10 Things You Didn’t Know about DCP Midstream CEO Wouter van Kempen
Wouter van Kempen is the person responsible for running DCP Midstream, seeing as how he holds the positions of CEO, Chairman, and President. Said business is one of the biggest of its kind that can be found in the United States, thus explaining its inclusion in the Fortune 500 list. Here are 10 things that you may or may not have known about Wouter van Kempen:
1. Went to Erasmus University Rotterdam
Education-wise, van Kempen went to Erasmus University Rotterdam. People with an interest in philosophers might wonder about the name of the school. If so, they are right to do so because Erasmus University Rotterdam is indeed named for the famous humanist Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus, who is considered to be one of the most notable scholars of the Northern Renaissance.
2. Studied Business Economics
In school, van Kempen studied business economics, which is the branch of applied economics that looks into businesses as well as the choices that businesses make. As such, business economics encompasses a wide range of topics, which is very appropriate considering the diverse nature of its subjects. For example, one business economist might be interested in the factors that influence the various ways that businesses are structured. In contrast, another business economist might be more interested in the market issues that could impact businesses in the near future.
3. Has Further Training From Other Institutions
With that said, van Kempen has had further training from other institutions on top of his degree in business economics. For example, he has received training at the Harvard Business School. Likewise, he has been to both IMD International Switzerland and Kellogg Graduate School.
4. Has Considerable Mergers and Acquisitions Experience
It is interesting to note that van Kempen can boast of considerable experience when it comes to mergers and acquisitions. This is because he was once an executive in charge of mergers and acquisitions for General Electric, meaning that he held a very wide range of responsibilities when it came to such processes.
5. Has Considerable International Business Experience
Speaking of which, van Kempen possesses a fair amount of experience when it comes to running operations in countries outside of the United States as well. After all, the executive in charge of mergers and acquisitions was far from being the sole role of note that he held at General Electric. One of the other positions that van Kempen has held is Audit Manager for GE Plastics’s operations in both Asia and Europe.
6. Spent Some Time With Duke Energy
Van Kempen didn’t go from General Electric to DCP Midstream in a direct manner. Instead, he spent some time working with Duke Energy. To be exact, van Kempen was involved with the running of General Services, which is interesting because it specializes in natural gas as well as renewable sources of energy. Something that has been becoming more and more notable in recent times.
7. Served As Chief Development Officer
Once he was with DCP Midstream, van Kempen spent some time working as a Chief Development Officer, which refers to the executive responsible for overseeing growth. Such executives can have a wide range of responsibilities. One excellent example would be figuring out new sources of potential growth by examining the circumstances under which the business is operating. Another excellent example would be furthering growth by building stronger relationships with both current customers and potential customers. As such, the position of Chief Development Officer is an important one, particularly for a business in a sector that must pursue growth opportunities with both care and consideration.
8. Runs a Publicly Traded Partnership
Currently, van Kempen is responsible for running a publicly traded partnership, which is exactly what it sounds like in that it is a partnership that is traded on a public exchange of some kind. As such, interested individuals shouldn’t confuse it for a corporation. Certainly, there are some strong similarities between these two ways to organize businesses. However, there are considerable differences as well, meaning that someone who makes decisions in regards to one based on their understanding of the other could very well end up making mistakes that will come back to haunt them at a later time. In this as in other things, interested individuals need to make sure that they have a good understanding of what is going on before they make any kind of financial decision because that maximizes their chances of getting their desired outcomes.
9. Runs a Midstream Company
There are some oil companies that are involved in the entire process from start to finish. However, DCP Midstream isn’t one of them. Instead, it is what is called a midstream company, which is perhaps unsurprising considering its name. As for what midstream companies do, they tend to be focused on a couple of tasks. One, they are very interested in the transportation of petroleum products. Two, they are very interested in the storage of petroleum products. Besides midstream companies, there are also both upstream companies and downstream companies. Generally speaking, downstream companies are focused on refining the petroleum products as well as getting them to the people who use them, which is why midstream companies are sometimes seen as being downstream companies.
10. Leads a Business Expected to See Growth
Currently, van Kempen is leading a business that is expected to see growth in 2019. In part, this is because the business has a number of projects that are expected to come online in said year, with an excellent example being a Gulf Coast Express pipeline that is expected to start seeing use in the fourth quarter. However, it remains to be seen whether this prediction will prove to be true or not, seeing as how most businesses have a non-zero chance of running into potential complications that can throw off previous predictions of performance.
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