In conversation with: Nicolaas Groot, board member of the Heineken Pension Fund

Every quarter we discuss pensions. Inspiring conversations that – we hope – will motivate you to take a look at your pension. This time we are going to talk to Nicolaas Groot. He has been retired for about two years and is a board member of the Heineken Pension Fund. When Nicolaas was still working at HEINEKEN, he was Process Control Operator at Verpakken in Zoeterwoude. What does ‘pension’ mean to you? If you work, retirement is mainly ‘something for later’ and is part of your financial planning. It is good to know that the closer you get to retirement, the more concrete it becomes and the clearer the margins within which you make your personal choices.It is important for everyone to know how your income now and your pension for the future will be arranged. Then you know what to expect now and later. Even if an unforeseen event occurs. For example, if you are no longer able to work at all or partially due to incapacity for work. What would happen to your partner in case you pass away? Always ask about your pension when you change jobs and check your pension when you buy a house. Make agreements about the division of the pension if you get divorced, because what you decide here can have a major impact on the amount of your income later on.My message is: A change in your life affects your pension. You find the information you need on this page on the website. What would you like to say about your pension at HEINEKEN? Pension at Heineken is based on solidarity. In the core, solidarity means being a guarantor for each other. You’re helping the other person bear his risks, because he’s helping you bear your risks. I think it’s important to remind you of that at this time. At the moment, pensions are talked about too much in terms of old against young and young against old. The interests differ, but we must not forget how much we actually help each other. This solidarity-based system will only last as long as we are able and willing to trust that our own contribution to the risks of others is proportional to the contribution of others to your risks. What gives you confidence in retirement? I have paid a nice amount of pension contributions in total – and the employer HEINEKEN even double that – but it has given me a really good pension. Tip: you can see how much pension contribution you pay each month on your payslip. You can also see how much the employer pays for your pension on the Reward Statement in the Benefits Bar. How do we involve more people with their pension? At first glance, pensions seem to be an attractive topic for people with a background in human resources or with an understanding of investments and other financial matters. But I would like it if more people at Heineken would take an interest in the decision-making process around pensions. At the beginning of 2026, we at Heineken want to switch to a new pension scheme. And it’s good to have as diverse a group as possible: young, old, male, female and from all the different departments of our company: commerce, production and where not. In this way, our solidarity-based pension remains rooted in our company. Are you interested? Register with the trade union and follow the events in the field of pensions at Heineken. Or report to the Heineken Pension Fund by e-mail. Then they will contact you about a role in a participant panel.

In the coming years, the pension system in the Netherlands will change to better match pensions to current needs. We are also innovating to serve you even better.

The Heineken Pension Fund has three different bodies. We can imagine that you have questions about the tasks of these bodies and how your interests are represented by these bodies. In this blog we give you more information about this.