I had been working consecutively for thirty years at one of the Big Four financial services firms when I came across Huib. I'd started as a junior associate all those years ago, 'on call' from the partners and seniors, until I climbed my way up to partnership myself. When I turned 53 and decided I wanted to take a step back, I discovered that while there's a lot of investment in developing a career upwards, the same doesn't hold when you want to 'climb down'. That's why I went in search of an external coach - someone to guide me through this process ­- and found Huib.

I reached out to Huib to learn how to deal with a tough situation I'd found myself in. The company I was working for at the time had undergone a reorganisation. This had led to a spiral of negativity all around me - and it was sapping my energy bigtime. 

I first came into contact with Huib when I was HR Director of Facilicom. It was during a High Potential training programme and Huib was responsible for individual coaching sessions. Right from the start, Huib created an atmosphere of trust where I felt at ease. This surprised me, as I am usually on my guard during initial encounters.

I work in a medium-sized family business, and a few years ago I succeeded my father as CEO and company owner. Running a business isn't something you're equipped to do overnight just because you've signed some legal papers and have been given the title. It's a complex transformational process. For the father it takes time to learn how to let go and the son needs to adjust to the new role.

A couple of years ago, I called on Huib's coaching skills to help give me a head start in my new job as marketing manager. In practice, a coach often gets called in when you've hit a roadblock, but I wanted to use coaching as a 'preventive' approach - to explore how to best deploy my communication skills, my energy and my strengths.

'Am I on the right track? How can I make optimal use of my strengths in my job? Which leadership-managerial style suits me best?' These were the questions I wanted to investigate.

I work as Chief Public Prosecutor, heading the legal department at one of the four courts of appeal within the national Public Prosecution Office - a demanding job with considerable responsibility within a field traditionally dominated by men. Following a reorganisation at the end of last year, I came into contact with Huib when we were taking part in a series of coaching and internal review sessions.

As an executive partner, I've brought employees into contact with Huib every so often in the past, when they needed coaching. At the time, it struck me how efficiently Huib got down to work. In just two or three sessions, he managed to achieve very positive results.

I think Huib is particularly good as a coach because he cares so much and allows himself to get involved in the process. At the same time, he gives plenty of space and scope to his coachee's. He's quick to identify the 'sensitive spots' and has an energy and a drive that propels you to get right to the core. This drive makes his programmes very efficient; by that, I mean that you can quickly see tangible results in the workplace.

I worked for a large firm of architects for 26 years - 16 of those as a partner. I was on the board with another five partners, including the founders of the firm. In those days, I worked on large-scale public projects like railway stations, for example.

While I was Managing Director of Prorest, my boss made it clear in various performance reviews that I needed to take more business risks. Now, I may not be a big risk-taker but I am a high performer. I attach great value to stability, to customer and employee satisfaction, and, not least, to the bottom line and a healthy balance sheet - I like figures in the black rather than in the red! Actually, I'm not really risk-averse - many of decisions I took involved risk; so why did people perceive my entrepreneurial style as overcautious?

We at Oberon have been collaborating with Huib since 2006, developing various training programmes together in the field of local education policy.