UT alumna Andrèz Coco (Applied Communication Science) received the Marina van Damme grant in 2024. As Head of Program Innovation at UWV, she currently leads an innovation team within an organisation with 22,000 employees. Coco is an experienced and driven leader with over fifteen years of experience in innovation, human-centred design and leadership in various industries worldwide. She will use the Marina van Damme grant for Harvard University and INSEAD to further deepen their knowledge of inclusivity and leadership.
Andrèz Coco (43), an alumna of Applied Communication Sciences (2008), has been working as Head of Program Innovation at UWV since 2023, where she leads an innovation team within an organisation with 22,000 employees. In this role, she builds internal and external ecosystems and drives innovation at all levels. Since 2021, she has been chair of Bloei & Groei, an organisation that promotes women's empowerment. Previously, Andrèz founded the SaaS platform Knowlly in Australia, with which she helped simplify the design and delivery of sustainable homes as CEO. Her work at Fusionlabs as an innovation and strategic design consultant has enabled her to work with large organizations such as Westpac and the Department of Finance on innovative projects. She followed additional training in design thinking, leadership and innovation, including at THNK School for Creative Leadership.
Drive and experience
Coco is an experienced and driven leader with more than 15 years of experience in innovation, human-centred design and leadership in various industries worldwide. The grant wants to use Coco to develop as a thought leader in the field of inclusivity in leadership. A domain for which she has a lot of passion and in which she has already gained valuable practical experience through a 'learning by doing' attitude. Now she wants to further deepen this knowledge at Harvard University and INSEAD and substantiate it with academic insights. The jury is impressed by Coco's drive and experience and expects that Coco can be a source of inspiration for many.
THE MARINA VAN DAMME SCHOLARSHIP
The Marina van Damme scholarship is awarded each year to a talented female alumna from the University of Twente, and was awarded this year for the 22nd time. The scholarship is awarded by the Twente University Fund and was made possible thanks to a donation by Dr M.A. van Damme-Van Weele. In 1965 she was the first woman to obtain a PhD at Twente Technical College, the institute that went on to become the University of Twente. The scholarship is intended to support the career development of a talented, ambitious, and enthusiastic UT alumna and to help her achieve new ambitions. The scholarship consists of a work by the artist Mohana van den Kroonenberg and a scholarship of €9000. This year 17 candidates had been put forward for consideration.