Meet the supplier: Skillz-up – Skills-first, people first

Start with who someone is

Skillz-up takes a fundamentally different approach to talent. It’s not the resume that comes first, but the person behind it. Who are you, what gives you energy, and what untapped potential is already in your “backpack”?

Erik Fontein puts it this way: “Start with who, then with what.” A resume shows what someone has done, but says very little about whether they truly fit within an organisation, a team, or a specific assignment. By consciously reversing that order, a different way of looking at talent emerges.

To make this insight actionable, Skillz-up developed its own skills assessment, which has now been in use for five years. It provides insight into preference styles, energy sources, and development potential. Both at individual and team level. Because a team where everyone brings the same strengths can be powerful, but often lacks adaptability. Making that difference visible is where the real conversation begins.

From elite athletes to hospitals

This approach works across a wide range of contexts. Skillz-up supports government agencies, provinces, municipalities, and hospitals, as well as (former) elite athletes transitioning to a new career. On paper, their resumes may sometimes show gaps, but in practice they are individuals with exceptional discipline, team mentality, and resilience. It’s not what’s missing that matters, but what someone brings and that starts with asking different questions upfront.

Why this fits with Striive

The collaboration with Striive aligns seamlessly with this philosophy. The platform provides access to clients that are otherwise harder to reach and enables scaling without compromising on vision. At the same time, it is also a strong conceptual fit. As part of HeadFirst Group, Striive operates firmly in the space of talent development and an elite sports mentality. This focus on intrinsic motivation, continuous development, and getting the best out of people closely mirrors how Skillz-up views and works with talent. As a result, it’s more than a practical collaboration - it’s a shared mindset.

From filling roles to rethinking selection

Skillz-up’s ambition goes beyond filling assignments. They aim to show organisations what becomes possible when you truly start selecting based on skills. What happens when you stop primarily recruiting on CVs, and instead focus on skills, motivations, and potential? That’s the conversation they want to bring to the table.

In this video, Erik shares more about this perspective, from their characterful building in the heart of Zwolle - complete with a classic car parked out front.