Remco van Overdijk: How do we serve the common interests of the industry? 

First of all, I thank trade magazine Profile for the opportunity to write this column. So I would like to use this space as a call to action to trade associations. Why? Because if we are not careful, we will be left behind as an industry. And that's because of two major challenges we face.

Of course, everyone in this profession wants to be 'the best'. Or: 'the first'. There is nothing wrong with a little (mutual) competition, but we all have bigger goals to achieve. The first challenge is that as an industry we are sometimes a bit too conservative. We like to stick to how we have always done things, while the world around us is changing rapidly. Take sustainability, for example: a topic we are all dealing with, but where we still want to reinvent the wheel too much ourselves. Innovation in the chain is an example of this. We can really work more efficiently in this by coming together sooner and looking across company boundaries. Cooperation is essential in order not to miss the opportunities that exist.

Then the second challenge: the labor shortage. Everyone feels the scarcity in the labor market. Finding good people is a major concern. And that problem is not going to go away for a while. The question is how do we deal with it? How do we make sure we attract the right people, especially the young people growing up with technologies like AI? They are the future of our industry and we need to give them the opportunity to develop in our field. This requires better cooperation with education. Let's challenge the new generation with inspiring internships and graduate studies while learning from their fresh perspective on innovation.

And here again, the crux is in cooperation. We must get rid of the island mentality and dare to look at "competition" or "rivalry" in a different way. And rather try to find genuine cooperation. Of course, each company has its own interests, but there are also common goals that we can work on together. That requires a new way of thinking. I think it is up to the industry associations to play a pioneering role in this. Create opportunities to sit at the table with each other and make common interests negotiable.

Because, if we want to grow as an industry and ensure our future, we need to take steps. I am willing to enter into that conversation and help think about the direction in which we should move together. Only by joining forces as an industry can we turn today's challenges into tomorrow's opportunities.