Miriam Luizink (MSc) will be leaving the University of Twente on 1 February, 2016, in order to start in her new position as a managing director at Roessingh Research & Development. Luizink, the current director of Strategic Business Development at the University of Twente, will be succeeding Dr Hans Rietman, who has been managing the institute for the past eight years.
In her position as the director of Strategic Business Development (SBD), Luizink has been acting as a director and motivator for the past eighteen months, tying together the UT’s research and education and the business world. The University of Twente will continue to expand that particular strategy in the next few years, and will look for a replacement for Luizink.
“We will miss Miriam’s professionalism and drive,” says Victor van der Chijs, chairman of the Executive Board. “Recently, we have made great strides in realizing our ambitions as an entrepreneurial university. Some examples include our collaboration with Fraunhofer, who will complete a Project Center on the university campus, the use of Innovation vouchers, and the Top Technology Twente programme, which we want to use to create at least 100 additional doctoral positions for research. Miriam has played a prominent role in the process.”
MESA+
Before being appointed as the director of SBD, Luizink worked as a technical commercial director at MESA+, the Institute for Nanotechnology of the UT, for eight years. She made a number of important contributions in the research institute’s development into a global player. Additionally, she was the director of the High Tech Factory production facility, and the High Tech Fund operational lease fund. In 2010, Luizink was elected Twente businesswoman of the year.
Roessingh Research & Development
In recent years, RRD has developed into a leading research institute, both nationally and internationally. Rehabilitation technology and telemedicine are the focus areas for research and development. Telemedicine now has a wide range of applications outside of the rehabilitation sector, including in hospitals, elderly care and municipalities. RRD owes its success mainly to extensive collaboration with the University of Twente and the Roessingh group.
