Manou Kooy, MSc

Hi, I’m Manou.
Nice to meet you!

As a consultant within the Programme Leadership team, I am eager to make an impactful difference in life sciences and healthcare projects granted by the EU.

Before I officially started working, I did my five-month internship at ttopstart. During my internship I investigated the involvement of patients in large research projects including several stakeholders. The reason I investigated this important topic was due to my experience in the hospital. During my studies, I worked at the UMCU as a hostess, where I got acquainted with many patients and their stories, giving me insight into their perspectives on healthcare dynamics. Collecting all these insights, I learned that we sometimes tend to forget what we are doing all the research for. So when I did my interview at ttopstart and they were interested in someone to investigate the involvement in large research projects, it felt like a perfect role for me to fulfill.  

To my opinion, the main challenge for researchers and innovators in life sciences and health is the active recollection of what patients really need and why they need it. When conducting research, the focus on research itself tends to take over as compared to the actual goal of the research. Therefore, I think it is of great importance to keep reminding ourselves why we are doing what we are doing.  

With my social gut feeling and warmth towards other people, I hope to contribute to the creation of trust and connection within ttopstart. When talking to partners or clients, my aim is to generate a comfortable atmosphere where good discussions can take place and partners and clients feel the freedom to speak openly.  

The ttopstart values

I think teamwork is the best way to make things happen, as multiple views can do more than one and teamwork is the building step towards a waterproof approach. Personally, I prefer sparring with my colleagues over working individually, as this lends for new insights and more creative ideas. When I started working at ttopstart, I noticed that all colleagues are acting professionally and take ownership for their responsibilities, with a lot of passion included. This combination results in a steep learning curve for me.