In Conversation with Our Co-Founders

Could you introduce yourselves?

Reno: "I'm Reno, 26 years old and one of the co-founders of Student Consultant. I studied Industrial Engineering at TU Eindhoven and have a background in sports as a youth player for VVV-Venlo. In my free time, I enjoy football and fitness."

Jorick: "I'm Jorick, 25 years old and also a co-founder of Student Consultant. I am currently completing my Master’s in Finance at Tilburg University. In my spare time, I like playing football and padel. I also have a sports background as a youth player for VVV-Venlo and as a Student-Athlete at Simon Fraser University in Canada." 

How did the idea for Student Consultant come about?

Reno: "I initially wanted to work as a consultant, so I started working part-time alongside my studies. I quickly realized it wasn’t the right fit for me. Noticing the lack of alternatives for students to gain consultancy experience during their studies, and with the rise of COVID-19 leading to the dismissal of student workers, I saw starting my own company as the best solution. That’s how Student Consultant was born."  

Jorick: "The original idea for Student Consultant came from Reno. He called me with the idea of starting a consultancy firm for students. We have known each other for a long time, and I had just returned from Canada with plenty of time before my studies began. I saw this as a chance to collaborate with Reno and develop the concept of Student Consultant further."  

What growth has Student Consultant experienced since the start?

Reno: "We began by building a team around us. The idea of working as a student consultant on projects while developing one’s talents motivated students to join us. We then started reaching out to companies, which eventually led to various projects and companies approaching us directly."  

Jorick: "With the increase in student consultants, we now offer a broad range of relevant studies to start projects with clients, regardless of the sector. All our student consultants are guided by experienced consultants from our core quality team and receive internal and external training from major consultancy firms such as BCG. This allows us to combine the up-to-date academic knowledge of students with the practical experience of seasoned consultants."  

How has Student Consultant evolved over the past year?

Reno: "Recently, we have undergone a professionalization process, growing to 75 student consultants across 5 hubs, each managed by its own manager. We now have offices in Tilburg and Nijmegen, where our student consultants can work."

Jorick: "In addition to Reno’s remarks, we also co-founded The Next Consultant Group, an overarching organization for the currently affiliated firms: Student Consultant, Smart Consultant, and Young Consultant. This improves the quality and further professionalizes not only Student Consultant but also the other two companies."  

What do you envision for the future of Student Consultant?

Jorick: "At Student Consultant, our focus is on fulfilling our purpose: ‘Developing the Future of Consulting’. This involves developing our student consultants so they can apply their knowledge at major consultancy firms. We also look at how consultancy itself can evolve in the future. While consulting is currently a field heavily focused on experience, we believe in the potential of young people who are continually developing."  

"To achieve this, we are continuously working on further professionalizing our organization. Our ideal vision is to expand internationally, allowing our student consultants to undertake exchange projects with clients abroad and work at our international branches."