During this Vision Dinner, Debora de Laaf, Director of Communications at Stedin, will use a current case to share how she approaches this at a strategic level and what she has learned from it. Her presentation will serve as the starting point for a deeper conversation on these strategic issues, where participants exchange experiences and learn from one another. To encourage an open and candid dialogue, the session will be held under confidential conditions and follows the Chatham House Rule. We warmly invite you to take part!
Communication Directors
CPE Points | 2 points
17:30 | Start of program (including presentation, discussion and 3-course dinner)
20:30 | End of formal program, opportunity for informal networking
Language: English
Restaurant de Hoefslag, Bosch en Duin
Director of Communications
Debora has been working at Stedin since 2018. She has a long career in communications, including ten years of experience at the insurance company Aegon during the financial crisis—a period in which crisis communication, reputation management, and transformation were central. Before that, she worked, among others, at Unilever.
Her expertise lies at the intersection of strategy, stakeholder management, and communication in complex transitions. At Stedin, she leads a large and rapidly developing department that is becoming increasingly visible in the societal and administrative landscape in which the energy transition takes place.
Grid operators are working hard with societal partners to enable the energy transition. Together, we are moving toward a new, cleaner energy balance. This transition sometimes involves difficult choices within a complex stakeholder environment, where communication is closely linked to leadership and strategic direction. During this Vision Dinner, Debora de Laaf, Director of Communications at Stedin, will use a current case to share how she approaches this at a strategic level and what she has learned from it.
The case focuses on the introduction of the new prioritization framework by the regulator ACM for grid congestion. The electricity grids are at capacity, and currently more than 14,000 companies across the Netherlands are on waiting lists with all grid operators for a connection. Scarcity forces difficult choices, which are defined by the regulator in formal frameworks. Stedin (together with other grid operators) is responsible for implementing them. This leads to a fundamental communication challenge:
• How do you communicate transparently about policy choices that are largely determined by others but that you are responsible for executing?
• How do you deal with societal pressure and political interests in relation to your public responsibility, in this case the security of electricity supply?
• How do you take into account all interests in your communication—from regulators, ministries, municipalities and provinces to businesses and citizens?
• What does this require in terms of leadership, transparency, and expectation management?
Debora aims to demonstrate:
• how communication in this context is not just a “layer,” but a strategic steering instrument,
• which dilemmas she encounters,
• and what she learns along the way.
Her presentation will serve as the starting point for a deeper conversation on these strategic questions, where participants exchange experiences and learn from one another. To encourage an open and candid dialogue, the session will be held under confidential conditions and follows the Chatham House Rule. We warmly invite you to take part!
