René Janssen
Head of Plantproduction
We have a very innovative closed water system  with customised 'tastes' of water for every crop.

Growing up between the greenhouses in Lent, René Janssen knew very soon: my future will be in a green environment. After an education at the Hogere Agrarische School with a specialisation in plant cultivation, he took over the greenhouse company of his parents together with his brother. "We expanded the nursery to a company with 4,5 acres of flowering pot plants."

"We decided to quit as entrepreneurs in 2010. I applied for a job as product manager of soil substrates. I was the technical advisor for sales colleagues. A very specialistic role. After a while, I decided to look further. I really much wanted to work with plants more and was looking for a job that suited me better being a generalist. I got the chance to work at Schoneveld and it took only two days to realise how much I had missed the plants in the years before."

Production process "In my current role I work with the crops and the complete workflow that belongs to that process. As head Plantproduction I manage four teams with a total of twenty employees. Together, we are responsible for all plants of Schoneveld at the two locations in the Netherlands. The production process starts with 'my' people in the sowing hall. After that, the colleagues of cultivation take care of the right plant being present at the right location at the right moment. The welfare of the plant is being organised by the team of crop maintenance. At last, the team crop health works for a perfectly healthy plant."

 "It took only two days to realise how much I had missed the plants in the years before."

Office tasks "I'm not only head of the Plant production department. I also work as team leader crop maintenance. My role is divided into two parts. The one half of my job is done at the office. I keep track of the administration and make sure all tasks are being done. Next to that, I'm involved in several projects. A technical innovation like the GA-box for counting usables is an example of my merit."

Visibility in the greenhouse "The other half of my time I'm present in the greenhouse. I take a look at the crops, make sure the fertilisation is all right and check if there are no diseases. Due to these tasks, I'm very visible in the greenhouse. For colleagues, I'm easy to approach. I know what's going on in their lives and I really enjoy the coaching and helping when they run into a problem. That people aspect of my job is typical for Schoneveld. It is part of the friendly and open atmosphere that attracted me here from the first moment."

Water system "Besides my work as head of Plant production, I'm also the responsible specialist for the crop of Cyclamen. For example, I take care of the fertilisation. I'm responsible for the optimal mix of nutrients in the water for our plants. We have a very innovative closed water system with customised 'tastes' of water for every crop. Due to that, every plant gets exactly the right nutrition at the right moment."

Keep developing "When I first started working here, I was a crop specialist. During my time here, I developed myself. Now I am head of Plant production. In the last few years, I learned a lot about coaching and managing. At Schoneveld there is much space for personal development. And of course, I want to keep up to date in the world of plants. If I want to join a course or buy a book, there are several options at HR. Besides that, we often have sessions with colleagues to stay in touch with each others' projects and share knowledge. Informational and very fun at the same time."

Together "Doing things together, is very typical for Schoneveld. Everyone is involved and committed. We are all flexible and take over tasks when necessary. There are also great challenges to face, so we have to work together very well to book results. We are in the middle of the energy transition and look ahead to new crops to cultivate. That means we have a lot of work to do. I enjoy all those new developments. For now, there is a lot to do for me here."

Join us Working at Schoneveld means working in a green environment. Working hard at an innovative and sustainable result along with committed colleagues. Does that suit you? Take a look at all our vacancies on our vacancy page.