Aart Jan de Geus



Aart Jan de Geus (born 28 July 1955) is a retired Dutch politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and businessman. He served as Minister of Labor and Social Affairs from 2002 to 2007. Then he worked as Deputy Secretary-General for the OECD. From 2012 to 2019, De Geus was Chairman and CEO of the Bertelsmann Stiftung. From January 2020 to 2023, he was Chairman of the Goldschmeding Foundation for People, Work and Economy.

Education
De Geus began studying law at the Utrecht University and completed his education at Erasmus University Rotterdam, where the law program had a more social-economic orientation. After receiving his Master of Laws in 1980, he did post-graduate studies in labor law at Radboud University Nijmegen.

Career
In 1980, de Geus became a lawyer for the industrial trade union of the Christelijk Nationaal Vakverbond (CNV). In subsequent years he rose through the organization, eventually joining the board of directors. In 1988, he joined the board of the national confederation CNV and was appointed its deputy chairman in 1993. His responsibilities in this position included social security, pensions, health and employment. He was also a member of the Socioeconomic Advisory Council, the Dutch government’s highest body for economic and social policy issues, one that is anchored in the constitution and whose members are appointed by the crown.

In 1998, De Geus became a partner at the corporate consultancy Boer & Croon in Amsterdam. There he worked on projects relating to the welfare state for both public and private institutions. He also joined the supervisory board of the Academic Hospital of Maastricht, the advisory council of the Association of Dutch Health Insurers, and the Council of Churches where he was responsible for social policy issues.

Public office
In the mid-1970s, De Geus joined the youth organization of the Dutch ARP (Anti-Revolutionary Party), a predecessor of the CDA. Through the years he held various positions in both parties. In 2002, Jan Peter Balkenende appointed de Geus as minister of social affairs and employment (first Balkenende cabinet). He also served as health minister for eight months. He was a member of the Dutch government until 2007 (second and third Balkenende cabinets).

While in office, De Geus achieved comprehensive social policy reforms making the country's social security system more sustainable and including more people in the labor market. For example, he restructured the disability insurance system and the schemes for early retirement. He also included local-level governments in the funding structure for social assistance programs. He was considered a supporter of the country's polder model, an approach that brings together employers, trade unions and government experts to negotiate wages and working conditions. Despite his earlier activities for the CNV trade union confederation, his relationship with the country's trade unions proved difficult. In 2004, he withstood a vote of no confidence brought by the opposition Social Democratic, Socialist and Green parties.

In 2007, de Geus was appointed Deputy Secretary-General of the OECD. In this role he advanced a number of causes including environmentally friendly economic growth. He also led the project Making Reform Happen, about the political economy of welfare state reforms. He also criticized the division present in the German job market.

Bertelsmann Stiftung
In 2011, the Bertelsmann Stiftung appointed de Geus to its executive board. In 2012, he became the board's chairman when Gunter Thielen retired. The Bertelsmann Stiftung thus increased its independence from the Mohn family, owners of the Bertelsmann group. As chairman, de Geus launched the initiative to internationalize the foundation's activities. With his team and international partners, he developed the global SDG-index, measuring and comparing progress on the Sustainable Development Goals at national levels.

Other functions
From 2014 to 2022, De Geus chaired the Supervisory Board of the Netherlands-based Triodos Bank, a leading sustainability bank with offices in Belgium, Germany, the UK and Spain. Since 2023, He is Chairman of the Academic Institute for CDA, and acting Chairman of College van Toezicht Advocatuur, the Supervirsory Authority over the Dutch Bar. Since 2022, De Geus teaches Dynamics of the Welfare State at the Paris School of International Affairs (affiliated to the SciencesPo University).