Holland Casino Appointed Former Airlines Officer as CEO

Holland Casino, the Netherlands’ state-owned operator, has announced a major change to its leadership team. The company recently parted ways with its previous chief executive officer and will appoint Petra de Ruiter in his place.

De Ruiter Joins as CEO

De Ruiter is an experienced businesswoman who has mostly worked in the realm of aviation. Most of her career revolves around Transavia, a local low-cost airline company owned by Air France-KLM Group. De Ruiter joined Transavia as an account manager back in 1991 and has since occupied various positions at the company. In 2011, she became the airline’s vice president of cabin operations. A few years later, De Ruiter was promoted to chief operations officer. From then on, she maintained the position for the rest of her tenure at Transavia.

As CEO of Holland Casino, De Ruiter will replace Erwin van Lambaart who has held the position for the last six years. De Ruiter may not have experience in the gambling sector, which is why some people have questioned the gambling company’s decision. However, the new CEO has a work ethic and discipline in plenty, which is what influenced the choice.

De Ruiter will step into office on September 1 this year. The appointment follows Van Lambaart’s leave as he resigned from the seat of CEO to become Casinos Australia’s general director.

Her Operational Excellence Put Her Above the Rest

Willem Bröcker, the chairman of the supervisory board at Holland Casino, justified the decision to put De Ruiter in the shoes of the CEO with her overall experience. He is sure she will live up to the expectations and be a suitable replacement for Van Lambaart. Bröcker said:

Petra de Ruiter’s experience and knowledge in the specific combination of guest experience and operational excellence are an excellent match for the person we were looking for after the departure of the previous CEO Erwin van Lambaart.

Willem Bröcker, chairman, Holland Casino

Furthermore, Bröcker added that proven expertise is of great importance to Holland Casino. He noted that De Ruiter’s operational experience will be crucial to navigating the regulated sector and dealing with complex stakeholder relations.

De Ruiter added that she is excited to open a new page in her career. She said that she is excited to learn more about the industry and meet new people. While De Ruiter thanked Transavia for the opportunities she had as part of airlines company, she is also very much looking forward to her new role.

Holland Casino recently appointed a new chief compliance officer as well.