In this episode, Danique speaks with Joeri Schouten, co-founder of Sweav. He started his career as a consultant at Spark Optimus, where he spent over four years working at the intersection of strategy, digital growth and e-commerce. He learned a great deal there, but also began to realize that the corporate dynamics, political decision-making and endless alignment were no longer a good fit for him.

Even external validation, such as a strong performance review and the prospect of a promotion, no longer meant much to him. Where that had once motivated him to keep going, it now became an important signal to start exploring something different. He quit his job without knowing exactly what the next step would be. Through a coincidental LinkedIn message, he found his way into freelancing and discovered how much freedom, energy and enjoyment it gave him.

Today, Joeri is co-founder of Sweav, the platform he built together with Thijmen Kaster to connect top freelance strategists and M&A professionals with companies and projects. What started as an organic network of former consultants has grown into a fast-growing scale-up that challenges the traditional consultancy world.

A conversation about freedom at work, the power of simply getting started and building an alternative to the traditional consultancy world.

This episode is a collaboration between Sweav and MIDDLE CHILD MEDIA.

Listen to the full episode on your favourite podcast platform, or watch it on YouTube.