Thijs Drouen

Since 1 October 2019, Thijs Drouen has been principal consultant at Hooghiemstra and Partners, a consultancy firm for strategic and legal advice, specialized in data protection, (chain) computerization and care. Thijs has a background as a quartermaster, top manager, supervisor, legislative advisor and lawyer (specialized in data protection law and administrative (procedural) law, among other things). He also has extensive experience with strategic and change processes and managing the (re) organization of organizations. Within our office, Thijs provides strategic and legal advice to organizations in the public and private domain. He thereby combines his legal, strategic and organizational knowledge to achieve workable results.

Between 2014 and 2019, Thijs worked as a (top) manager at the Dutch Data Protection Authority, most recently as Director of Legal Affairs and Legislative Advice, and thus held final responsibility for the legal substantive course of the regulator and as a member of the management council for the management and strategic course of this organization as a whole. He also helped prepare the AP for the arrival of the AVG by redesigning and positioning the organization's structure in line with the duties and requirements of the regulation. In addition, he has been closely involved in the creation of (U) AVG and Wpg / Wjsg from the AP. He gives presentations and guest lectures.

Between 2001 and 2014, Thijs worked for the Administrative Law Division of the Council of State in various positions on the legal content level and as department head within the environmental chamber and the spatial planning chamber. Thijs is a lawyer and graduated in administrative (procedural) law at Tilburg University.