Address: Diamantstraat 8, bus 262, 2200 Herentals
Phone: +32 14 75 25 21
E-mail: info@esoptra.com
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Jan will really get into his own when way off the beaten track. He combines exceptional creativity with the drive to turn it into something very real and tangible, even if that takes turning half the world upside down. Which he has done a couple times. As a partner in crime to Paul he has been on a relentless pursuit of the hidden simplicity behind the ugly complexity in many an IT domain. Using crypto-based unique identifiers for objects on distributed networks and storage systems may seem logical and natural today – it most definitely was not in the mid-nineties of the previous century. After the FilePool acquisition he served for 7 years as a Director of Technology at EMC where he oversaw the morphing of FilePool into Centera, the fastest-growing product line ever for EMC up to that point. Jan is a holder of 31 patents in addition to a Master degree in Engineering.
With Esoptra, Paul has founded his sixth startup. Working with Jan for over 30 years, the focus was mostly on unorthodox, high potential innovation, deep down in the technology stack. This invariably entailed early international expansion, with strong showings in the USA and Japan. At TechGnosis, client-server middleware was born. FileWave introduced the first truly scalable client software management platform; it’s still alive and kicking after 25 years. At FilePool they invented and patented Content Addressed Storage, resulting in a highly successful exit to EMC in the middle of the dot com crisis. Paul cofounded Caringo in Austin, Tx. in 2005 and still serves on its Board. He holds Master degrees in Electronics Engineering and Business Administration, as well as 24 patents.
Michiel is always up-to-date with the latest in technology land. All the way from electrons flowing through a chip to requests flowing through the cloud, Michiel has deep understanding across broad domains. He started his career by solving complex planning and optimization problems as a supply chain architect at Ordina, building solutions for some of the biggest logistics companies in the BeNeLux. At pion.ly he co-created an open source networking solution for real-time media and data communication. Michiel holds a masters degree in electronics and ICT.
Alexander spent most of his working life as a management consultant at Nova Reperta and Altran, building up valuable experience in Agile & Lean transformations, process optimization & automation, project and team management within a broad range of sectors. Boosted by the changing digital landscape he observed at clients, he joined the Esoptra team to help close the traditional gap between business challenges and technology. Analytical thinker with an enthusiastic and action-oriented mindset, he thrives when results need to be delivered under pressure. Alexander holds an MSc in computer science engineering, additional masters in Artificial Intelligence (K.U. Leuven) and Management (Solvay Brussels School of Economics & Management), and was a research visitor at Carnegie Mellon University (USA).
Tobit is a multi-disciplined team player who gets his energy out of helping organizations to reach the next level. Pseudo-geek and digital crusader, he embraces the latest smart technologies to solve business challenges. Tobit earned his financial stripes during a 5 year journey as a trader in the financial markets. The subsequent 3 years he learned to listen to people whilst analyzing more complex business challenges at management consulting boutique Nova Reperta. Early 2017, Tobit came across Esoptra and it was love at first sight – he joined in the early days and experienced the many facets of entrepreneurship. Nowadays he focuses on Operations, aiming to bring the company to the next international level. Tobit holds an MSc in Business Engineering and an additional master in Banking & Finance (UGent).
Pieter-Jan co-founded REstore, a leading energy technology company specialized in demand side management. As co-CEO, he led its business expansion and drove Regulatory Affairs. After the successful exit of REstore into Centrica in 2017, Pieter-Jan is currently Global Director of Optimisations at Centrica Business Solutions. Prior to his REstore adventure, he built up over a decade of management consulting experience at Arthur D. Little and PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Pieter-Jan holds an MSc in Commercial Engineering (University of Antwerp) and an MSc in Financial Economics (University of Leuven).
Omar Mohout is Entrepreneurship Fellow at Sirris, a former technology entrepreneur, a widely published technology author (‘Pricing Strategies for Startups’, ‘The Belgian Startup Landscape’, Startup Master Class series…), a C-level advisor to both high-growth startups and Fortune 500 companies, and Professor of Entrepreneurship at the University of Antwerp, Antwerp Management School, ULB and Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management. As an active member of several technology-driven company boards (Startups.be, Teamleader.eu, imec.iStart, Euronext TechShare…), co-founder of #BeTech and Community host for Corporate Venturing Europe, he brings extremely valuable expertise as to how to grow Esoptra from startup to scaleup and beyond.
As a founding partner of Nova Reperta, a boutique management consultancy firm that has taken an early interest and stake in Esoptra, Carl brings formidable sparring power, rooted in a hyperactive and multifaceted career. He built 18 years of professional experience as a former Head of the Lean transformation program at Euroclear, as well as leading transformation programs and assuming international leadership roles in the financial and technology industry at companies such as JP Morgan & Co and Ubizen.
Carl is an engineer with an MBA from Vlerick Management School.
A founding partner of Nova Reperta together with Carl, Filip brings the financial acumen – and a fanatic sailor’s brinkmanship – required for navigating the rocky coasts where startups tend to thrive. Filip combines financial and strategic insights with hands on-management experience, bringing 18 years of professional experience in Private Equity, Finance, M&A and General Management to every Board Meeting.
Before being adopted as a partner at private equity-fund Bencis Capital investing in and managing Benelux SME’s, Filip took a 4-year watch as COO at the helm of the AS Adventure retail group, overseeing their international expansion. He also worked for 10 years at Ernst & Young in audit and Corporate Finance.