Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

The organisation

The company has an impressive range of 500,000 SKUs. If a tractor or other type of equipment breaks down, Kramp delivers the right replacement parts before 8 a.m. the next morning. This ensures the agricultural dealerships and its customers, who are farmers, can always continue their work without delays. Nearly all of Europe is covered by Kramp’s 11 distribution centers.

With 3,076 employees from the head office in Varsseveld to their Tech Hub in Utrecht, Kramp generated a turnover of over 1 billion euros in 2021. Kramp started the process of digitizing a large part of their operation at an early stage. As a result of their leading online position, the company is currently accelerating its growth strategy.

In e-commerce, the old adage still rings true: the winner takes all. A larger assortment means more customers. Higher volumes lead to more competitive pricing. Increased turnover opens up more room for investment. The upward spiral of strong organic growth, completed by an international buy and build strategy, strengthened Kramp’s position as the market leader in Europe. With the recent introduction of Maykers, the ‘Direct-to-Farmer’ online marketplace, Kramp even further strengthens its front-running position in the industry.

Kramp’s focus for the next three years will be in technological transformation. The new Chief Technology Officer will be the focal point of its board, leading investment programs and transforming the organization into a digital-first tech-company.

The position

With one billion euros in revenues, Kramp is the leading supplier of technical parts and supplies for the agricultural industry. The decisiveness and entrepreneurship of this family business has ensured their position as the market leader in Europe. Their economy of scale enables Kramp to invest heavily in technological development to transform the business into a tech company.

Tasks & responsibilities

As a board member, the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) is responsible for all strategic, operational and organizational aspects of IT Management and Technology development. Via four direct reports, the CTO will manage 250 people spread out over multiple locations throughout Europe, with the main two sites in Utrecht and Varsseveld.

The CTO steers the digital transformation of Kramp into a technology leading and data driven organization. Taking the customers and suppliers along, the existing dealer network is being complemented by industry leading Business-to-Business and Direct-to-Farmer ecommerce platforms, creating the best possible digital customer journey in both channels.

As always in digital transformations, the CTO has to synergistically combine different organizational priorities: the mission-critical back-end systems (safe, sturdy and scalable) and the hyperflexible customer facing platforms (agile, data-driven and customer-obsessed).

In this industry, making the sale is only half the job. This position requires strong ecommerce (platform) experience in a physical supply chain and fulfillment
environment. The CTO brings experience in digital transformation in both customer-facing and (physical) back-end platform environments: accelerating customer innovation always requires a solid foundation in the back-end platform.

This CTO knows how to inspire and connect all stakeholders (business, customer, supplier, technology, etc.) along the journey. Your vision on technology and your capability for ideation fuel the digital transformation in a very down-to-earth industry.

As a family business, Kramp cherishes its warm and kind culture which is highly inclusive. Leadership comes by example, not through authority. Transforming into a product focused organization isn’t done by PowerPoint, but through inspiring discussions where the power of ideas is founded on empathic connections.

Candidate profile*

• Minimum of 15 years relevant working experience
• Leadership experience in both customer facing and (physical) back-end platform environments
• Thought-leading in data-driven digital transformation
• Strong stakeholder- and people management capabilities

* Research shows that while male candidates feel confident enough to apply when they meet about 60% of the requirements, female candidates only apply when they tick every box. So if this role has your name on it, but you’re not sure about the criteria, we still want to hear from you.

Interested?

You can apply to this position by using the link below. Kramp is working with Top of Minds to fill this vacancy.