Nationality: Dutch | Year of birth: 1960
Frans van Houten is passionate about purpose-driven innovation, entrepreneurship and business transformation to drive customer value and competitiveness. Under his leadership as CEO of Royal Philips, the company transformed into a leading health technology solutions company, leveraging data and informatics to improve healthcare provider results, and became a forerunner across ESG dimensions, having become carbon neutral in its operations since 2020 and recycling over 90% of its waste. Mr. van Houten was an initiator of the World Economic Forum Compact for Responsive and Responsible Leadership as well as founder and co-chair of the Platform to Accelerate the Circular Economy.
Professional experience
- Advisor, Royal Philips NV, Netherlands (October 2022–April 2023)
- CEO and chair of the executive committee and the board of management, Royal Philips NV, Netherlands (2011–October 2022)
- Interim management, ING Group NV, Netherlands (2009–2010)
- CEO and chair of the management board, NXP Semiconductors NV (formerly Philips Semiconductors NV), Netherlands (2004–2009)
- Various managerial positions at Royal Philips Electronics NV, Netherlands (1986–2004)
Mandates
- Board member, Absci Corporation, US
- Chair, Graduate Entrepreneur Foundation, Netherlands
- Chair, NL2025 Foundation, Netherlands
- Chair of the supervisory board, Erasmus Trust Foundation, Netherlands (2014–February 2023)
- Founder and co-chair of the WEF Platform to Accelerate the Circular Economy (PACE), Netherlands (2016-December 2022)
- Member of the steering committee, European Round Table for Industry (ERT), Belgium (2014-November 2022)
- Vice chair and member of the supervisory board, Philips Lighting, Netherlands (2016–2017)
Education
- Master of Science in economics and business management, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands
- Bachelor of Science in economics, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands
Key skills
- Environmental, social and governance (ESG)
- Leadership/management
- Medicine/healthcare/R&D
- Data/digital
- Law/regulatory/risk management