About

John Poppelaars has founded Doing The Math to realise his ambition to support organisations in becoming more sustainable. John is a passionate proponent of the use of data and mathematics as a key business enabler. Throughout his career, he has applied the business maxim of ‘fact-based improvement of decision making’ to numerous projects across many industries. John was awarded the Franz Edelman Award for this work at TNT Express, which resulted in substantial financial savings and CO₂ emission reduction. Next to his work for Doing The Math, John teaches at JADS and the AOG business school and is a member of the innovation board of the Dutch Platform for Mathematics.

Prior to founding his company, John was employed at BearingPoint and ORTEC. John earned a Master’s degree in Econometrics (1990) from the Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands and is INFORMS Certified Analytics Professional.

Robert Schwarz develops software tools that empower decision makers to answer their own questions. He prioritises finding the right solution approach and a high-quality implementation, and explaining how the methods work and where their limitations lie. He enjoys engaging with the open-source community and keeping up with the latest research papers.

Robert studied mathematics in Heidelberg and did research at the Zuse Institute Berlin, working on optimisation problems for gas network operation and expansion planning. He later managed development of a web-based platform for next-generation modelling and applications at LITIC.

Bernard Zweers has experience with using analytical methods to solve business challenges in both healthcare and supply chain applications. He believes that the mathematical model should capture all the complexity of business problems, but that the solution should always be computed in such a way that it is understandable for everyone.
Bernard holds a PhD degree in mathematics from the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam. In his PhD research, he developed mathematical models and algorithms to optimise inland container transportation.

Felix Hennings is driven by the urge to understand complex systems and processes, which enables him to find specialized solution strategies for a given problem or uncover potential for improvement. He is experienced in creating decision-support systems for industrial problems, knows the relevance of clean and accessible data for a successful project, and believes in the benefit of a high-quality and well-documented implementation that ensures long-term maintainability.

Felix studied Business Mathematics at the Technische Universität Berlin. Afterward, he worked at the Zuse Institute Berlin on optimizing the operation of large real-world gas transport networks, which is also the research topic of his PhD degree.

Frederique van Leeuwen’s passion for doing (the) math began with extra math homework in her early school years and led her to pursue a PhD in Data Science. Driven to bridge the gap between academia and practical application, she became one of the first graduates of the Jheronimus Academy of Data Science. Frederique is convinced that optimization and data-driven insights can significantly enhance decision-making and wants to inspire and help others use these tools to contribute to a more sustainable future. When she’s not doing the maths, she enjoys an active lifestyle in the Spanish Pyrenees.

Samuel Stuger is currently pursuing master’s degrees in Applied Physics and Applied Mathematics at the Technical University of Delft. He was drawn to “Doing the Math” largely because of their strong commitment to sustainability—a core value that resonates deeply with his own beliefs. Keen to understand how theoretical knowledge is translated into practical solutions, Samuel is passionate about applying his academic skills to real-world challenges. His goal is to contribute to sustainable projects while learning the dynamics of teamwork and innovation in a real-world setting.

Rokas Bubulis is following a master of Applied Physics at TU Eindhoven with research interests in condensed matter, photonics and quantum computing. Alongside his studies, he created a student team with the goal to investigate the business case of a fleet of new generation bi-directional charging capable electric vehicles as a tool for grid balancing. The team aimed to model energy flows at an airport car parking garage with solar generation facilities and estimate financial viability when trading electricity in intraday market. Wishing to explore more advanced modelling techniques in a professional setting, he is eager to join DTM. 

Colin Poppelaars is currently in his first year of the master’s program in Astronomy with a specialization in Data Science at Leiden University. He was drawn to “Doing the Math” as it allows him to apply his academic knowledge onto tackling real-world challenges, as well as a great opportunity to further develop himself. He is passionate about solving complicated problems by programming, using various methods such as machine learning, data mining and optimization. While Colin has been fascinated by the large scale structures in our Universe, he has always been interested in learning about innovation and sustainability, which makes Doing the Math an unique opportunity for him.