Maarten Schurink new 鈥榓cademic fellow鈥 at USG
As of September 2025, Maarten Schurink commits himself to the Utrecht 木瓜福利影视 School of Governance (USG) via an academic fellowship. Since 2018, he is active as a Secretary General (SG) at the Dutch national government, currently at the Ministry of Defence, and before that in various other leadership positions within the government. As an academic fellow, Maarten Schurink will focus on organisation development with an emphasis on how to 鈥榙o鈥 organisation development. That links up well with education, research and advice within USG, in part relating to the new chair 鈥極rganisational Development and Leadership for Societal Transitions鈥.
Who is Maarten Schurink?
Maarten Schurink is an experienced administrator who built his career on translating theoretical insights to practical solutions in the public sector. Since August 2023, Schurink occupies the position of Secretary General at the Dutch Ministry of Defence, where he uses his experience to further enhance and innovate the organisation. Before that, he was Secretary General at the Dutch Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations.
Maarten Schurink's career is characterised by the achievement of change by means of action, not just talking. During his time as President of the Executive Board of the Sociale Verzekeringsbank, from 2016 to 2018, one of his achievements was the founding of 鈥楪arage de Bedoeling鈥: a workshop to look at problems from all sides and to come up with the best solutions on the spot.
From 2010 to 2016, he was the Municipal Secretary of Utrecht, where he worked on the modernisation of the municipality. Before that, he worked at the municipality of Dordrecht, where he carried out various leadership roles, which included Department Head of Strategy and Policy Programming, Director of the City Governance Centre and later Municipal Secretary. Between 2002 and 2006, Schurink was a Senior Advisor at the Berenschot Groep, after working as a Policy Advisor and a Substitute Project Coordinator at the Dutch Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations.
Maarten Schurink studied Political Science and Governance at Radboud 木瓜福利影视. Besides his work, he is also the President of the Supervisory Board of TivoliVredenburg.
Organisations in development and in motion
One of the connecting threads in Maarten Schurink's career as a public manager is that he provides shape and substance to organisation development, brings and keeps organisations in motion, and that he makes active connections between implementation and policy, for instance by means of 鈥榳orkshops鈥 and 鈥榞arages鈥, such as 鈥楪arage de Bedoeling鈥 which he founded during his time at the Sociale Verzekeringsbank. It鈥檚 an illusion to think change only happens in the board room. Only a small piece is there. At the coffee machine - that is where the organisation changes,鈥 says Maarten Schurink. 鈥淲e know the changes between people horizontally, instead of top-down, are just as important to the development of the organisation.
Via the academic fellowship at USG, he can make new connections, especially between sciences and practice.
Maarten is looking forward to this role: I would really like to contribute to the forming of new generations of public managers. It's important that public managers do 鈥榯he right thing鈥, while the margins are small and the forces are great. That requires a modern awareness of leadership, a good view, but especially a powerful behavioural repertoire as well. It's beautiful to share and design this with students and academics.
Mirko Noordegraaf, Head of Department at the School of Governance, is happy with him as a new academic fellow: No-one can enthuse and inspire new generations of public managers like Maarten. His symbolic view on organisation development and his practical leadership, with an emphasis on the importance of metaphors, makes it clear how to do leadership. Transferring that to Bachelor's, Master's and executive Master's students, and to colleagues, enhances our connection to practice.
What is an Academic Fellow?
Academic Fellows are professionals who work in social practice, such as in governments, corporations, social organisations, and knowledge and advisory bureaus connected with Utrecht 木瓜福利影视. They carry out academic activities and nourish academic education and research. The Academic Fellowships come forth from the emphasis on social impact: universities are required to be in close contact with society in various ways, and are required to provide knowledge circulation.
Academic Fellows at USG
The Academic Fellows of the Utrecht 木瓜福利影视 School of Governance (USG) of the Faculty of Law, Economics and Governance (LEG), contribute to the figuring out of complex social issues and the generating of social impact. They can do this in various ways, for instance by publishing, by contributing to curriculums or research projects, or by contributing to public-engagement activities. Besides this, Academic Fellows can be involved in further developments of open science and impact of the department.
Contact
Would you like to contact Academic Fellow Maarten Schurink? If you do, you can do so via: bestuurssecretariaat.usbo@uu.nl.