Meet Nicole van Casteren: Director of Consultancy & Advisory
Sometimes, right from the first few weeks, you just know: this feels right. Not because everything is perfect right away, but because you sense that everyone shares the same energy. That’s what Nicole van Casteren has experienced since joining HeadFirst Group as Director of Advisory & Consultancy. It’s a place where curiosity isn’t just a side note—it’s the way we grow. A place where you build together, keep each other on our toes, and find joy in what we do.
A role where strategy and execution come together
In her role, Nicole is building out the advisory and consulting practice within HeadFirst Group: a practice that helps organizations design, optimize, and future-proof their workforce and services ecosystems. This involves workforce strategy, services procurement (Scope of Work), and governance, but above all, it addresses the underlying question: how do you translate ambitions into actual delivery capabilities? How do you ensure that decisions don’t get stuck in PowerPoint presentations, but instead translate into models, processes, and decision-making that actually work?
An international track record that is directly relevant
Nicole brings a unique combination of deep expertise in procurement and years of experience in the staffing industry. At Philips, she led global category strategies for professional services with a spend of 450 million euros, worked on global governance improvements, and played a key role in major MSP and VMS initiatives focused on performance, compliance, and scalability. At FrieslandCampina, she led professional services procurement with a spend of 250 million euros and worked on establishing a global MSP model for both white- and blue-collar workforces.
Before that, Nicole was on the other side of the table: she worked in international sales and account leadership at companies such as ManpowerGroup and USG People. That experience helps her provide advice that is realistic, well-founded, and impactful.
"Everyone wants to move forward, but together."
What Nicole wants to build here
During her first few weeks, Nicole has focused primarily on listening, observing, and building connections: with colleagues in the Netherlands and within the Impellam Group across Europe, the UK, and the US. The common thread she sees is that there is a wealth of in-house expertise. The next step is to better align that expertise with clients’ real-world challenges and turn it into a clear, scalable advisory offering.
Nicole: “I’m inspired by the ambition and openness within HeadFirst Group. Everyone wants to move forward, but together. That creates the space to deliver advisory services as they’re meant to be: incisive, data-driven, actionable, and with a focus on governance.”
Ready for a new chapter in your story?
What stands out most to Nicole is the way people here help each other grow. Knowledge is shared, ideas are encouraged to clash, and successes are celebrated together. It’s precisely this mix that makes HeadFirst Group a place where you can grow and build a career that matters. Curious about what your next step might look like? Check out our job openings at werkenbij.headfirst.group.