Arnoud Blankenstein

Designer with 14+ years of experience. Mostly focused on software / web applications. Preferably on software that has some societal or environmental impact.

I'm based in the Netherlands. Currently employed at Wolters Kluwer Europe as User Experience Lead Practice Management.

Career start

I’ve held a variety of positions throughout my career in IT. Starting out as a front-end developer, I quickly switched to becoming a project manager, leading a variety of projects for clients such as Amnesty, DHL, Rijksoverheid (Dutch government), Sanofi, GroenLinks (Political party), Utrecht University and more. My role as a project manager gave me a lot of experience in stakeholder management, the ability to set expectations and other (soft) skills related to human relations.

Becoming a designer

In 2012 I went traveling for a year through Asia and the United States. This time gave me the opportunity to think about my life goals. It is then that I made the decision that I wanted to make a difference in peoples lives through design. I basically chose to go back to what I learned at the school or arts and later University. I've been in both individual as manager positions since then.

Personal life

I'm a father of two, an amateur photographer, a runner, a climber (bouldering), a reader. I love to travel, go on long hikes.