Vitality: a healthy mind in a healthy body
CEO Foreword
Dear <<First Name>>,
“Mens sana in corpore sano”, Latin for “a healthy mind in a healthy body”, is a well-known motto in the sports world. This motto is also increasingly being used in the business world to promote a vital lifestyle among employees. At Oldenburger|Fritom we combine both worlds by offering all our employees a vitality scan at Cijntje Personal Fit in Veendam. You can read how former professional football player Angelo Cijntje gives our colleagues insight into their social and mental well-being, their health and their vitality.
An important reason why vitality management has high priority at Oldenburger|Fritom is because we place tasks, responsibilities and authorities as low as possible in our organization. Good leadership is essential here and this starts with self-knowledge. That is why the Oldenburger|Fritom management team took part in an assessment last May. In this newsletter you can learn more about how the professionals of Akerendam have given form and substance to this independent assessment.
For some time now, Oldenburger|Fritom not only focuses on promoting a vital lifestyle among its own employees. In line with our sustainability strategy, we also do this in the regional society. For example, we are a social partner of the FC Groningen in Society Foundation. On Monday, June 19, our employees were invited by the foundation to the Euroborg stadium.
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Finally, in our recurring feature “The world around us”, you can read more about the Groningen Enterprise Award 2023. Oldenburger|Fritom is one of the ten nominees for this prestigious prize. Our nomination is due to the many years of trust of our customers in our services and the commitment and dedication of our employees. We are therefore very proud that we have been nominated this year.
I wish you much reading pleasure.
Sincerely,
René Dale |
Vitality scan for our employees
In the flat organizational structure of Oldenburger|Fritom, the employees make all the difference. That is why we invest heavily in their social and mental well-being, their health and their vitality. We stimulate a growth mindset and organize several personal leadership trainings a year in which our entire organization participates. Furthermore, all our employees are offered a vitality scan at Cijntje Personal Fit in the city of Veendam.
Last spring our personal leadership training was about vitality: a healthy mind in a healthy body. In addition to Gonnie van Alphen of the Mindset Company, who guides our organization in personal leadership trainings, former professional football player Angelo Cijntje was also a guest. Angelo explained what our employees can expect from the vitality scan that they are offered. Summarized, the scan provides insight into both the mental and the physical health.
Wheel of Life
The vitality scan starts with an online questionnaire based on the “Wheel of Life”. This is a tool which helps to improve life balance by setting personal goals. It consists of several topics, including:
 General health- Adequate exercise
- Optimal nutrition
- Career and personal development
- Family and friends
- Finance
- Positive thinking and self confidence
- Recreation
Health status and tests
Before three tests are carried out, the blood pressure is measured, as well as the Body Mass Index (BMI) and the waist circumference. Then the three tests take three minutes each. The first test is a recovery test where the person in question has to cycle at a constant pace. During this test, the heart rate is measured to see how quickly it recovers. The second test is an endurance test and the third test measures the strength, including through a wall sit test.
Following the scan, our employees receive professional advice on a personal and result-oriented action plan. The vitality scan will be carried out again after the summer to see what the developments are.
 About Cijntje Personal Fit
Cijntje Personal Fit is based in the city of Veendam and was founded in 2013 by former professional football player Angelo Cijntje. He played for SC Heerenveen, SC Veendam and FC Groningen, among others, where he ended his professional football career in the 2013/14 season.
Cijntje Personal Fit offers various concepts in the field of training and coaching. The mission is to create the best possible environment with which the best possible results can be achieved. The attention for the athlete and the person behind the athlete, are characteristic of the approach of Cijntje Personal Fit.
Independent assessment of our management team
At Oldenburger|Fritom, tasks, responsibilities and authorities are placed as low as possible in the organization. By giving our colleagues confidence in this, we want to stimulate entrepreneurship in order to achieve our goals together. Good leadership is essential here and this starts with self-knowledge. That is why the Oldenburger|Fritom management team took part in an independent assessment last May.
The assessment was conducted by the experts and psychologists of Akerendam, with whom Oldenburger|Fritom has been working for more than twenty years. Akerendam enables organizations to obtain more results through better cooperation between people and within teams. For the well-thought-out advice that Akerendam gives, the company makes use of assessments, among other things. In addition, they leverage their expertise in personal coaching and team coaching, development centers and in-company training.
One of the components of the assessment was a cognitive abilities test, assessing the general abilities, in particular the verbal and numerical reasoning skills. Furthermore, the members of our management team had to fill out several questionnaires, on:
- personality
- thinking styles
- leadership style (Hogan)
Behavior in daily practice
To mimic the behavior in daily practice, two role plays were part of the assessment. In the first role play, a conversation was held with a customer. The reason for the conversation was miscommunication between the customer in question and a colleague. The aim of this role play was to ensure a lasting relationship with the customer, both now and in the future. In the second role play, a coaching conversation had to be held with the colleague in question. In addition to the two role plays, the assessment also consisted of an assignment in which feedback from colleagues was requested. Also, a proposal had to be made for a project design.
Afterwards the members of our management team indicated that the assessment provided new insights and, moreover, concrete tools in their position as a manager.
Our partnership with FC Groningen in Society
With an eye to the future, Oldenburger|Fritom, as a company and employer in the Dutch province of Groningen, is also investing in a vital region. We have entered into sustainable partnerships with various regional sports clubs that strongly promote a vital lifestyle among young people. The FC Groningen in Society Foundation (FC Groningen in de Maatschappij) is an example of this. On Monday, June 19, our employees were invited by the foundation to visit the Euroborg stadium.
The FC Groningen in Society Foundation was established to give substance to the social involvement of the professional football club. The focus is on health, social cohesion and education. By entering into sustainable partnerships, the foundation wants to solve, among other things, the lack of exercise in the catchment area of the club. To raise awareness for the foundation, former professional footballer Arjen Robben was asked to be an ambassador. Robben was born in the village of Bedum, Groningen, and started his career in professional football at FC Groningen.
Stimulating young people
On June 19, FC Groningen invited the employees of Oldenburger|Fritom to visit the Euroborg stadium. We were warmly welcomed on arrival by CSR project leader Hans van Tamelen and Nick Berends, who is a program leader at the foundation. They gave our employees a presentation on the foundation and on the programs promoting exercise for better health. The foundation focuses on various target groups, including young people in the Dutch province of Groningen.
An example of a program aimed at this target group is the so-called “School Tour”. Approximately 40,000 children from all primary schools in the province participate in this. Another example is the “Training in the District” program. In this program, qualified trainers of FC Groningen give training to, among others, young people in the various districts of the province. At a recent event in Veendam, Oldenburger|Fritom, as a program partner, handed out footballs to the young participants on behalf of the foundation. This allows them to stay active and exercise regularly after the event.
Inspiring visit
After a delicious buffet, our employees were given a tour of the Euroborg stadium. They saw the changing rooms, the Arjen Robben Lounge and the press room. The employees of Oldenburger|Fritom would like to thank FC Groningen, and Hans and Nick in particular, for this inspiring visit.
 The world around us
Groningen Enterprise Award 2023
It was recently announced that Oldenburger|Fritom is one of the ten nominees for the Groningen Enterprise Award 2023. This prestigious prize is awarded annually to a leading company in the Dutch province of Groningen, where Oldenburger|Fritom has its head office. The foundation that is behind the award wants to raise awareness of outstanding entrepreneurship in the province: well-performing companies are an example and stimulus for other companies.
This is the 25th edition of the award ceremony, making it an anniversary edition. On June 15, an information meeting was held at the provincial house in the city of Groningen. Here we met the organization and the jury as well as the other nominees: ACS, EasyToys, Enshore, Hessels Zeefbanden, Hovécon, Image+ Digital, OVM, Vesta Meubelgroep and Wovar. The timeline was also explained during this meeting. The follow-up process, in which the ten nominees receive a lot of publicity, includes interviews and business research covering matters such as strategy and financial administration. A meeting will then take place in September where the nominees compete for one of the three places in the final. The prize will be awarded on November 30 at Martiniplaza in Groningen.
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