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Apheon Appoints Mr. Ruud Sondag to its Board of Senior Advisors

Apheon, the pan-European mid-market private equity firm, is excited to share that Mr. Ruud Sondag has joined its Board of Senior Advisors, effective 3 June 2024. In his new appointment, Ruud will support Apheon’s efforts in the Benelux region, and will bring expertise in strategy and operations in various sectors.

Ruud Sondag - Apheon News

 

Mr. Ruud Sondag is a Dutch national who brings more than 35 years of experience, with a proven CEO track record which spans the logistics, energy, waste management and recycling sectors. He is a strategic thinker with strong operational execution power having successfully led organizations in transition and is a recognized thought leader in the fields of circular economy and energy transition. Ruud most recently served as crisis interim-CEO of Royal Schiphol Group from 2022-2024, one of Europe’s biggest hub airports.

Prior to this, Ruud served at Eneco Groep for 5 years first as crisis interim-CEO, before being appointed as Senior Advisor to the Board. He was also CEO of Van Gansewinkel Groep (now Renewi) for a period of 11 years. Under his leadership, the company became a major player in the European waste treatment sector. Ruud is a member of the Supervisory Board of several companies, including Faerch Group, Eteck, Vos Logistics and has previously held Supervisory Board positions at multiple prominent logistics and energy companies primarily in the Benelux, including Port of Rotterdam, ProRail and Faber Halbertsma Group.

Pieter Lambrecht, Partner at Apheon, commented: “We’re extremely fortunate to have Ruud onboard. He brings a highly experienced perspective, a broad network in the Netherlands and beyond and is also a vibrant personality that fits well with the team. Apheon’s Senior Advisors are integral to our value creation processes; we therefore look forward to Ruud’s dynamic contributions not only across the portfolio, but also as a valuable knowledge resource in a variety of sectors. He is a fantastic addition and is a testament to the world-class platform we continue to build at Apheon.”

Ruud Sondag commented: “Over the course of my career I’ve had the chance to lead many organisations in transition. I’m now proud to be joining Apheon’s Board of Senior Advisors. I truly believe in Apheon’s focus on partnerships with families and founders, its pan-European approach and the aim to transform and grow companies. I look forward to leveraging my experience and supporting this excellent team in creating leading companies in Europe.”

Apheon’s Senior Advisors help drive value by partnering with the Apheon investment team and portfolio company management teams to identify new opportunities and to scale champions across Europe. Ruud’s appointment follows the January appointment of Mrs. Barbara Cimmino, a retail and sustainability veteran.

About Apheon
Apheon is a pan-European mid-market private equity investment company managing ~€3 billion of assets from select global institutional investors and families. Apheon is characterized by its partnership approach, providing “patient and friendly capital” and industrial know-how to entrepreneurs and management teams, preparing their companies for the future. Apheon partners with leading companies with a sustainable, competitive position in attractive niche sectors, acting as a gateway into Europe for companies in the mid-market. Since its founding in 2005, Apheon has invested in ~40 companies across Europe and completed ~180 add-on acquisitions for a total aggregate transaction value in excess of €7 billion. Apheon’s current portfolio consists of 20 companies across its target sectors, representing €3 billion sales and more than 20,000 employees. Apheon is advised by Apheon Advisors which has offices in Brussels, Milan, Madrid, Paris, Munich, and Amsterdam. For more information, please visit www.apheon.com.

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For more information, please contact:

John Mansvelt, COO, Apheon
jm@apheon.com
T: +32 2 213 60 90

Natalia Yek, Head of Investor Relations, Apheon
ny@apheon.com
T: +32 2 213 60 90

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Our manifesto: contributing to the development of sustainable finance

Sustainability generates long-term and higher value

Apheon’s ambition is to contribute to the development of sustainable finance by placing sustainability at the core of its strategy and demonstrating by example that it delivers higher and better value for portfolio companies and investors.
 
We are convinced that businesses that respect the planet, that look after their employees and that support their communities will in turn attract the best talent, differentiate themselves from their competition and ultimately emerge as the strongest in the future.

A holistic and collective approach

To succeed with this strategy, Apheon believes a holistic and collective approach is fundamental.

Holistic: it is essential that all aspects of ESG are equally and continuously supported. This is why we are active at every stage of the investment cycle by applying proprietarily developed methodologies and initiatives which are built on 5 priorities covering the broad ESG spectrum:

  • Sustainable revenues (strategy): increasing, when applicable, the share of revenues which directly benefit the environment and/or society

  • Carbon (environment): reducing emissions

  • Talent (social): creating a positive working environment which will attract, develop and retain the best talent

  • Youth, diversity and inclusion (societal): fostering a more inclusive society

  • Transparency (governance): reporting on metrics transparently, and being transparent on potential obstacles
Collective: we believe that it is only through collective action that we can create significant impact. This is why it is our intention to pull together Apheon’s entire ecosystem to undertake our ESG initiatives. This includes mobilizing our employees, portfolio companies, investors, external experts, charitable organizations, public institutions and peers. At this time of global transition, we believe that sustainable finance plays a key role in advancing towards a sustainable planet and society. Financial players, in particular private equity firms such as Apheon, are in a position to drive forward action by leveraging their business model of transforming companies. Apheon is keen to play such role and to move forward every day with humility but also conviction.