Dr. Bert W.M. Twaalfhoven
Former President of Indivers B.V.

Dr. Twaalfhoven graduated from Fordham University in 1952 with a B.Sc. and received his MBA at Harvard Business School in 1954. In 1993 Dr. Twaalfhoven received an honorary doctorate from Fordham University for his achievements in the area of education and as an international entrepreneur. Dr. Twaalfhoven is  former chairman of Harvard Business School Alumni and on June 2, 2001 he received the Annual Alumni Award from Harvard Business School for his activities stimulating entrepreneurship in Eastern and Western Europe.

Indivers started 50 companies in 11 countries including Italy, France, Germany, Russia, Ukraine, Holland, Belgium, England, U.S.A. and China. Most companies were successful, 17 ventures failed. The company sold its major turbine related activities in 1997 to United Technologies in the U.S.A., and in 2000 to Sulzer of Switzerland. Indivers was also co-founder of the first venture capital company in the Netherlands (Gilde) and has participations in several venture capital companies.

In addition to being an entrepreneur, Dr. Twaalfhoven is active in many capacities in international networks of universities and entrepreneurs, especially the promotion of dynamic growth entrepreneurs. He is Founder of the European Foundation for Entrepreneurship research (EFER) and Initiator of EASDAQ. He is Founding Member and board member of Europe’s 500, now Growth Plus – the Association for Europe’s fastest growing entrepreneurs. Dr. Twaalfhoven is board member of the Fordham Graduate School of Business in New York and board member of the International Advisory Board of The Netherlands business school: Nyenrode. He is board member of United World College India and board member of the GEA College of Entrepreneurship in Portoroz, Slovenia.

Bert & Maria Twaalfhoven live in Hilversum, Holland and have 8 children (5 MBA’s, 3 engineers). They have 19 grandchildren. They ski – sail – paint and collect 17th century maps when New York was called “New Netherlands” and Cape Cod  “New Holland”. The Twaalfhoven 2nd generation is re-designing a “New Indivers” in the industrial sector as well as in new and emerging sectors, markets and technologies.

March 2004
 

Arena Office Park 1

Marathon 9H
1213 PE Hilversum

The Netherlands
Phone: +31 (0)35 642 0709
Fax: +31 (0)35 642 0609

Email: B.Twaalfhoven@efer.nl