Head of People & Culture
Forbion · Naarden, Netherlands · People & Operations
0.6 FTE · 24 hrs/week Flexible across 5 days Min. 3 days in Naarden Reports to: Managing Partner New role
Are you an experienced People & Culture leader with a background in a high-performance, partner-led professional environment — and a genuine passion for building the conditions in which exceptional people thrive?
About Forbion
Forbion is a leading global venture capital firm with deep expertise in Europe and offices in Naarden (Netherlands), Munich (Germany), and Boston (USA). We invest in innovative biotech companies, managing approximately €5 billion across multiple fund strategies that cover all stages of (bio-)pharmaceutical drug development. In addition, Forbion leverages its biotech expertise beyond human health to address ‘planetary health’ challenges through its BioEconomy fund, investing in companies developing sustainable solutions in food, agriculture, materials, and environmental technologies.
Since the inception 20 years ago, our team of approximately 70 professionals, representing 14 nationalities - of whom 37 are part of the investment team - has built an impressive track record since the late nineties, with 128 investments across 11 funds. Forbion’s record of sourcing, building and guiding life sciences companies has resulted in many approved breakthrough therapies and valuable exits. Forbion typically selects impactful investments that will positively affect the health and well-being of people and the planet, as well as meet its financial return objectives. The firm is a signatory to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment. Forbion operates a joint venture with BGV, the manager of seed and early-stage funds, focused especially on Benelux and Germany.
Why Forbion?
At Forbion, we are more than just a leading investment firm, we are a community of entrepreneurial, pragmatic, and collaborative professionals. We live by our EPIC values – Entrepreneurship, Purpose, Integrity and Collaboration.
Join us and be part of a growing team where your expertise is valued, your growth is supported, and your voice matters.
The Team
You will be joining Forbion's People & Culture function, reporting directly to Managing Partner, Geert-Jan Mulder. You will have an HR Administrator as your direct report, providing operational HR support across the firm. You will also work in close collaboration with Forbion's Talent Acquisition Manager, who is based in the UK and reports into Geert-Jan, ensuring a joined-up approach to how we attract and bring in the best people.
This is a newly created role - Forbion's first dedicated Head of People & Culture. Until now, responsibility for People & Culture has been shared among the Managing Partners with Geert-Jan in the lead, a reflection of the firm's close-knit culture and hands-on leadership style. As Forbion continues to grow, the Partners have taken the deliberate step of professionalising this function. They have engaged an external P&C advisor, Xandra Niehe, to assess the current landscape and identify the foundations needed to support the firm's next phase of growth. Her findings, initial implementations and recommendations will be handed over directly to the incoming Head of People & Culture - giving you a running start and a clear mandate from day one.
About the role
As Head of People & Culture, you will be the driving force behind everything people & culture-related at Forbion. You will work closely with Geert-Jan Mulder and the broader leadership team to shape and deliver a people strategy that reflects the calibre and culture of our organisation. This is a hands-on leadership role - one day you might be refining our performance framework, the next coaching a partner through a sensitive people matter.
Your responsibilities will include:
Strategy and Advisory:
- Develop and implement Forbion's people & culture strategy in close partnership with the Partners
- Act as a trusted advisor on all people-related matters, from organisational design and talent decisions to culture and wellbeing
- Help shape how Forbion evolves as it expands across geographies and fund strategies
Team Leadership:
- Lead, coach, and develop your direct report, ensuring smooth day-to-day HR operations across the firm
- Collaborate with the Talent Acquisition Manager on hiring strategy and candidate experience, ensuring alignment across all people-related workstreams
- Set clear priorities and ways of working for the people function, fostering a collaborative and high-quality approach
Talent Development:
- Own the full employee lifecycle across all offices: onboarding, development, retention, and offboarding
- Further develop career pathways, performance management frameworks and succession planning frameworks tailored to a partner-led and high-performance investment firm
- Drive learning & development initiatives for both investment professionals and operational staff
Culture and Engagement:
- Champion Forbion's culture and values — ensuring they remain visible and lived across a distributed, international growing team of 70 across three offices
- Lead engagement initiatives, including the annual engagement survey, and translate feedback into meaningful actions
- Promote diversity, equity, and inclusion as a genuine practice embedded in how we hire, develop, and lead
Compensation and Operations:
- Ensure competitive and fair compensation & benefits practices, benchmarked against peer firms
- Ensure compliance with Dutch employment law, including 30% rulings and visa processes for our international team
- Oversee HR policies, documentation, and relationships with external payroll, legal, and recruitment partners
What makes you a great fit?
- Experienced: Approximately 15 years of People & Culture or HR experience, with a meaningful portion in a partner-led professional services environment - such as strategy consultancy, law, accountancy or financial services (including venture capital or private equity).
- Senior advisor: Proven track record operating as a trusted advisor at Managing Partner or board level in a high-performance, intellectually driven organisation.
- People leader: Experience leading and developing others, with the ability to set direction while remaining hands-on where it matters.
- Sharp instincts: Strong intuition for what "good" looks like in terms of talent, culture, and organisational design - and the confidence to make the case for it.
- Legally grounded: Solid command of Dutch employment law and HR best practices; familiarity with German or US employment contexts is a plus given our international footprint.
- Clear communicator: Fluent in Dutch and English; able to navigate sensitive matters with discretion, directness, and care.
- Present: Based in the Netherlands, and happy to work from our Naarden headquarters at least 3 days per week.
What we offer
- Impact. Your work will directly shape Forbion's culture and organisational effectiveness at a pivotal moment in the firm's growth.
- Access. A direct reporting line into Managing Partner Geert-Jan Mulder, with genuine scope to make your mark on the firm.
- Ownership. The opportunity to build Forbion's people function from the ground up with real autonomy and leadership team support.
- Culture. A professional, no-nonsense, and collaborative environment where your expertise is valued and your voice matters.
- Flexibility. A 24-hour working week (0.6 FTE) that can be spread across up to 5 days to suit your life, with at least 3 days based in our Naarden office.
- Compensation. A competitive package commensurate with the seniority and scope of the role. A salary band will be shared at the 1st stage of interviews.
- Start date. Asap
We would love to hear from you.
Please send your CV and a brief note on why this role appeals to you with your application
Job posting closes Tuesday 18th August.
Applications that do not meet the requirements outlined above will not be considered.
Agencies need not apply.
