‘From injury to business case: prevention with real impact’

When Fynn van den Booren joined his mother’s company in 2012, it was far from clear what kind of growth the business would go on to achieve. What started as a small-scale absence administration office has since developed into a solid occupational health and safety service provider with around fifty employees, a strong vision on prevention, and the ambition to fundamentally reshape the market. “I sort of fell into it,” Van den Booren explains. “My mother asked if I wanted to help, because she preferred to focus less on acquiring new clients herself. I had just left the banking sector and thought: let’s just give it a try.”

Accidentally started, purposefully grown

The early years were mainly about learning and building. “When I started, there were four of us,” says Van den Booren. “My mother, two part-time employees, and myself. It was still a very small company.” Gradually, the need arose to restructure the business. “My mother had things well organised and was satisfied with how it was running,” he explains. “Whereas I saw opportunities to scale further and position it more broadly.” That ambition translated into concrete steps. “For example, we started working with occupational physicians through our organisation, including billing via us. That made us more than just an administrative office and moved us towards broader occupational health services.” In 2018, he fully acquired the company. “I made sure to arrange that properly and in a future-proof way,” he says. “So she had security, and I had the space to further develop the business.” That step proved to be a turning point. “After certification in 2019, things accelerated quickly. We grew from three FTE to fifty FTE within a few years.”

When growth becomes constraining

That rapid growth also brought new challenges. “2023 was a peak year for us,” says Van den Booren. “But at the same time, I noticed I was reaching my own limits.” At that point, he was effectively fulfilling almost all roles within the organisation. “I was doing everything: HR, finance, facilities, commercial activities. That works in the beginning, but no longer when your organisation reaches this scale.” The realisation that things needed to change came gradually. “You notice that you start slowing down growth yourself if everything keeps running through you. That’s why we appointed a Managing Director and I stepped further away from day-to-day operations.” That shift not only brought relief, but also new insights. “I always thought my main strength was commercial,” he says. “But I discovered I actually get most energy from developing new propositions. That’s where I now spend most of my time.”

The shift to the front end: seeing it before it happens

That renewed focus led to a clear strategic direction: further developing prevention as a fully-fledged pillar within the organisation. “Prevention was always part of our services, but it wasn’t a clearly defined or recognisable component,” explains Van den Booren. “Now we are positioning it as a standalone proposition.” According to him, that shift is inevitable. “The market is moving to the front end. You can’t keep waiting until someone drops out. Employers are also increasingly feeling the responsibility to intervene earlier.” Still, that is easier said than done. “Prevention remains difficult to sell,” he says. “You’re asking for an upfront investment, while the impact only becomes visible later.” That is exactly the challenge, he argues. “Companies do see that absence decreases, but they don’t always translate that into financial impact. That few percent reduction in absence can easily represent hundreds of thousands of euros, but it’s not always experienced that way.”

The math behind reduced absenteeism

To make that translation tangible, @arbo developed a new approach for its clients. “Where we previously mainly talked about services, we now make it much more concrete and measurable,” explains Van den Booren. “We start with existing data, such as risk inventories and evaluations (RI&E) and periodic medical examinations (PMO). They often already contain the most important risks and starting points.” Based on this, an analysis is made and translated into a financial substantiation. “We clearly show: this is your investment and this is what it delivers. That turns prevention from a ‘good idea’ into a substantiated business case.” An important shift is that the financial side of organisations is now increasingly involved. “We are sitting at the table with CFOs more and more often,” he says. “That changes the conversation. It’s no longer just about absenteeism, but about returns, risks, and strategic decision-making.”

One integrated approach

Alongside the content itself, the way @arbo delivers its services is also changing. “We are moving towards one integrated approach,” explains Van den Booren. “Instead of separate services, we offer a single end-to-end package in which absence management, reintegration, and prevention come together.” To make this concrete, he uses an analogy from elite sports. “In sport, it’s completely normal that when a player gets injured, you quickly have clarity: what is wrong, what is the treatment plan, and when is someone expected to return,” he says. “That speed and clarity is still often missing in occupational health.” He wants to translate that way of working to organisations. “We ensure that an analysis is immediately available when someone reports sick, with a clear action plan and an expected recovery time. Whether it concerns mental or physical complaints, we immediately involve the right expertise. That creates clarity for both employer and employee, and allows us to steer recovery much faster.” This approach also means @arbo takes on more responsibility. “We don’t need to go back to the employer for every step,” he explains. “We can act directly and do what is needed. That makes the process faster, more effective, and ultimately also more cost-efficient.”

Choosing quality, even when it hurts

Notably, @arbo has deliberately slowed down in recent years to strengthen the organisation. “We hardly took on any new clients for two years,” says Van den Booren. “We first wanted to make sure the fundamentals were really in order.” That process required making sharp choices. “We critically examined how we work and who fulfils which role,” he says. “In some cases, that meant people were better suited elsewhere, or that we had to part ways. Those are difficult decisions, but necessary in order to continue growing.” That decision also had a financial impact. “2024 was therefore a challenging year,” he admits. “We invested in the organisation while growth temporarily stalled. In 2025, we absorbed those effects and brought everything back into balance.” The strategy is now paying off. “We are in a much stronger position now. The organisation is solid, processes run better, and we can grow again in a more targeted way. That gives a lot of confidence for the future.”

From firefighting to building

With that foundation in place, Van den Booren looks ahead. “We see that demand is increasing again and that our new approach aligns well with what organisations need,” he says. “But more importantly: we now have a model that is scalable and truly delivers impact.” His ambition is clear. “I want to contribute to a fundamental shift in the occupational health market. Less reacting to absence and much more focus on preventing it.” According to him, that is where the real value lies. “Employers are increasingly responsible for the health of their employees. So you also need to help them gain control over that, with insights, data, and concrete solutions.” He concludes: “We are moving from reactive to proactive. And that is exactly where the value is: for organisations, for employees and for the entire sector.”