Function: consultant neurodiversity, coach, lawyer 

Location Rotterdam

Region : All of the Netherlands

Hans van de Velde, entrepreneur since 1988 and coach since 1998.

Hans advises employers on how to integrate neurodiversity into their organization's practices.

Hans also coaches employees on behalf of employers in all sectors (companies, governments, education and other institutions) from the multidisciplinary coaching network Equisto Rotterdam.

Target groups: employees with a "special brain" such as ADHD, autism, dyslexia or giftedness.

In 1998 Hans founded Equisto with the idea of professionally supporting employee and employer. Together with the network (coaches, psychiatrist and occupational psychologist), he specializes in man-and-work and gives advice to employers through a multidisciplinary approach, focusing on the benefits of employees with these brain traits for a company.

Hans was president of the Dutch Dyslexia Association for six years and has been a board member of Impuls & Woortblind, the association for people with ADHD, dyslexia and dyscalculia. Since 2008, he has chaired the science committee of this association. As of 2018, Hans is vice president of ADHD-Europe, the umbrella organization of all European ADHD organizations.

Hans' interest in "special brains" is based on his own experience. He had the usual hard years in elementary and middle school, unaware that he has dyslexia and ADHD, and from age 13 he worked alongside school as a cleaner. At 16, he became an assistant to the owner of the cleaning company. Later he worked as a clerk at the court, where, among other things, he also helped introduce the first computers. At that time, in addition to his work, he studied law Erasmus University. He then transferred to the EUR where he started working as a lecturer-researcher in legal computer science. From '88 to '98 he had a company in legal software.

Hans suffered severe burnout and an anxiety disorder in the early 1980s. The various therapies he did before that inspired him to do a three-year course in group training and therapy. After selling his software company in 1998, Hans focused entirely on coaching employees. Over the years, he supplemented his education with knowledge about bijzondere breinen and courses Strength Based Coaching and Narrative Coaching.

In 2015, Hans started the international movement European Brains @ Work, which has since been working to show employers how they can improve their human capital management and make the most of and benefit in the long run from the skills of people with ADHD, autism, etc.