Paul van der Heide is a senior pensions consultant at BexerHamstra, having previously worked as an entrepreneur running his own pension consulting firms. He took two years of classes at the Actuarial Institute in Utrecht, the Netherlands, and specialized in the legal aspects of pensions. He has extensive experience with the scopes of collective labour agreements and industry-wide pension funds.
‘I think it’s important clients really understand how pension schemes work. Sometimes I notice I’m losing their attention, when I get no more questions. Then I make the extra effort to keep them involved in their process. I don’t want to push clients one way or the other, but to be able to make their own choices from the various options I present them with.
I like to try to see things from my client’s perspective, and I get around well with pretty much everyone, be they the company CEO or a carpenter. Meeting and working with people really is the most exciting part of my job. When I’m explaining something complicated, I get a kick out of it when they understand.
I feel at home at BexerHamstra. Their approach resonates with me, characterized as it is by thoroughness, quality and job satisfaction. The atmosphere is so positive. Our clients usually are large enough to have issues that range widely. That broader context keeps it interesting for me, since I like to look beyond my own specialism.
