Opening Academic Year 2023-2024

Programme Thursday 7 September 2023, Kapteynborg, 5419.0015

Towards sustainable business

As one of FEB’s strategic themes (“Future Prosperity and Sustainability”), moving towards sustainable business is about more than societal challenges such as climate change and inequality and social exclusion that relate directly to economic and business decision-making and activities. To assure sustainable business in general, it is crucial to shape the business and economic landscape for organisations and people to realise their full potential on the one hand, while on the other safeguarding healthy and prosperous businesses, economies, and societies in the long run.

During the opening of the academic year 2023-2024 we want to shed light on how moving towards sustainable business may (need to) affect corporate and public policy making and how well-informed decision making and governance at the individual, organisational, and institutional levels contribute to supporting a prosperous society and business climate.

Chair: Olof Bik

Olof Bik is professor of Audit and Assurance and (incoming) Chair of the Department of Accounting & Auditing at FEB. He takes special interest in the study of culture, leadership, and governance in the realm of organisational behavior and performance in professional services firms.

Keynote speaker: Hans Honig

Hans Honig is CEO of Deloitte in The Netherlands, Chairman of the Executive Board and member of the Deloitte North South Europe Executive. Making an impact that matters has driven a lot of the choices he made in his professional life. He has always been energised by building high performance teams, developing talent and by serving clients in innovating and transforming their businesses.

Discussant: Sandra Phlippen

Sandra Phlippen is Chief Economist of ABN AMRO Bank and is active by writing regularly for newspapers and being a guest on Dutch and international television and radio broadcasts. She graduated from Erasmus University Rotterdam in 2008. In January 2023 she started as distinguished professor in sustainable banking at the University of Groningen.

Discussant: Nancy Kamp-Roelands

Nancy Kamp-Roelands is a professor non-financial information, integrated reporting and assurance. She has an accountancy background and has since 35 years been at the forefront of various developments in the field of sustainability and integrated reporting and assurance, internationally, in Europe and in the Netherlands. At the University of Groningen she is the program director of the postgraduate online course Sustainability: Management and Reporting and is involved in the postgraduate course ESG Reporting and Assurance.