Martijn, development manager
15 June 2021
What does working as a development manager at Blink entail? And what is it like to work for our organisation? Development manager Martijn Stemerdink answers these questions, among others, in the interview below.
How long have you been working at Blink?
“I started as development manager in February 2011. That was in the middle of the crisis. What we had to do then to sell homes and business units, you can hardly imagine now! We had ‘Open House Enquiries’ every Saturday. That was a very different time. A lot has changed in the past decade, both in terms of the market and organisation. Blink has evolved quite a bit.”
What does a regular working day look like for you?
“Very varied. As development manager, I am responsible for acquiring new sites, for which I enter into discussions with landowners, municipalities, brokers and investors, among others. I am also involved in the commercial side of various projects. For more complex projects, such as Merwede in Utrecht, I look after our interests in the owners’ collective and conduct the talks relating to the SOK, joint design of the concept, sales of the final product, etc. This is done in close cooperation with the project managers involved. Sometimes I am involved in the entire project, as with Hofstede in Leusden. I also deal with one of Blink’s innovation themes.”
What do you find the biggest challenge in your work?
“The organisation has undergone tremendous development, which has led us to do increasingly complex projects, which we are also good at. So increasingly complex zoning projects with longer lead times and more dependence on third parties. Managing all these factors, especially those you have no control over, sometimes makes development extra complex.
What I see as by far the biggest challenge in the current housing market is achieving affordable housing. Prices remain, but are rising due to the enormous scarcity and low interest rates, among other things, making homes unattainable for certain target groups, including first-time buyers. High sustainability requirements, construction costs and land prices make it difficult to make housing affordable. This is a joint task of the entire chain.”
What is the best project you have ever worked on and why?
“I am of course proud of every project realised. But I am most proud of project De Groenen Tuinen in Driebergen and project Merwede in Utrecht. At the time, De Groenen Tuinen was a very large development with 245 houses and extremely progressive and sustainable, including moss sedum (green) roofs, heat pumps, solar panels and a lot of attention to biodiversity. At that time, you really had to explain to people the added value of such an energy system. The fact that we were able to achieve this in what were difficult times is very special! Merwede is one of the leading area developments in the country. Very cool and educational to work on this!”
Which core value appeals most to you and why?
“Guts. In my job, you have to show guts to get things done. Whether this is to win a location or to go to extremes in a tender. It really appeals to me that we also dare to do that as an organisation and we reap the benefits of that.
Cooperation is also very important to me. You don’t do major developments alone, but with colleagues. In addition, I am a great believer in strategic collaborations.”
Why would you recommend someone to join Blink?
“It’s a really fun, close-knit club of people. In your work, you have a lot of freedom and plenty of room for entrepreneurship. If that suits you, Blink is a very nice organisation to work for!