Two members of the Supervisory Board

About SDW

The healthcare sector is changing rapidly, and society is becoming increasingly complex. Healthcare budgets are tightening, and it is a challenge to retain and continue to recruit enough qualified staff. SDW does not view these developments as a problem, but as a challenge. Together with clients and others, SDW works to improve clients’ lives in the areas of relationships, housing, work, learning, and leisure. Our ambition is to tackle challenges in a different way.

SDW is committed to a society in which everyone matters and can participate. This means that clients can be as independent as possible and take control of their own lives. As a healthcare organization, we primarily provide support, guidance, and treatment. We do this based on our core values of Personal Responsibility, Collaboration, and Initiative. This ensures that our clients feel good about their lives and can live them the way they want. We value and utilize the talents of our employees and volunteers and strive for happiness and health in the workplace.

Our locations are in West Brabant and Zeeland. Most of our residential and work facilities are situated in the heart of residential neighborhoods. They are easily accessible. Our outpatient care is also community-, neighborhood-, or village-focused. At SDW, we are at the heart of the community and look beyond the boundaries of our own organization. SDW cannot do everything, and certainly not alone. We collaborate with, among others, fellow care organizations within and outside the disability care sector, educational institutions, businesses, care administration offices, and municipalities. SDW is always evolving. We strive to continuously improve and expand our care and support. This means we are curious and innovative—curious about the needs of our clients and our partners, and innovative in our approach and support.

Our Strategic Plan for 2021–2023

Our 2021–2023 strategic plan was developed in collaboration with clients, volunteers, employees, and partners. This plan provides a guiding vision. It also allows for flexibility and agility. Improving what can be improved. And, above all, embracing what is good. Such as working with self-managed teams. This is how SDW works together toward a Good Life, Good Work, Good Collaboration, and a Healthy Organization. Read more about our ambitions and bold goals in our strategic plan, “SDW on Course for 5G.”

Our Governance

SDW is governed by a single-member Executive Board. The Supervisory Board oversees the Executive Board’s operations and works closely with it. Its guiding principles are the seven principles of the Healthcare Governance Code and the Healthcare Providers Admission Act (Wtza). Our Supervisory Board is a learning body and therefore regularly reflects on its own conduct, both formally (through self-evaluations) and informally.

Portfolio allocation

The Supervisory Board consists of five members, including the chair, the vice-chair, and three other members. In selecting the members of the Supervisory Board, consideration was given to general administrative skills, alignment with SDW’s objectives, and a diverse range of expertise and backgrounds.

To this end, the Board of Trustees has established a portfolio allocation with the following focus areas:

• Organization/Management/Administration
• Social Innovation / People & Organizations
• Finance/Real Estate
• Healthcare/Quality
• Real Estate / IT / Innovation.

The Supervisory Board has three committees that prepare decisions and provide advice to the Supervisory Board under the Board’s responsibility: the Audit Committee, the Compensation Committee, and the Quality and Safety Committee.

Expected line-up

The Supervisory Board meets with the CEO in formal sessions an average of seven times a year. In conjunction with these meetings, in-depth discussions are also held on strategic topics.

In addition to formal meetings, there are various informal interactions each year between the entire Board or delegations from the Board and various representatives from the organization, such as the Central Client Council, the Works Council, and the Management Team. The Board meets regularly at one of the residential or work locations, and Board members visit at least one SDW location or team each year. During these visits, they gather information from staff and clients.

In keeping with its social responsibility, the Board also looks outward and, in consultation with the director, engages with stakeholders and networks in the SDW community.

Central Client Council (CCR)

SDW has an active and engaged Client Council. The Client Council advises SDW’s board, in accordance with the Client Participation in Healthcare Institutions Act (WMCZ 2018), on issues that are important to all clients. These include new plans, financial matters, and changes in care. In addition, the Client Council ensures that all clients have a say and can participate in decisions regarding issues they consider important. Although all members of the Supervisory Board oversee the organization’s operations in the clients’ best interests, one member is specifically appointed upon the recommendation of the CCR.

Profile

In accordance with the retirement schedule, the Chair of the Supervisory Board and one Supervisory Board member are scheduled to step down as of July 1, 2023. As of that date, the position of Chair of the Supervisory Board will be filled by one of the current Supervisory Board members. We are therefore currently seeking two new Supervisory Board members:

• Member of the Supervisory Board with expertise in healthcare quality (upon binding nomination by the Central Client Council)
• Member of the Supervisory Board with a focus on Real Estate and Innovation.

The appendix contains the general profile for members of the SDW Supervisory Board.

Profile of a Board of Trustees member responsible for healthcare quality

We are looking for a member with knowledge of and experience with current developments in disability care and/or long-term care at the strategic level. We prefer candidates with (professional) experience in the field of quality of care, ideally from a care-related (treatment) portfolio. You should also have a vision for quality care at the process level and for innovations within the field.

You are familiar with the core care processes and have a good understanding of trends, innovative care-related, quality-focused, and client-centered developments in disability care and/or long-term care. You are also familiar with government policy and can assess opportunities and threats within disability care. In doing so, you focus primarily on possibilities. This supervisor will serve on the Quality and Safety Committee within the Supervisory Board.

This Board of Trustees position is being filled upon the recommendation of the Central Client Council. You have a strong understanding of working with and for clients in the SDW field. You have a vision regarding the participation and voice of clients and client representatives. You view care quality not only at the system level, but especially from the client’s perspective. You are a unifying force and are both capable and willing to maintain good relations with the CCR on behalf of the Board of Trustees.

Profile of a Board of Trustees member with responsibility for Real Estate and Innovation

For this position, we are looking for someone with knowledge of and experience in property management. You will serve as a strategic advisor to the director on matters related to property risks and development, the Strategic Property Plan (SVP), and the Long-Term Housing Plan (LTHP). In addition, you are able to approach our organization and our challenges with a creative and innovative mindset.

Change is increasingly becoming the norm, including in our field. On the one hand, we want to build an organization where flexibility and adaptability are key principles; on the other hand, we see that innovation is increasingly driven by thinking that transcends disciplinary boundaries. The ability to explore new connections is crucial in this regard. This applies to our Board of Trustees as well. Our areas of innovation focus primarily on:

1. Healthcare Development and Social and Technological Innovation
2. Labor Market and Strategic Human Resources Policy
3. Collaboration and positioning in the region
4. Housing concepts and property management.

In translating these areas of innovation into the profile of this Supervisory Board member, we are looking for someone who has the ability to stimulate creative thinking processes within the Supervisory Board and Executive Board and to view them through a new lens. Someone who has experience embedding the creative process within an organization and is able to bring that perspective to our discussions within the Supervisory Board. A background in, for example, design thinking or the creative sector would be a great fit here. You are able to challenge the board members to take a broader and different perspective on proposals and discussion papers within the Board of Trustees.

Procedure

SDW is being assisted in this process by the executive search firm Colourful People. For more information about SDW, the Supervisory Board, the specific Supervisory Board position, or the process, please contact Rick Verhoeven, a partner at Colourful People (06 2670 6757). You can express your interest by submitting a cover letter and resume (PDF) via the Colourful People website. Rest assured that your information will be treated confidentially.

Schedule

The application deadline for these Board of Trustees positions is January 29, 2023. Interviews with candidates for the Board of Trustees position with a Healthcare profile are scheduled for Monday, February 13 in the afternoon, and interviews with candidates for the Board of Trustees position with an Innovation profile are scheduled for Tuesday, February 28.