Building technology. Changing organisations.
I'm Simon Janssen. A technologist by background, who became a manager because at some point I realised that the most interesting problems in IT are usually not technical.
My career started with building Knab. After that I worked at, among others, NIBC, Quint and the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, led a data and AI company, and became CTO and management board member at HappyNurse.
Technology naturally runs through all of that. But in the end my work is mostly about making choices. What do we invest in, and what not? What do we build ourselves? How do you organise teams? How do you introduce something new without breaking the existing operation?
Those are still the questions I enjoy most.
From that practice I also research what AI does to work. The AI Impact Map scores more than five hundred occupations in five countries, based on official statistics per country and a model that I fix in advance and test afterwards. The data is open, so anyone can check it.
I invest a lot in the people around me. Not as a management principle, but because a team that grows achieves more than any tool or technology. Technology is never a goal for me. I am interested in what it makes possible for people.
“The biggest brake on AI is us.”
From my interview in CIONET Magazine ↗

How I lead
Giving direction without wanting to have every answer, pushing ownership as low as possible, and being honest when something does not work. My leadership principles, career and a number of cases are together on one page.
Leadership & track recordRoles and organisations
CTO and management board member
As CTO at HappyNurse I work on the company's technological direction, from day-to-day choices to multi-year strategy. A lot of my time goes into AI, cloud and platform development, but just as much into the people who do that work.
Advisory Board Member
Europe's largest network of CIOs and CTOs, over 15,000 members. I sit on the Dutch advisory board, contribute to the agenda and speak at sessions on technology, leadership and strategy.
Founder & Managing Director, Data & AI
Founded on the belief that data and AI should be accessible to every organisation. Four years of building, grew to twelve people. I learned how to grow a company and develop a team at the same time.
IT Manager Infrastructure & Datacenter a.i. (interim via Intellify)
Led an IT operations team of more than forty people in an environment where downtime is not an option. I learned here how to keep both technology and people moving under pressure.
Associate Director IT (Operations)
IT operations at a heavily regulated bank. Twenty people, high availability requirements and little room for error. This is where I learned what it means to lead a team that forms the foundation of everything an organisation does.
Senior Consultant Digital Transformation
Advised large organisations on cloud and agile transformations. What I carry with me: technological change only works when you bring the people along. I use that insight every day.
Change Manager a.i. (interim via Quint)
Led the IT modernisation agenda at the AVL, moving from legacy to modern infrastructure in an environment where people and systems have to trust each other. What I took away: change starts with people, not technology.
Business Process Manager, then Manager ICT Skilled Helpdesk
My first real leadership role, at a company that proved a bank could be fully digital. As the youngest manager in Aegon Global, I discovered that leadership is not about age but about giving trust.
Involvement beyond HappyNurse
CIONET Nederland — Advisory Board
Website ↗CIONET is Europe's largest network of CIOs and CTOs, over 15,000 members. I sit on the Dutch advisory board, contribute to the agenda and speak at sessions on technology, leadership and strategy.
Recruitment Tech Awards — Jury
Website ↗Each year I serve as a jury member evaluating the most innovative HR-tech solutions of that year. A good way to stay sharp on what is happening outside your own sector.
Keynotes and panels
Werf& AI & Talent 2026
Keynote on how AI is changing the work of HR professionals and what that demands of leaders.
CIONET: The Challenges of Realizing Sovereignty
Panel with VandeBron and SURF on cloud sovereignty and European data sovereignty.
Recruitment Tech Awards 2025
Speaker at the Recruitment Tech Awards on the role of AI in recruitment and HR technology.
Interviews & media
How HappyNurse placed 600% more candidates using AI
Werf& covered the results of Aisha at HappyNurse and the use of AI in the recruitment process. Candidate satisfaction: 9.1.
De Licht bij Donker Podcast, ep. 18
Contagious enthusiasm for AI in your organisation. On digital transformation, building an innovation culture, and how to lead through a fast-changing technology landscape.
Get in touch?