Our Team

Thomas is a strong senior database specialist. An all-round DBA with a lot of experience in various large and complex customer environments. He is the founder of the database systems of Bibit, Worldpay and Stater. His strength lies in Sybase and SQL Server. Thomas also knows how to help clients with open source platforms such as MySQL / MariaDB and PostgreSQL. Thomas lives in Amersfoort, is married and has 3 children of which 1 is deceased. As a true South African he loves a good "braai" with a special beer! https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomasspoelstra/

Tino is a strong and engaging Senior DBA Consultant. Certified and specialized in MicroSoft SQL Server. With his soothing appearance and communicative skills he knows how to get to the core of any database challenge and create a stable and structured database environment, either independently or together with the client. He knows how to create a future proof design in every detail and also how to manage the most complex HA environments. Tino is married and father of a beautiful family with whom he spends a lot of his spare time together. https://www.linkedin.com/in/tdudink/

Harry is a highly experienced Multiplatform Database Reliability Engineer. A strong base of Sybase experience has been supplemented over the years with knowledge of and handson experience with Microsoft SQL Server, PostgreSQL and MySQL. Harry has worked at various end customers and consulting companies over the years. Knows his way around complex database environments and seamlessly pinpoints pain points. With his relentlessly positive attitude, he always arrives at a satisfactory solution and harmony in the team. In addition to his work as a database expert, Harry is passionate about everything to do with Japan. For example, he practices the Japanese martial art Kendo, forms Bonsai trees and also tries to learn the language. Harry is married and has 2 adult daughters. Linkedin profile

Gijsjan is a DBA Consultant and Database Reliability Engineer who likes to work hard. He has thorough knowledge of several (open-source) database environments, among which PostgreSQL, MySQL, and MS SQL Server. His expertise is in designing, migrating, optimising, and managing operationally stable database environments. Besides this, Gijsjan is a skilled trainer who knows how to share his knowledge in a pleasant and clear manner. He lives in Gouda and loves to play soccer. https://nl.linkedin.com/in/gijsjanbaars

Dimitri is a strong, passionate DBA. On the Microsoft SQL Server platform he is very experienced and certified. He also knows his way around Oracle and MySQL as a senior DBA. In addition to regular and daily administration, Dimitri has a lot of knowledge of automation and optimisation. Of both repetitive DBA tasks, as well as processes and maintenance. He is a rock star in scripting. Dimitri has achieved good performance results at leading companies in large and complex environments. In addition to his work in and around database platforms, Dimitri loves to travel such as regular city trips and gadgets. https://www.linkedin.com/in/dimitrichoustov/

Mark is a strong senior database expert who thrives in bulky, complex and difficult database environments. Mark specializes primarily in Microsoft SQL Server but also has knowledge of MariaDB, Oracle and DB2. He is currently developing further in Azure environments and has obtained a number of certifications. He brings structure, order and peace to databases and thus the working environment. With his vast experience from data modeling through performance tuning to security patching, he is a rock for our customers. Mark has strong analytical skills, who knows how to build bridges between the business, performance and database. Mark is married and has 3 sons. Besides the love for his family, he has a love for camping, has a thing for field hockey and follows Formula 1 closely. Linkedin profile.

Craig is an experienced DBA Consultant. He is senior Oracle DBA and has for example experience with large testenviroments and complex hybrid database designs. He also is comfortable in a DevOps role. MS SQL Server is the other platform he is familiair with. He provide knowledge to clients in order to leverage new technology and practices. At the moment he is on a handson traning project for PostgreSQL and MongoDB to become a Multi-platform DBA Consultant. In his spare time he teaches Historical European Martial Arts and he has his privat pilot's license. https://www.linkedin.com/in/craighealey1/

Eric is an experienced MS SQL Server DBA with also strong knowledge of MySQL / MariaDB in combination with cloud solutions. Aurora MySQL, AWS RDS but also hybrid solutions. Eric has worked in leading organizations on complex database environments and has developed a good basis to advise, support and relieve OptimaData customers. Eric is particularly strong in modern and innovative database setups with a high available character and scalable starting point. As a DBA he knows how to seamlessly hit the right tone in a CI/CD and/or DevOps environment. Eric lives together with his partner, has 3 beautiful children and in his spare time he likes to play music. Like playing guitar but also producing music. Eric Gipon - Linkedin Profiel

Cindy is an experienced DBA with a strong background from technical application management. With her broad knowledge and experience as an Application Engineer and DBA in both government and business, she developed a strong foundation to further specialize as a DBA a few years ago. Cindy has good knowledge of and experience with Oracle and SQL Server. At OptimaData, Cindy will also develop further on open source databases such as PostgreSQL. Because of her broad experience at different organizations, she is able to switch between stakeholders, business and technology and she can quickly adapt to new environments. In her spare time Cindy is renovating her Grundel and likes to go sailing when the weather allows. Linkedin-profile Cindy Beernink

Peter Koster is a senior multi-platform DBA. He is Oracle OCP certified and also proficient with SQL Server. He is also interested in the open source platform MySQL. Peter brings with his wealth of experience peace on the floor and in complex DBMS environments. Furthermore Peter is a pleasant colleague such as for technical sparring or setting up another tree. Peter is married and lives in Almere. Besides tinkering in and with databases Peter is very interested in the Dutch language. https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterkoster2/

Martijn is both senior database consultant and entrepeneur. He did run his own business, DBA on Call, in a hardworking, professional, and disciplined manner, and works for parties like G4S, Budget Energie, SNS Bank, ABN AMRO, Detron, KLM, and Sandd. He has experience with every kind of database, from MySQL to MS Server and from Sybase to PostgreSQL and PostgresPURE. Martijn is a trusted advisor to companies that have to decide on a platform or want to migrate to a new database environment. Besides this, he likes to take care of trainings, he is married and has 4 children. https://nl.linkedin.com/in/mwalletdbaoncallpageload

Ellert, with his PostgreSQL and MySQL expertise, has joined OptimaData as an Associate DBA Consultant. Specialties of Ellert are; analytical thinking with less- or non-technical people, Database design and management, SQL performance optimization, Data processing pipelines. Other strengths are: an analytical approach to tasks, creativity and a solution-oriented ("to the point") no-nonsense approach to situations, "just make it work". Linkedin profile.

Michael is a very experienced open source database expert with a deep specialization in MariaDB and MySQL. He has extensive knowledge of High Availability setups and scalable architectures. Michael also provides the OptimaData training on MySQL and MariaDB. He can be flown in for ad hoc disruptions and 1-day tuning but also for regular HealthChecks or training on the Job to support your DBA's with open source challenges. https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldegroot/

Ron joins OptimaData as an Associate DBA Consultant with his Oracle expertise. Ron is an all-round, versatile, driven, critical (in a constructive way), efficient and flexible Oracle DBA with over 28 years of IT experience. For Ron, performance and security are always two very important focal points. He has extensive experience (both technical and project leadership) with migrations (between versions and platforms) and setting up complex OTAP routes and management environments, i.e. development to management. Linkedin profile.

Sebastiaan is an (open source) data platform specialist with 25 years of experience, a high didactic ability and with his optimistic appearance he always gets teams on board. He enjoys working on high quality future-proof strategic solutions. With his just do it attitude and no-nonsense approach, Sebastiaan turns complex issues into clear stories in no time and the work is done before you know it. In short, he gets things done, is creative, and equipped with very broad and deep technical knowledge and experience. His expertise lies mainly in PostgreSQL, cloudnative and open source development. Linkedin profile.

Koos is the point of contact for information security and privacy. He maintains the Information Security Management System (ISMS) to be able to demonstrate to our customers that OptimaData handles customer data in a secure manner and complies with ISO27001:2017. Koos does this not only for OptimaData but for multiple companies. He finds his challenge in getting a solution working that is simultaneously compliant with information security and privacy. He is married and father of 2 children. He walks a lot with his dogs, enjoys playing darts and is a passionate supporter of the most beautiful and pure soccer club in the Netherlands. Linkedin-profile Koos Wijdenes

Pieter Groenendijk is an experienced recruitment specialist. A connector. Of people and technology. Over the years Pieter has built up a strong network but also gained broad technical experience. In addition to various roles in employment mediation including at USG People Pieter has also been an entrepreneur, knows the challenges of self-employed people personally and can empathise perfectly. No assignment is too challenging for him to find the right professional and vice versa! Pieter is married, has 2 beautiful children and, as he says, a beautiful bonus daughter. Besides his activities as a recruitment specialist at OptimaData you can find Pieter on the football field where he can train young talents under 11. https://www.linkedin.com/in/groenendijkpieter/

Edco loves working with people. He is communicative, approachable by a "getting things done" mentaility. He has years of experience as intermediair in the IT business and has worked for USG and Nováccent. At OptimaData, his main role is recruiting people for internal posts, the OptimaData DBA team. Besides this, he likes to use his recruitment skills and expertise for our clients. His ambition is to create the perfect match. Edco lives in Bunschoten with his wife and children and is an enthusiastic drummer. https://nl.linkedin.com/in/edcowallet

Gerard is a ‘connector’ – he likes to connect people, products, and services, to create a win-win scenario. He is an experienced, hands-on, result-oriented manager and entrepeneur with a background in financial services, Fintec, and IT services. Besides commercial issues, he takes care of all business-related affairs. Gerard is married and has 3 daughters. He sings in a cover band B-loose, which performs (internationally) around 20 times per year. https://nl.linkedin.com/in/gerard-zuidweg

We try to achieve this by employing our knowledge and expertise at the right moment and connecting the right people to our clients. OptimaData’s ambition? To be the go-to knowledge and expertise center for (open-source) database technology. A knowledge and expertise center that provides all services, people, and products regarding (open-source) database technology. People, knowledge, and tooling: together they offer a solution to every client.

The people behind OptimaData are its strength – it’s as simple as that. Within OptimaData, they combine their passions for databases, people, and consultancy. Their shared goal is to help organisations in making their database applications better, faster, more approachable, and safer, so the client can focus on the core business.