Brilliant Work

Ambitious entrepreneur — will your business still be here in five years?
2026-05-06 16:00 - 18:30 (Europe/Amsterdam) | Countus, Frisopark 4, Entrance C, Ede, 6711 WZ
Do you want to be able to look back and tell the story of your company’s success? Join this masterclass on securing your future. Be part of the conversation on how to ensure your brilliant business doesn’t end in a brilliant failure.
Many businesses excel at delivering their product or service, but ensuring your company is still standing strong in five or ten years is a different challenge altogether. As you grow—adding more employees, increasing revenue, or expanding internationally—running a business becomes significantly more complex. Many companies don’t survive what is often called the “Valley of Death.”
What risks should you be aware of? What needs to be firmly in place as an SME owner? How do you stay in control and safeguard your company’s future? And how do you make sure you come out the other side of the Valley of Death?
The real question is: when should you start? … Now.
Martijn Croon and Lizanne Jakobs will guide you through it all in this free masterclass. We’ll cover topics such as:

How do you define your long-term vision: your story, your future?
How do you set clear, specific goals for yourself and your team?
Financial control of your business: insight and overview bring peace of mind
How do you identify your key risks and turn them into a clear plan of action?

There will, of course, be plenty of time for your questions. Afterwards, you’re warmly invited to join us for a networking drinks reception.
Lizanne Jakobs is a well-known speaker in the field of entrepreneurship. She is the founder of Brilliant Work, a multi award-winning coaching, consultancy and training firm for SMEs. Together with a team of 20 experts, they support entrepreneurs and their teams in growing and professionalising their businesses—often making use of a wide range of subsidy schemes.
Lizanne has over 15 years of experience as a business coach, holds a degree in Corporate Communication, and is known for her engaging and highly practical approach.
Martijn Croon is a business advisor at Countus, a full-service mid-sized accountancy firm with 25 offices across the eastern Netherlands, specialising in supporting SMEs.
Martijn Croon (MSc in Business Administration, Master in Finance & Control, and a Registered Business Succession Advisor) is a former entrepreneur himself. With over 25 years of advisory experience, he has witnessed both remarkable successes and notable failures.
For Martijn, it’s not the numbers that form the foundation of success, but the entrepreneur’s story. His passion lies in helping business owners shape and write that story for themselves.
Programme:

15.50 Arrival and welcome
16.00 Start
17.30 Drinks and networking opportunity
18.30 End

This masterclass will take place at the Frisokazerne site (Frisopark 4, Entrance C, 6711 WZ Ede).
The sessions will be held in Dutch.
Participation is free of charge. Registration is required.

Walk & Talk with Brilliant Work | Plan Ahead for Your Business’s Future
2026-06-12 14:00 - 17:00 | Landgoed Groot Warnsborn, Bakenbergseweg 277, Arnhem, 6816 VP
On Friday 12 June, Brilliant Work invites SME owners to join an inspiring Walk & Talk. During a relaxed walk, we’ll explore the future of your business together. What’s working well, what could be done more effectively, and where might there be opportunities you haven’t yet spotted?
Fresh air often sparks the best ideas. Together with one of our coaches, you’ll join an open conversation with like-minded entrepreneurs who, just like you, are focused on the future and ready to grow (groups of up to 10 people).
As part of Arnhem MKB City 2026 and to mark Brilliant Work’s 10th anniversary, we felt it was the perfect moment to look ahead together to the coming year, the next five years or even the next decade of your business. Participation is free, but places are limited, so be sure to sign up soon.
After the walk, there’s time to continue the conversation over coffee or tea with cake.
Practical information

Date: Friday 12 June 2026

Arrival: between 2.00 – 2.15 pm

Start Walk: 2.15 pm

Duration: Give and take 1 tot 1,5 hrs

We’ll wrap up with coffee or tea and cake, until around 5.00 pm

Location: Hotel Groot Warnsborn, Bakenbergseweg 277, 6816 VP Arnhem

Get inspired, share experiences and head back to your business with fresh energy.
Brilliant Work is a multi-award-winning business coaching and consultancy firm for self-employed professionals and SMEs. The team consists of 20 experts. For our programmes, entrepreneurs can often make use of up to 14 different grants.

Save the date: Selling without being pushy
2026-06-29 15:00 - 17:00 | Ondernemerslab Arnhem, Bovenbeekstraat 10, Arnhem
Together with Startclub Arnhem, Lizanne Jakobs gives this free workshop.
Whether you have a lot of experience with sales calls or none at all, this workshop is very useful for anyone who has to try to bring in a client at some point.
In it, we discuss how:
– you ask potential clients for an interview
– you can surface the information you need to close the deal
– you can tell the best about you and your company
– and then how to bring in the client
During the workshop, you’ll learn how to make selling feel easier without coming across as pushy. You’ll learn which questions to ask, and how to persuade in a way that doesn’t sound like a hollow call-centre script. After this workshop, you’ll know how to achieve far better results with less effort and less stress.
Participation is free. Registration for this workshop is possible by clicking on this link.
This workshop will be facilitated in Dutch.
