Tête Talk: Jo Lootens - Sherpad

Jo: “ I always have a need for a challenge, preferably discovering new things in the process. I try to be an innovator and I like to think outside the box. I tend to question conventions. In negotiations I see myself as a right hand. I always think solution-oriented and with a necessary dose of West Flemish common sense. I’m also very curious, I want to thoroughly understand my customers. I always try to learn from others. ”

Jo: “ Sherpad is about deal making and for the past two years I also started official mediation. My career is like a meander, every position was a logical follow-up, but there are major curves in my path. It is that latitude that gives me the knowledge to do my job well. You take things with you from everything you learn. In combination with a dose of common sense, this makes me the ideal partner to look for solutions in situations where people are stuck in their thinking. I recently disentangled a blockage by applying the experience of my wife, who works in a hospital, in the hotel industry. The team structure used in the hospital turned out to be the perfect solution in a smaller hospitality team, which allowed me to deblock the situation.By understanding your customer, you can make a realistic estimation of things. People don't think very well or are often conservative in their thinking. I mainly help my customers think. I play the angel or devil on their shoulder. I question their thinking. This is often also about debunking clichés.
My clients are mostly individuals, entrepreneurs. Most business managers are alone in making important decisions and can use a second opinion of someone who thinks at their level as an entrepreneur. I don't want to be an accountant or lawyer, I want to stand next to the entrepreneur who has to combine and weigh all advice before making a decision. Thanks to my solid tax and legal basis, I have gained enough knowledge to also think in a well-founded way on these levels. Thanks to my entrepreneurial spirit I think at the same level as my clients.
I have also been an official mediator for the past 2 years. As a negotiator you work for one party, but as a mediator you almost literally stand between the parties to find a solution together. I really want to profile myself as a mediator, as a non-jurist. It's not about the process of the past but about the future. My creative thinking makes the difference. I look at everyone's interest in the issue and try to reach a compromise, preferably encouraging the parties themselves to come to a conclusion by asking the right questions. I think in a solution-oriented and future-oriented way with the goal to ultimately achieve continuity in the cooperation between two parties.
The name Sherpad is a combination of "sherpa" and "path", I want to travel a path with my clients like a sherpa, serving them.
BLACKBOXX offers the ideal environment for my job. When negotiating you must have the necessary space. If you are sitting down with parties and there is a breakthrough, it is important that they can step outside with their counselors, check things individually with me or just be alone for a while. BLACKBOXX is the ideal neutral terrain. There is a lot of light, the water offers peace and there are plenty of flexible spaces. The entrepreneurial, creative and young energy only contributes to this. ”

Jo: “ I offer a helicopter view that is well-founded and broad thanks to my diverse experience, combined with healthy West Flemish common sense. I manage to disengage different parties from a problem. I’m always proud when I resolve emotionally blocked conflicts. I’m very passionate about achieving results, and don’t do it out of self-interest. ”

Jo: “ Today I am especially curious about how people survived or are surviving the covid reality. How they experienced it. I myself am a person who always keeps working, sometimes to my wife's frustration, but I enjoy my job and it is not burdensome. I’m ‘always on’, so to speak. When I travel and I’m in a hotel I look around, indirectly I always soak up new things for my job like a sponge, also during my spare time. Today I’m looking for stories that can tell me what the world will look like in the future, how everything will change. How does someone come back and with what vision. I’m looking for positive stories. ”

Jo: “ I've always been inspired and fascinated by a lot of things. The last thing that stayed with me in recent times is how resilient people are. And also how important, even in these times of remote work, a personal approach or human contact has turned out to be. For example, I suddenly noticed that someone from the hospitality teams, who sends her mails from a general email address, always ends them with a personal note. She's been doing this for years, but it's those things that touch me today and stand out, although I never noticed it before. ”