Stefan de Groot
Hi! My name is Henk Jan Smink, this year’s chairman of the Financial Study association Groningen (FSG). I’m 25 years old, and I am from a small town called Havelte, a village near Meppel. I finished my Bachelor’s in Economics and Business Economics, and I am currently finishing my Master's in Finance and Economics. When I started my Master’s in Finance, I got to know FSG and it appeared to be the ideal association for acquiring practical experience, expanding my professional network, and exploring various opportunities in the work field. That’s why I chose to apply for the Conference Day Organisation committee. After that, I also organised the Dutch Banking Tour. Since I really enjoyed doing these committees, I decided to apply for a board year thereafter! My biggest hobbies are playing Tennis and Padel, so there is a large chance you will find me on the courts of ACLO during my board year.
As a chairman you have different tasks. It all starts with supporting and motivating my fellow board members and the active members. Next to managing the general interests of FSG, I’m responsible for the (long-term) strategy. The annual policy, made by my fellow board members and myself at the start of our board year, is part of the association’s strategy. Throughout the year I'm responsible for the general progress and implementation of the various targets set out in the policy. Moreover, in the beginning of my board year I chose to guide the FSG Investment Team (FIT), the Financial Talks, the Finance Society, and the International Finance Tour. These committees or sub-boards have one or multiple events throughout the year.
Another important task is to maintain contact with external parties. Here you should think of the faculty of Economics and Business (FEB), other associations, and the ‘Financiële Associatie Nederland’ (FAN). The contact with the faculty is very important. As chairman of the board, I have a lot of contact with program coordinators and directors of all of FSG’s target groups. As a result, I’m up to date on everything concerning the programs, so FSG will be able to anticipate changes and adapt to new situations. There is also intensive contact with the other associations of the Faculty of Economics and Business. As a chairman, I have monthly meetings with all chairmen of the other associations (EBF, MARUG, VESTING and TeMa). These meetings are to optimize the collaboration between the associations.
The FAN is a collaboration between five financial study associations within the Netherlands: FSA, FSR, Asset | Accounting & Finance and SCOPE. Once every five weeks I have a meeting to discuss the happenings of each association, the events organized together and in general to share our knowledge. The FAN is a good way to help each other and to get to know fellow board members from similar associations. Last but not least, as chairman I’m the representative of the association. So for example, I will speak at several events.
Interested and/or do you have more questions about the position of chairman within FSG? Don’t hesitate to contact me by sending an email to board@fsgroningen.nl. See you at one of our events!
