Description

The red thread across my career has been operating at the intersection of IT, cybersecurity, and business transformation

I built the IT function from the ground up — ERP implementation, supply chain digitisation, warehouse automation, reporting infrastructure. I understand every layer of an enterprise technology landscape because I've built most of them.

Most recently, I led a full IT carve-out across five EU countries following a company acquisition — designing the standalone architecture, rebuilding cybersecurity governance, and ensuring business continuity throughout. Zero disruption. Three months to standalone. I then developed a post-acquisition IT and cybersecurity roadmap to ensure the new organisation was not just operational but future-ready.

Industry field of expertise

Languages

English
Native or bilingual
Ukrainian
Native or bilingual
Dutch
Conversational
French
Conversational
Russian
Native or bilingual

Workplace preferences

Can work on-site

Brussels (up to 50km), Antwerp (up to 50km)

European Staal Belgium (former: Mechel Service Belgium)
Regional (EU) IT Director
March 2022 - October 2025 (3 years and 7 months)
Antwerp, Belgium
• ● Led a multicultural IT team of 10 professionals across 5 EU countries (Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Czech Republic), supporting approximately 350 users and €1.5M budget.
• ● Coordinated execution of centralized IT strategy driving corporate services integration from 30% to 85% over 2 years.
• ● Optimized data centers and hardware across European subsidiaries, resulting in a 30% reduction in operating costs and a 75% improvement in incident response times.
• ● Established an 'IT as a business' operating model with transparent cost structure and formalized service responsibilities.
• ● Aligned and coordinated communication between centers of excellence in HQ and European subsidiaries, unlocking project delivery in 9 months on initiatives that had been stalled for 5 years.
• ● Managed a full IT infrastructure and services separation following a company acquisition, ensuring business continuity during a period of severe vendor disruption and restoring access to critical technologies.
• ● Established a hybrid infrastructure with distributed Microsoft cloud services for optimal information exchange and shared resources between sister companies.
• ● Designed a post-acquisition IT and cybersecurity strategic roadmap based on frameworks such as ITIL, COBIT, and CyFun, ensuring business continuity.
• ● Initiated a security audit and penetration testing after finalizing the initial post-acquisition phase to address priority risks.
IT Infrastructure Management IT Strategy ERP Implementation Project Management IT-Security
Mechel Service Belgium
Head of IT and Operational Support
January 2015 - January 2022 (7 years)
Antwerp, Belgium
• ● Led IT and operational support across Belgium and The Netherlands: 2 direct reports, responsibility for ERP, supply chain systems, and data integrity across all business applications.
• ● Led end-to-end ERP implementation and digital transformation initiatives as a major organizational change, enabling
the redesign and standardization of core business processes and boosting operational efficiency by 30%.
• ● Established supply chain controls that reduced customer claims by 90% and increased transaction transparency.
• ● Automated reporting and data exchange between multiple entities, enabling timely and accurate management reporting.
• ● In cooperation with an external warehouse provider, implemented an OT-based solution including automated scanners and labeling, improving warehouse productivity by 75% and reducing the annual stocktake process from 2 weeks to 3 days.
• ● Led companywide GDPR implementation in partnership with HQ and EU legal departments.
Mechel Service Belgium
Sales support specialist
January 2013 - January 2015 (2 years)
Antwerp, Belgium
• ● Designed a flexible data exchange framework with suppliers and customers, reducing document processing time and errors.
• ● Implemented a document quality control system that significantly improved data accuracy in management reporting.