Maarten Van Der Most - Managing Director

Q: Where is Maarten based?

Maarten is based in Glienicke/Nordbahn, Germany .

Q: What languages does Maarten speak?

Maarten speaks the following languages: Dutch (Native), German (Advanced), English (Advanced) .

Q: How many years of experience does Maarten have?

Maarten has at least 31 years of experience. During this time, Maarten has worked in at least 11 different roles and for 11 different companies . The average length of individual experience is 3 years and 9 months . Note that Maarten may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.

Q: What is Maarten's latest experience?

Maarten's most recent position is Managing Director at House of Code .

Q: What companies has Maarten worked for in recent years?

In recent years, Maarten has worked for House of Code , AVIV Group , Zalando , Audible, and Inc. .

Q: Which industries is Maarten most experienced in?

Maarten is most experienced in industries like Information Technology , Professional Services , and Media and Entertainment . Maarten also has some experience in Manufacturing , Advertising , and Retail .

Q: Which business areas is Maarten most experienced in?

Maarten is most experienced in business areas like Project Management , Product Development , and Information Technology . Maarten also has some experience in Operations , Marketing , and Logistics .

Q: Which industries has Maarten worked in recently?

Maarten has recently worked in industries like Media and Entertainment , Information Technology , and Professional Services .

Q: Which business areas has Maarten worked in recently?

Maarten has recently worked in business areas like Project Management , Information Technology , and Operations .

Recommended expert

Glienicke/Nordbahn, Germany

Experience

Oct 2024 - Present

1 year 7 months

Zagreb, Croatia

Managing Director

House of Code

Led the end-to-end transformation of a 125+-person development organization, driving full operational integration into the Aviv Group within nine months
Overhauled finance, HR, IT, and facilities by establishing scalable frameworks and modern governance models
Introduced structured budgeting and cashflow processes, job leveling, and compensation frameworks to build transparency, accountability, and sustainable growth
Implemented complete financial restructuring with a strategic budgeting process aligned to group objectives
Re-engineered and operationalized HR functions, establishing modern talent management and organizational development processes
Formalized nearshore vendor management by fully integrating partners and processes into Aviv Group’s operational framework
Scaled IT infrastructure and support capabilities, significantly extending helpdesk services
Instituted clear on-call and overtime regulations for nearshore partners to enhance service reliability and cost predictability
Directed facilities and real estate management to ensure productive and efficient work environments
Achieved a cohesive and accountable subsidiary fully aligned with Aviv’s strategy

Apr 2023 - Present

3 years 1 month

Berlin, Germany

Senior Director Product & Tech Operations

AVIV Group

Restructured delivery operating model across six domains, aligning 100+ teams with shared delivery standards, QA maturity, DevOps integration, and go-to-market readiness
Built and scaled a coaching-driven team culture by mentoring domain leads to adopt metrics-based team health practices and empower autonomous delivery
Guided leaders through organizational change, shifting from siloed structures to collaborative, value-driven teams earning executive trust and cross-organization sponsorship
Drove alignment across domains using servant leadership principles
Merged and harmonized four Atlassian Jira instances across organizations in under nine months on time and on budget
Created executive dashboards showing delivery predictability, team velocity, and initiative ROI, establishing new standards for investment planning in line with OKRs
Established scalable delivery ceremonies and rituals, including value reviews and cross-domain syncs
Instilled data-driven ownership across 100+ teams
Led contracting and negotiation for a nearshore vendor model, including statements of work and framework contracts, resulting in 20% cost efficiency gains
Developed trade-off frameworks balancing delivery cost versus opportunity gain for strategic and OKR planning and review sessions
Achieved strategy-to-execution alignment and measurable efficiency uplift across Aviv’s digital delivery ecosystem
Delivered delivery transparency from DevOps and QA through to C-level via data-driven reporting
Optimized and flexibly structured vendor contracts and statements of work, reducing overall cost by 20%

Jan 2022 - Mar 2023

1 year 3 months

Berlin, Germany

Head Of Program Management – Global PMO

Zalando

Led global delivery management within Zalando’s Global PMO, aligning project intake, prioritization, and execution with company-wide and business unit goals
Partnered with senior leadership to evolve the global delivery framework and drive strategic execution
Provided strategic oversight and hands-on leadership to enable effective decision-making, resolve resource constraints, and ensure delivery transparency
Directed successful delivery of approximately 45 major concurrent projects in Zalando’s group project portfolio
Spearheaded delivery of largest and most complex strategic programs, including Cyber Week readiness, GDPR/DMA/DSA compliance, critical tax changes, and the Nike Shop-In-Shop principle
Led a critical single sign-on migration project with minimal business disruption
Pioneered improvements to the Program Delivery Excellence framework by harmonizing processes and data points and enhancing technology and business reporting
Masterminded strategic sequencing of initiatives to optimize corporate program delivery, balancing portfolio priorities with resource capacity
Served as a bar raiser for program management by reviewing and enhancing best practices, processes, and documentation across the PMO
Achieved faster execution and tighter governance across Zalando’s digital portfolio

Aug 2016 - Jan 2022

5 years 6 months

Berlin, Germany

Director of Program Management

Audible, Inc.

Led the international program management team responsible for marketization and localization of the Audible experience across web, mobile, Fire TV, Alexa, and Kindle platforms
Collaborated with global product and technology teams in the US to drive major platform migrations, launch new business models, and ensure compliance for EU marketplaces
Expanded role to include on-site operations, IT, real estate, and facilities management
Served as single-threaded leader for Audible’s EU PSD2/MFA compliance program with Amazon
Launched Audible in India and Italy, adding millions of new users
Delivered a multi-market platform migration with zero downtime
Drove and released new business models, including mixed credit and free models
Architected and launched a global blog platform on a headless CMS, navigating complex vendor contracting and Amazon security clearance processes
Developed an in-house global content slate management tool, providing visibility into the audiobook lifecycle from contracting to delivery
Doubled office footprint and built four in-house recording studios
Managed IT, facilities, and real estate teams to Amazon standards
Delivered scalable infrastructure and compliant, localized customer experiences while elevating Audible’s European technology and operations footprint
Expanded floor space and transformed offices for post-COVID ways of working
Established four state-of-the-art in-house recording studios

Jul 2014 - Jul 2016

2 years 1 month

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Manager e-Commerce Innovation Europe

Staples

Led the B2B and B2C digital experience across 16 European sites and three brands within Staples’ global delivery center
Owned delivery of all online product changes, innovations, and enhancements aligned with the European growth strategy
Migrated 16 websites in 11 languages to a new platform within 18 months
Unified the EU roadmap with global initiatives for clarity and priority
Drove A/B testing and user experience optimization to achieve higher conversion rates
Delivered a modern omnichannel experience and digital performance uplift

Apr 2013 - Jun 2014

1 year 3 months

The Hague, Netherlands

Product & Innovation Manager

T-Mobile Nederland

Drove product innovation and roadmap delivery for mobile, cloud, and digital solutions supporting T-Mobile’s growth strategy
Defined next-generation mobile and cloud solutions aligned to growth objectives
Built and led a team of 11 product managers
Guided Agile (SAFe) transformation from a waterfall model
Accelerated T-Mobile’s digital evolution by improving delivery speed, cross-functional alignment, and innovation velocity

Sep 2011 - Feb 2013

1 year 6 months

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Product Director Benelux

Monster

Led the Benelux product management team overseeing seven regional websites and online platforms
Improved SEO and user experience across seven regional sites
Launched semantic search using 6Sense/SeeMore and cloud CV parsing
Managed tenders for outplacement services with government clients
Drove cross-functional alignment with marketing and sales teams
Increased B2B and B2C traffic and customer engagement while elevating Monster’s competitive positioning in the recruitment technology space

Feb 2005 - Aug 2011

6 years 7 months

Schiphol, Netherlands

Lead Program Manager EMEA

Microsoft

Led European readiness and market rollouts for Windows Live products including Hotmail, OneDrive, and Internet Explorer 9
Managed multinational local program teams across EMEA for localization and launch activities
Improved release quality through KPI-based operations
Served as guest speaker and evangelist for Hotmail and Messenger products
Delivered high-quality local Windows Live products with enhanced awareness and control of spam filters

Oct 2001 - Jan 2005

3 years 4 months

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Senior Project Manager

DigitasLBi

Directed large-scale CMS implementations for clients including Getronics, Goodyear/Dunlop, Schering Pharmaceutical, and Bol.com
Provided UX/UI and graphical design consultation to meet corporate identity and functional requirements
Offered technology and platform consultancy
Enabled localizing and marketizing capabilities in line with customer needs
Delivered on-time, on-budget projects with strong UX and ROI impact

Dec 1999 - Oct 2001

1 year 11 months

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Project Manager / Consultant

Result

Served as consultant and project manager within an international business consultancy, accelerating digital economy businesses
Rolled out e-companies including Result Netherlands, Maporama, PriceRunner, and Freedoo
Advised clients on bridging business strategy, marketing, and technology
Translated and supported customer marketing strategy into local market delivery
Managed finance and IT functions, including budget control and network management
Achieved first-year profitability with a headcount of 12 and incubated 14 companies
Supported nine companies in establishing local or international footprints

Aug 1995 - Dec 1999

4 years 5 months

Badhoevedorp, Netherlands

Junior Product Manager

Sony Europe

Coordinated and controlled products, logistics, and communication for camcorders, accessories, and digital still cameras
Held business responsibility for the Greek and Portuguese camcorder markets
Owned the European STAMINA marketing campaign with a budget over €10 million
Participated in the EU web taskforce team
Achieved highly successful STAMINA campaign, making camcorder and digital camera pages the most visited after the EU homepage
Won the Cyberlion Award for the online Mavica campaign

Industry Experience

See where this freelancer has spent most of their professional time.

Experienced in Information Technology, Professional Services, Media and Entertainment, Manufacturing, Advertising, and Retail.

Information Technology

Professional Services

Media and Entertainment

Manufacturing

Advertising

Retail

Business Area Experience

See which departments and functions this freelancer has contributed to most.

Experienced in Project Management, Product Development, Information Technology, Operations, Marketing, and Logistics.

Project Management

Product Development

Information Technology

Operations

Marketing

Logistics

Summary

Operationalizing (digital) strategy and driving transformation at A-brand companies like Amazon, Microsoft, and Zalando. Expert in restructuring, delivering efficiency, and unifying global teams and bring measurable results through clarity, scaling, alignment, execution, and human-centered and entrepreneurial leadership in complex digital environments.

Skills

Product & Tech
Operational Excellence
(Digital) Delivery Pmo
Post Merger Integration
Digital Transformation
Change Management
Delivery Models
Entrepreneurial Mindset

Languages

Dutch

Native

German

Advanced

English

Advanced

Education

Oct 1994 - Aug 1995

Western Carolina University

Master of Project Management · Project Management · Cullowhee, United States

Oct 1994 - Jun 1995

Avans University of Applied Sciences

Bachelor of Business Administration · Business Administration · Breda, Netherlands

Oct 1990 - Jun 1994

Inholland University of Applied Sciences

Bachelor of Economics, International Management · International Management · The Hague, Netherlands

Statistics

Experience

Total positions 11

Experience in Information Technology 11 y

Avg length 2 y 10 m

Longest experience 6 y 6 m

Global Experience

Countries worked in 3 (Netherlands, Germany, Croatia)

Primary country Netherlands

Expertise

Recent roles Managing Director, Senior Director Product & Tech Operations, Head Of Program Management – Global PMO

Main industries Information Technology, Professional Services, Media and Entertainment

Main business areas Project Management, Product Development, Information Technology

Qualifications

Highest degree Master

Profile

Created

April 2026

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Frequently asked questions

Do you have questions? Here you can find further information.

Where is Maarten based?

Maarten is based in Glienicke/Nordbahn, Germany.

What languages does Maarten speak?

Maarten speaks the following languages: Dutch (Native), German (Advanced), English (Advanced).

How many years of experience does Maarten have?

Maarten has at least 31 years of experience. During this time, Maarten has worked in at least 11 different roles and for 11 different companies. The average length of individual experience is 3 years and 9 months. Note that Maarten may not have shared all experience and actually has more experience.

What roles would Maarten be best suited for?

Based on recent experience, Maarten would be well-suited for roles such as: Managing Director, Senior Director Product & Tech Operations, Head Of Program Management – Global PMO.

What is Maarten's latest experience?

Maarten's most recent position is Managing Director at House of Code.

What companies has Maarten worked for in recent years?

In recent years, Maarten has worked for House of Code, AVIV Group, Zalando, Audible, and Inc..

Which industries is Maarten most experienced in?

Maarten is most experienced in industries like Information Technology, Professional Services, and Media and Entertainment. Maarten also has some experience in Manufacturing, Advertising, and Retail.

Which business areas is Maarten most experienced in?

Maarten is most experienced in business areas like Project Management, Product Development, and Information Technology. Maarten also has some experience in Operations, Marketing, and Logistics.

Which industries has Maarten worked in recently?

Maarten has recently worked in industries like Media and Entertainment, Information Technology, and Professional Services.

Which business areas has Maarten worked in recently?

Maarten has recently worked in business areas like Project Management, Information Technology, and Operations.

What is Maarten's education?

Maarten holds a Master in Project Management from Western Carolina University, a Bachelor in Business Administration from Avans University of Applied Sciences and a Bachelor in International Management from Inholland University of Applied Sciences.

What is the availability of Maarten?

Maarten will be available from June 2026.

What is the rate of Maarten?

Maarten's rate depends on the specific project requirements. Please use the Meet button on the profile to schedule a meeting and discuss the details.