Management of KLM

KLM's management is in the hands of our Executive Team. The statutory Managing Directors are President and Chief Executive Officer Marjan Rintel, Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer Bas Brouns, Chief Operating Officier Mathieu Essenberg, and Chief People Officer Miriam Kartman.

KLM's Supervisory Board oversees our Board of Managing Directors, as well as our general and operational performance and corporate governance. The Supervisory Board also advises the Board of Managing Directors and monitors the KLM Group’s strategy development and policymaking processes. It also approves major management decisions. Finally, the Supervisory Board discusses how to approach the impact, risks and opportunities related to sustainability.

The Supervisory Board has nine members. Of these, four members are nominated by KLM and five by Air France-KLM. The Supervisory Board consists of Wiebe Draijer (chair), François Enaud, Frédéric Gagey, Jan-Kees de Jager, Christian Nibourel, Marjan Oudeman, Fleur Pellerin, Benjamin Smith and Janine Vos.

Marjan E.F. Rintel, our President and CEO, has a strong track record in civil aviation. After her studies, Marjan worked in various roles at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. In 1999, she moved to KLM and held a number of different positions until 2014. She got to know the company from the inside: operationally and commercially. In 2014, Marjan exchanged KLM for NS (Dutch Railways). For six years, she held the position of Operational Director on the Executive Board. In 2020, she was appointed Chairman of the Board. On 1 July 2022, she returned to KLM as President and CEO.

Marjan is responsible for our overall strategy and performance. Setting strategic priorities to strengthen our market position is particularly important. She's also detemrined to help KLM further recover from the COVID-19 crisis while promoting sustainability. To us, further development of this vision and any accompanying innovations are extremely important.

Another responsibility of Marjan is maintaining and strengthening our customer focus while increasing our efficiency as an organization. To do so, she focuses on seeking out and improving collaborations, partnerships, and improving KLM's social position. Marjan believes that the bond between KLM and society should be bolstered, with a focus on mutual understanding.

As President of KLM, Marjan is a member of the Executive Committee of the Air France-KLM Group and the CEO Committee. She also holds various other additional positions.

Marjan studied Business Administration at the University of Groningen.

Chief Financial Officer Bas Brouns is a statutory managing director and responsible for KLM's financial planning, reporting, investments and risk management. As CFO, Bas manages the Corporate Control, Corporate Finance & Treasury, Internal Audit, Passenger Business Controlling, Taxation and Real Estate & Facility Contracting departments. He's also ultimately responsible for Procurement and Fuel.

Bas has been with us for more than 28 years and has held financial positions in various areas, including network planning, ground services, revenue management, alliances, e-commerce, business innovation and treasury. Before he became CFO, Bas was Senior Vice President Corporate Controller.

Bas has a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Groningen and a master’s degree in Finance from London Business School.

Mathieu Essenberg has been with us since 2002, holding various management positions within KLM Cityhopper and Flight Operations. After, he served as SVP Airframe/Operations at Engineering & Maintenance. From 2018 to 2022, he was responsible for airplane maintenance for our fleet and those of global clients.

In 2022, he became EVP Hub Operations, leading the Ground Services (GS) division. He also joined our Executive team. 

On 1 January 2025, Mathieu was appointed Executive Vice President KLM Engineering & Maintenance. Since July 2026, he has been KLM’s Chief Operating Officer.

Fun fact: Mathieu is qualified as a captain on the Boeing 737.

Miriam Kartman, Chief People Officer (CPO) and a member of our Board of Directors, is responsible for KLM's human resources policy, including people transformation, resourcing & health, strategic workforce planning, learning & development, diversity & inclusion, and collective labor agreements. In this role, she heads, among others, the Industrial Relations, Compensation and Benefits, HR Strategy & Portfolio, and People Transformation departments.

Miriam started her career as an Employee Relations Advisor at ExxonMobil. In 1992, she joined KLM as HR Manager of Cargo. After that, she held various HR and line management positions, including Senior Vice President Operations Control. Miriam has extensive experience in the aviation sector. Her expertise includes HR advisory, coaching, and trade union relations, as well as the operational and commercial aspects of aviation and customer experience. In March 2023, Miriam joined our Board of Directors.

Miriam is a member of the Board of the Airline People Directors' Council (APDC), an international organization of HR professionals within airlines. She is also a member of the policy committee of the General Employers' Association of the Netherlands (AWVN), the largest employers' association in the Netherlands. In addition, she is a member of the Supervisory Board of GITP, Marfo, and Wings of Support.

Miriam graduated in Business Economics and Social Economic Law from Utrecht University and has taken various courses at IMD Business School.