Year-End Interview: “The foundation for the future has been laid”

 

2025: a year with impact

It is early December when Martin van Dijk and Paul Ernes look back together on 2025. No thick stack of papers filled on the table, no triple-prepared board presentation. Just two leaders reflecting on a year that demanded a great deal: strategic sharpness, resilience, and leadership. It turned out to be a year that set something in motion that can no longer be stopped. “The foundation is in place,” Martin says. “This year, we consciously built our strategic position as a full-service HR service provider within the Benelux.” Paul nods. “In the coming years, we will harvest the benefits. We have set something in motion that is bigger than a single calendar year.”

 

Buy-and-build: growing by daring to make decisions

“Without any doubt, the most decisive factor of 2025 was our buy-and-build strategy,” Martin says. “The strategic move into Belgium, the acquisitions of Edco, UBrands, Transport People, and the accompanying international division were not a collection of deals, but deliberate choices that fit our DNA and our strategy. This has not only strengthened our position, but also enables us to actively support clients in optimizing their supply chain and processes as part of our services.” A vision that is about taking a position, looking ahead, and anticipating scarcity. It is what Martin describes as ‘doing what a market leader should do’: being transparent, looking ahead, and taking customers along, instead of searching for explanations afterwards.

That strategic course and entrepreneurial mindset are constant factors in everything Logistic Force Group does. Martin’s message to the sector is clear: “Complex transitions and challenging times require sustainable partnerships, let’s focus together on the great opportunities that lie ahead.” The same attitude can be seen in the preparations for the upcoming collective labour agreement and legislative changes. Logistic Force already started the first client conversations in 2024. Paul mentions it almost casually: “Staying ahead, even when you don’t yet have all the answers, simply belongs to our role as a market leader.” At times it feels like steering through fog, they admit, but waiting does not fit the DNA of Logistic Force. “Uncertainty in the industry and in politics requires both resilience and leadership.”

 

Integrating and growing is elite sport and demands a lot from our people

Reaching the top sometimes feels like climbing under extreme conditions. Integrations bring new people, new relationships, and new ways of working. “Without physical fitness, mental determination, and perseverance, you don’t reach the summit,” Martin says. “Our colleagues are essentially performing elite sport every single day.”

Paul highlights the human side: “Because of the many acquisitions, we now know very well what integration means. But we must remain aware that acquisitions affect people. At times, it really is a balancing act.”

 

Brand promise ‘Your Better Job’: from marketing term to hygiene factor

A common thread running through all ambitions is the brand promise Your Better Job. It is not just a slogan, but the foundation for decision-making, processes, and our (corporate) culture. Martin emphasizes that the brand promise cuts both ways and notes that more partners recognize this as well. “Being able to organize a group session at the UWV because our brand promise aligns seamlessly with their objectives—surely that is the greatest compliment we can receive?”

Paul also sees this reflected in the appreciation from the market. “Our approach was not awarded the Adriana Stel Award this year for nothing. It is a confirmation that our brand promise not only sounds good, but also truly works in practice.” According to Martin, Your Better Job should form an even stronger foundation in 2026.

 

Technology with one goal: more time for the human factor

Meanwhile, the world continues to move forward. Artificial Intelligence is finding its way everywhere, including within Logistic Force Group, but not as a futuristic ambition. “We use a practical AI tool from AFAS that, after our client conversations, immediately creates a report and can even generate a first draft for a proposal,” Paul says. This saves time on the back end, but above all creates room for the things Logistic Force Group is strong at: truly listening and giving genuine attention to the client.

Martin calls the outcome of this tool “positively surprising.” Not because everything suddenly becomes automated, but because data provides insight and helps improve our services. “Recently, AFAS itself invited us to show during a webinar how we use this tool in practice. A great compliment and a confirmation that our way of working is seen as forward-thinking within the industry.”

B Corp: social impact as a differentiator

The journey toward a B Corp certification is one of the most concrete steps Logistic Force Group took in 2025 in the field of sustainability and social impact. It is not solely focused on the environment and governance, but especially on social value.
“We can truly contribute to the ‘S’ of social,” Martin says. “The infrastructure for our services is in place. Everyone within Logistic Force Group has an intrinsic motivation to genuinely make a difference for our flexible workers.”

That social impact goes beyond policy alone. It directly affects the development of flexible workers. Paul mentions examples he sees daily: “From language courses on Sundays to colleagues who teach someone to ride a bike in their free time so that person can cycle to their new job. That is investing in opportunities.” According to both, this is a crucial part of what makes the organization future-proof.

Paul adds that B Corp is not a separate project, but a way of working that is increasingly embedded in daily choices. “For us, sustainability and social impact is not about reports, but about behaviour. About offering opportunities, development, and fair work as the norm. That is very close to who we are.”

In 2026, that movement must become tangible. “Certification is the goal,” Martin concludes. “But more important is what lies behind it: that we structurally invest in our brand promise, our colleagues, and our contribution to a healthy labour market.”

 

A sector in motion requires leadership

The sector itself is very much in motion. Scarcity, rising costs, collective labour agreement changes, and pressure on margins demand a great deal from companies. Martin sees the need for companies in the market to join forces and believes that strategic collaboration will become more important than ever. “Our clients operate in a world that is quite turbulent. Agility and resilience will be decisive in 2026.” Paul expects the market to become calmer again in the second quarter: “Once it is clear what the exact impact of the changes will be, in my opinion, there will be room for a new balance.”

 

In short: 2026 is the year of focus, strengthening, and balance

Gradually, the conversation shifts toward the future. Where 2025 was about growing, acquiring, and building, 2026 will mainly be about optimizing our proposition.
“The foundation has been laid,” Martin says. “Now we must ensure that this is reflected in growth and positioning.” Paul summarizes it even more briefly: “It is time for even more structural attention to our employees, flexible workers, and clients.”

That said, the buy-and-build strategy is not off the table. On the contrary, the “war chest” and pipeline are “well filled.” “We will continue to look for opportunities that fit our strategy,” Martin emphasizes.

 

In closing

Sitting at the table with them, you do not hear loose answers to questions. You hear leaders who look critically, dare to acknowledge where things are challenging, and who (despite all the movement) maintain confidence in their culture, people, and direction.

It does not feel like a year-end interview. It feels like being on a journey, with a consciously chosen direction, a clear foundation, and the conviction that the summit does not come automatically, but that the climb has, in any case, been successfully initiated.