engineering at Delft, drawn to the challenge of combining imagination with structure. At Simon-Kucher, I built my foundation in strategy and analytics. At Mendix, I experienced the pace and pressure of scaling a tech company from the inside. Each step felt like learning a new language — design taught me creativity, consulting gave me structure, and operating brought speed and pragmatism. Together they formed the foundation of how I approach problems today: making complexity simple and turning ideas into momentum.

Northlane as an extension

Northlane grew out of that path. I founded it to reflect how I believe work should be done: not as an agent delivering advice from the sidelines, but as a principal building alongside founders and teams. Pricing is often the entry point, but the real work is creating clarity — aligning people, strategy, and growth in ways that last.

Playing the long game

What motivates me most is the compounding effect of long-term partnerships. Working closely with founders and teams over time — building trust, creating momentum, and growing together — is what makes the work meaningful. That energy carries into everyday life, whether sitting with a founder at a whiteboard or cruising through the morning bike commute across Amsterdam.