Board to Board 2014-2015

Precisely one week after Cleo, Anouk, Ernst, Bas and Roxanne had officially been succeeded by the new board, it was time to find out what their opinions are regarding last year. What were their highlights and their favorite drinks? What weird characteristics do they have? Read on for more insights in the Asset | Econometrics’ board of 2014-2015!

Well, old boardies, spill the beans! What were your favorite committees this year?
Anouk
: That is a difficult question, since I had quite a couple of committees. Perhaps the Symposium, or otherwise the Nekst. No wait, the International Business Tour 2014.
Cleo
: I only had two committees this year and I really liked both of them, but my favorite one is the Landelijk Econometristen Voetbal Toernooi (LEVT). Come on, we had pie and beer at every meeting! Who would not want that?
Ernst: My favorite committee was certainly the IBT 2015. The 2014 committee was great as well, but we were only present in the committee for a short while. For 2015’s edition to Cape Town, I was also present when determining the location and that made it a wonderful experience.
Roxanne: I preferred the Active Members Weekend committee. It was a very creative committee and the meetings were simply so much fun! We also had pajama parties and we even still meet sometimes.
Bas: My first thought was the Finance Expedition, but the cantus committee was also really cool. However, I think I liked the Hitchhiking Trip committee the best. It was a great weekend and the committee members were also enthusiastic.

When I asked what the ultimate highlight of the past year was, the five old board members remained silent for a moment. You could see them going back in time, trying to remember what activities they all organized. However, once they started bringing up events, they could not stop. They mentioned the amount of participants at the Secret Activity, their extraordinary result in the Batavierenrace, winning the Asset Champions League, the collective decision for this year’s IBT destination, the brothers & sisters evening, having snowball fights with 30°C during the General Members Day, etcetera; too much to write down. Below you can find a few of their highlights.

Anouk: I thought the Symposium was really amazing. The amount of participants was great, the speakers were great and the committee was very enthusiastic.
Roxanne: That was indeed awesome! I remember just how surprised we were when we had sent an email to Dr. Eva Lee, who lives in the USA, whether she wanted to be in the Symposium’s board of recommendation and she responded that she would like to be a speaker and that she would not mind flying over here. The entire experience was so great.
Ernst: For me, the cantus was really a climax. There were so many members present, and without any promotion! It was also an activity we had not come up with ourselves, but that a few active members approached us with. We responded that if they could find a date in our year planning we would agree, and I am so glad that it worked out.
Cleo: The hitchhiking during this year’s Trip was also one of my highlights. Beforehand, I did not even know whether I dared hitchhiking. It was so incredible to just stand at the side of the highway and knowing that you have to end up in Germany, just with the two of you.
Bas: I am actually still surprised that it all worked out. Of course, we had a back-up car for stranded participants, but I was still concerned that not everyone would arrive.

Cleo: It was so incredible to just stand at the side of the highway and knowing that you have to end up in Germany, just with the two of you

What was your favorite drink?
Ernst: The New Year’s Drink, definitely the New Year’s Drink!
Anouk: I am sure you are right, but I can truly not recall anything from that night.
Ernst: After our drink, we went to Café Studio and when it closed at 04.00 hours around fifteen econometrics students were still present. That was also the night that I took your coat home, Bas, since you left without it and mine was stolen.
Bas: I was not sober enough to realize that I even had a jacket, so I just left without it, after which I went to snack bar Tropical and stole part of Ennia’s pizza. I even dropped it on the floor and then continued eating it. Yeah, that must have been a great night. Just like the evening of the second Freshmen Activity, when we went clubbing afterwards. For some reason I decided it would be a great idea to jump over an advertisement-board, which obviously did not work out.
Cleo: How is it going with the corresponding dent in your head?
Bas: Well, the doctor told me that it could be visible for five entire years. Up until that moment what had happened did not really matter to me, but five years would have been awful.
Roxanne: Well, luckily, you can hardly see it anymore.

Clearly, Bas can be a party animal sometimes. But what is his best character trait? And what about the others?
Ernst
: I admire Bas’ indifference. That may sound weird, but it is good to have someone in your team who puts everything in perspective.
Anouk: I think Cleo’s best characteristic is her perseverance. Whether she is tired, annoyed or things get difficult, she will deal with it and do what needs to be done. I think that is an admirable trait.
Cleo: What I like about Anouk is that it is impossible to become angry at her. She is always enthusiastic and happy.
Bas: Just like Roxanne, she is also almost always cheerful.
Cleo: That is true! You had to explain what committees Asset | Econometrics has a hundred times during active member conversations, but you never got bored. That is a very rare characteristic and great for our Internal Affairs.
Roxanne: Do you know what I liked best about Ernst this year? Seeing him in a tutu on the gift we received from the new board!

Allemaal

What is the most important thing you have learned last year?
Anouk:
The most valuable lesson I have learned is about giving some priority to my own needs as well; sometimes you just need to do something for yourself.
Roxanne: That is true, you did not do that at the beginning of the year. Personally, I have gained quite some flexibility by cooperating with others and consequently, my level of communication also improved.
Ernst: This year, I sometimes said that I had lost all confidence in the human race. Of course, that is a bit simplistic, but I have realized that everybody makes mistakes, in all sorts of organizations, and that you should not become too frustrated; you just have to deal with it. I have gained better understanding for organizations and for other people.
Bas: I realized that you have to be clear in your communication and straight to the point. Furthermore, I have become somewhat immune to stress and I have learned how to solve problems on very short notice.
Cleo: For me, the most important thing I learned was to trust on others. In the beginning it was hard for me to give tasks to other people, but during my board year I learned to confide in others to do their job.

Bas: I have become somewhat immune to stress

What is the weirdest characteristic of your fellow old board members?
Roxanne:
Anouk really despises dresses.
Cleo: And physical contact!
Roxanne: Especially inappropriate physical contact while wearing a dress.
Cleo: Oh, and Bas always puts everything into his mouth.
Bas: I have heard that before.

Subsequently, Bas begins telling a distasteful story about how one time, a pen spiral got stuck in his throat. Once he swallowed it, it had gone to his stomach, but for quite a long time he kept thinking that he could hear the spiral clinging whenever he coughed. Eager to hear more fascinating stories, I continued my interrogation.

Are there any other stories you wish to share?
Roxanne:
Ernst came up with the idea to introduce flexible office spaces, but he was the only one who was socially awkward enough not to want to switch desks.
Ernst: It is actually really inconvenient! As treasurer I needed to be close to the official papers and closet.
Anouk: Ernst somehow found a way to break every computer mouse within three days. Nobody could use the mouse on his desk, except for himself. Oh, and his bike was also always broken!

Next, I asked them the final, simple question: ‘Where do you see the others ten years from now?’, which can also be found in most children friend books. Unfortunately, they were not capable of giving a simple answer. It took them more than twenty minutes to come up with an answer for all five of them, but then again, their answers were pretty detailed descriptions. Collectively they decided that ten years from now:
– Cleo will have been a strategy consultant for quite a couple of years, after which she has become a manager. She will, of course, live together with Laurens (her current boyfriend) and will have two children. Together they will live near Utrecht/Geldermalsen and she will definitely have a fat, fluffy rabbit named Pony.
– Anouk will still live in Brabant together with her amazing husband. She will have one baby (probably a ginger) and will be a data-analyst for a medium-sized company. When her child/children will be older, she will be a very enthusiastic and active parent who is part of a primary school advisory board and she will also be a volunteer at the local hockey club.
– Ernst will be a professor at Tilburg University, probably full-time, but it might also happen that he works two days for a company such as TNO. His hobbies will still be rather feminine and he will still be together with his current girlfriend Audrey, but he will not have more than one child. What is certainly clear, is that they will not have any pet animals.
– Bas will have dogs, no doubt about it. He will live in the Randstad and will have one child, which makes his life rather busy, as he will also be a quantitative consultant. He will be rather strict about his kid’s sport abilities; if he/she does not perform well, he/she will have to sleep outside.
– Even though Roxanne is very caring, she will not have any children, as she despises babies. To compensate for this emptiness, she will have a cat and she will live abroad together with her current boyfriend Wouter. Furthermore, she will be business consultant at a firm such as Quintiq.

After these slightly long descriptions, my questionnaire had come to an end. I want to thank Cleo, Anouk, Ernst, Bas and Roxanne not only for this interesting interview, but also for all their efforts during the past year. They have been an amazing board and took Asset | Econometrics to an even higher level. I speak on behalf of the Nekst committee, the new board and I think also on behalf of all of our members when I say: thank you!

Cleo Anouk Ernst Bas Roxanne
First to arrive or last to leave First to arrive Both Last to leave Neither Last to leave
Favorite 50ct candy shop article Kinder Bueno Kinder Bueno Stroopwafels Bits Kinder Bueno
Music at the rooms Guilty pleasure No preference Singer songwriter Nothing Pop/jazz
Favorite promotional item The new pens Sport bags Sport bags Jogging pants Sport shirts
Type of breakfast Knäckebröd with sunflowerseeds from the Albert Heijn Yoghurt Bread Nothing Bread
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In a few words
Cleo Proud, precise, responsible, lady-like, stubborn
Anouk Workhorse, cheerful, party animal, selfless, modest
Ernst Curious, ADD, precise, consistent, helpful, critical
Bas Hard worker, sportive, adventurous, calm, skeptical
Roxanne Caring, cheerful, chaotic, off the grid, mama

 

Text by: Ennia Suijkerbuijk