From 1 May, Henri (Rik) Vanroelen is VUB’s new chief information officer (CIO), the highest level of responsibility in the field of ICT. It’s a job he’s very much looking forward to getting on with. “In line with the vision for 2030, we will be putting even more focus on synergies within various departments and with other universities. IT is hugely important in that, and increasingly so as a consequence of the coronavirus crisis.”

A Henri at VUB? That will raise expectations. Vanroelen laughs. “Yes, Henri, like Henri PoincarĂ©. My first name is really Rik, but at the time when my parents registered my birth with the authorities, that wasn’t allowed.”

He brings with him 30 years of experience in IT, much of it in an international context. The US, primarily, the country he travelled to for an exchange programme when he was 17. “A year later I came back and chose to study civil engineering at VUB. That was in 1977; in 1982 I obtained my master’s here in electrical engineering.”

Why did you choose to study at VUB?

“After my year in America, I’d turned 18 and couldn’t imagine going back to live at home. I’d had a taste of standing on my own two feet. I had two older brothers who were studying here, so it was quite obvious that I would choose VUB too. But the most important reason for me was the small scale of the university, which made it possible to have direct contact with professors, assistants and fellow students. Even then, I already attached great important to meeting as many people as possible. Collaboration, helping each other, working together and getting to know each other gave an extra dimension to my time as a student here. Its independent character also spoke to me, perhaps even more than the free-thinking spirit. The feeling that you weren’t linked to a belief or a political persuasion.”

How do you see your new role? Working for a commercial company is rather different from working for a university, isn’t it?

“That is what I’m expecting. Every branch of industry, every business has its own character. I expect that there are a number of peculiarities in the university world that you don’t come up against anywhere else. I will have to learn how university governance really works, for example. But just like in a large company, after every decision is made implementation eventually follows, and you have to ensure that it’s done optimally. In that sense, the work will not be so different. I have the advantage that many IT problems are very familiar, wherever you work. Everyone has a network, so they have all the usual problems with it. Everyone has equipment, everyone does development. Lots of IT is universal: the PCs, the networks, but also the frameworks, governance structures
 And every company and institution wants to grow, change, transform. VUB is the same. In processes of change, the human aspect is hugely important. Human nature is the same everywhere, regardless of the workplace. It’s usually only the culture that makes a difference. That affects how people reason, decide, think and are influenced.”

What do you see as the major challenges? What has VUB asked you to do?

“I understand there has been a lot of catching up in terms of IT infrastructure. This should now be at a good standard. The progress that is now required centres mainly on synergy within the various departments, and getting the maximum benefits from it. I understand that at a university there is lots of shadow IT [resources used by employees outside the control and approval of the IT department]. In itself, this is not a problem, but it must be managed in the right way. A second challenge is included in the 2030 vision, that every department wants to take IT to a higher level. One of the slogans that attracted me was ‘radically digital’. That sounds good, but we must agree on what the concept actually means. My challenge will be to help develop and implement that vision.

“As a result of the coronavirus crisis, remote working and distance learning have really taken off. Collaboration with other universities will also increase. But by doing everything at a distance, the security risks grow too; in the best case there is less that is under your control. We will probably have to make extra provisions for that security.”

Why did you choose VUB as your new employer?

“I was very happy studying here, and in my final year I even thought of staying on as an assistant. But I decided to go and work in ‘the real world’. That real world for me was happening outside the university. Because however you look at it, VUB is a separate world. And that’s how it should be. Still, I’ve come back after all these years. I’ve had lots of experience, learned lots along the way. I want to give back to the university. Conversely, it’s true that lots of things are continuously being developed here in the field of ICT. I want to keep up with that. You see it all happening here, with researchers at the cradle of the latest developments. Perhaps I can do my bit to commercialise some of those innovations.”

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BIO

Henri (Rik) Vanroelen achieved a Master's degree in Electrical Engineering at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and an MBA at Regis University in Colorado (USA). He started his career at Exxon, where he held various IT positions in Belgium and the USA. Afterwards, he joined Estée Lauder. There he was Executive Director Global Supply Chain Systems between 1998 and 2000. In 2000, he became Vice President IT. Between 2004 and 2006, he served as Vice President Global Supply Chain Planning and Execution Systems. In 2006, he became Vice President Program Manager Distribution Projects. Between 2009 and 2011 Henri Vanroelen was CIO at the Groep Onafhankelijk Ziekenfonds. In 2011, he joined Ingersoll-Rand as Vice President IT - EMEA. Between 2011 and 2020 he was CIO at SD Worx.

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