Leaders Into The Wild
About Us
After studying economics and Consumer Psychology, Niek started working at Mondelez International as a Retail Account Manager. After a few years, the interest in the ‘hassle in the workplace’ was greater than filling out the excell sheet.
After a month of volunteering in Ghana, he discovered his true passion: bringing people closer together through dialogue, in or near nature.
As a consultant & partner at The Transformation Group he has accumulated more than 9 years of experience in helping organisations develop their personal and professional potential by creating trust and safety. He is currently in the process of establishing his own firm that, with inspired specialists, connects to the major transitions of our time.
His personal mission is to facilitate transformational change among leaders and teams by organizing sessions in nature, where they can explore new perspectives and directions for their business. He has now facilitated sessions and trails in various locations, such as the Swiss Alps, Scotland and Sweden, but also in the Netherlands. He believes that nature is a powerful catalyst for learning, innovation and collaboration and likes to share his insights and experiences through articles, publications and lectures.
He is also a board member of the Dutch Federation for Management Development (NFMD.co.uk), board member at NLCares (nlcares.co.uk), board member at the Utrecht Student Welfare Foundation and Ambassador of the Veer Foundation.
In his spare time he can be found with his wife and child in the forests of Zeist, he plays rugby and manages his own nature reserve in Drenthe.
After studying Chemical Technology and Business Administration at the University of Twente, Boy began his career in 1975 as an organizational consultant at the Organization Department (later: Rijnconsult) of AkzoNobel. He continued his career at Akzo Consumer Products. In 1983, Boy became Managing Director at Esdex, a technology company of Esmil and Vendex, specializing in waste treatment and management. He then became Managing Director of Lavold, a group of Companies of Randstad Holding. His next position was president of Douwe Egberts Professional, part of SaraLee Corporation followed by various international corporate executive positions within the ranks of SaraLee / DE. During his career, Boy studied at London Business School, INSEAD-Fontainebleau and Wharton School of Management, USA. In his spare time, Boy was chairman of a group of primary schools and of the Baarnsch Lyceum. Furthermore, he still rows Weekly in an’ eight ' on the river Eem.
After his (early) retirement in 2008, he became chairman of the Board of the flower Agency Holland. In addition, he underwent intensive coach training and became a Wilderness Trails facilitator at the Foundation of Natural leadership (FNL). It became his passion to guide leadership transformation journeys in unspoiled nature. Boy has facilitated over 14 wilderness trails in Africa and Ireland. During this work, he found that the theoretical underpinnings of the impact of taking leaders into the wilderness had hardly been explored. Additionally, he found no empirical evidence to suggest that wilderness experiences can elicit changes in leadership style. To his great joy, his research idea was well received by the Chair Group Cultural Geography of Wageningen University & Research.
In October 2020, Boy was promoted. He has published in various international scientific journals and now regularly lectures and gives guest lectures at various universities. He is also a member of the IDG Scientific Advisory Board.
Niek van Droffelaar
Busy setting up his own consulting firm
After studying economics and Consumer Psychology, Niek started working at Mondelez International as a Retail Account Manager. After a few years, the interest in the ‘hassle in the workplace’ was greater than filling out the excell sheet.
After a month of volunteering in Ghana, he discovered his true passion: bringing people closer together through dialogue, in or near nature.
As a consultant & partner at The Transformation Group he has accumulated more than 9 years of experience in helping organisations develop their personal and professional potential by creating trust and safety. He is currently in the process of establishing his own firm that, with inspired specialists, connects to the major transitions of our time.
His personal mission is to facilitate transformational change among leaders and teams by organizing sessions in nature, where they can explore new perspectives and directions for their business. He has now facilitated sessions and trails in various locations, such as the Swiss Alps, Scotland and Sweden, but also in the Netherlands. He believes that nature is a powerful catalyst for learning, innovation and collaboration and likes to share his insights and experiences through articles, publications and lectures.
He is also a board member of the Dutch Federation for Management Development (NFMD.co.uk), board member at NLCares (nlcares.co.uk), board member at the Utrecht Student Welfare Foundation and Ambassador of the Veer Foundation.
In his spare time he can be found with his wife and child in the forests of Zeist, he plays rugby and manages his own nature reserve in Drenthe.
Boy Van Droffelaar, PhD
Leadership & Wilderniss Researcher
After studying Chemical Technology and Business Administration at the University of Twente, Boy began his career in 1975 as an organizational consultant at the Organization Department (later: Rijnconsult) of AkzoNobel. He continued his career at Akzo Consumer Products. In 1983, Boy became Managing Director at Esdex, a technology company of Esmil and Vendex, specializing in waste treatment and management. He then became Managing Director of Lavold, a group of Companies of Randstad Holding. His next position was president of Douwe Egberts Professional, part of SaraLee Corporation followed by various international corporate executive positions within the ranks of SaraLee / DE. During his career, Boy studied at London Business School, INSEAD-Fontainebleau and Wharton School of Management, USA. In his spare time, Boy was chairman of a group of primary schools and of the Baarnsch Lyceum. Furthermore, he still rows Weekly in an’ eight ' on the river Eem.
After his (early) retirement in 2008, he became chairman of the Board of the flower Agency Holland. In addition, he underwent intensive coach training and became a Wilderness Trails facilitator at the Foundation of Natural leadership (FNL). It became his passion to guide leadership transformation journeys in unspoiled nature. Boy has facilitated over 14 wilderness trails in Africa and Ireland. During this work, he found that the theoretical underpinnings of the impact of taking leaders into the wilderness had hardly been explored. Additionally, he found no empirical evidence to suggest that wilderness experiences can elicit changes in leadership style. To his great joy, his research idea was well received by the Chair Group Cultural Geography of Wageningen University & Research.
In October 2020, Boy was promoted. He has published in various international scientific journals and now regularly lectures and gives guest lectures at various universities. He is also a member of the IDG Scientific Advisory Board.