62-year-old Marco Vermin says goodbye to the Board of Directors of Alfa

26 maart 2024 | Door:  Matthijs van Dorssen

After more than thirteen years, Marco Vermin will bid farewell to the Board of Directors of Alfa on March 31st. The 62-year-old Vermin is doing so because of the age clause applicable to Board of Directors members. Within Alfa, he was responsible for tax and legal technical expertise, international services, business administration, and human resources management. He departs at a time when Alfa is still in the midst of the proposed merger with fellow organization ABAB. "If the merger proceeds, a new Board of Directors will be established. That's why it's time for me to step down."

Prior to joining Alfa, Marco Vermin had pursued a career in a completely different sector. He had served as director of Gave Foundation for over nine years, a volunteer organization aiding refugees. Despite his legal and tax background, he "never expected to work for an accounting organization," he says. "I started at the Tax Office, pursued a law degree at a polytechnic college, and then it seemed natural to study tax law. But I never had set plans for the future." He began at Alfa as managing director of the offices in Bennekom, Dodewaard, and Veenendaal. Over a year later, in 2010, Marco Vermin was asked to join a newly forming Board of Directors at Alfa. He joined chairman Fou-Khan Tsang and Koert van der Bij, who has since been succeeded by Arnoud Bosch.

Significant Growth for Alfa

Under the leadership of the trio, Alfa has experienced significant growth. In 2023, Alfa closed with a revenue of 123 million euros, 35 branches, and 1200 employees. "We're now embarking on a new challenge with a comparable firm. This will elevate us to a top-six, top-seven organization where every employee is a full shareholder. It will be a fantastic company. The challenge with expanding companies is always to maintain a people-centric culture. But the cultures of Alfa and ABAB are robust enough for that."

People-Person

A 'people-person' is a label often attributed to the resident of Bennekom. He acknowledges that this quality helped him transition from a volunteer organization to the commercial world. "The lesson I learned at Gave is not to steer based on financial incentives but on people's intrinsic motivation, on a greater purpose. Everyone wants to be engaged in meaningful work. If you manage to touch upon that with someone, you'll go much further than just looking at financial rewards. Although those should be adequate, of course." Besides his role within Alfa, Marco Vermin was a driving force for Alfa's international activities through its affiliation with the DFK International association. For the past three years, he has served as vice-president EMEA at DFK.

Final Farewell to Alfa

His departure from the Board of Directors also marks a final farewell to Alfa. "I'm retiring now at this age, but it feels right. I've witnessed the beginning of the proposed merger process with ABAB. If everything goes ahead, there will be a new Board of Directors to carry on. I think it's a good choice we've made. I look back with joy and gratitude on a wonderful time and a great company." For now, his calendar remains empty. "I would still like to oversee something or play a role in a supervisory board or as a commissioner. But at this moment, I have no concrete plans for the future."