Rik Bleeker

As CSR Manager for Europe North at Cisco Systems, Rik is responsible for implementing Corporate Social Responsibility policies with a focus on digital entrepreneurship, digital literacy and ICT training. The Cisco Networking Academy, Cisco’s flagship program, equips more than 2.1 million students and job seekers per year in the 180 countries where the program operates. Within Europe North, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Sweden participate in the Country Digitization Acceleration (CDA) Program, as special Cisco program, accelerating the digitization of infrastructure, healthcare, security and education, offering the digital skills required to succeed in today’s connected economy.

Rik represented Cisco on several EU-projects, of which the latest is participating in building the 2030 EU Vision on Skills for Smart Industrial Specialisation and Digital Transformation. Cisco’s Networking Academy Program has been awarded as a best practice in this project.

Previous to Cisco in 2016, Rik built his experience in different leadership roles being the director of the Amsterdam Knowledge Network Foundation and general manager external affairs of the Amsterdam Economic Board. Rik was head HR of the Chamber of Commerce Amsterdam, working on topics like education and employability.

As an education background, Rik holds a MA Organizational Sociology at the University of Amsterdam and a BS Human Resources at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences.