Bas Ruyssenaars

About Bas Ruyssenaars

Bas is an innovator and entrepreneur whose ambition is to contribute to a vital society. He is co-founder of the foundation The Institute of Brilliant Failures and founder of the strategic agency The Choice Architects, which develops interventions for effective choices and behavioral change, also known as nudging. Bas is also the inventor of the innovative sports game YOU.FO.

A central theme in his philosophy and work is the practice of navigation — rather than control and management. In a rapidly changing and complex society, he considers this a crucial skill for individuals, teams, and organizations alike.

Bas shares this philosophy through assignments and collaborations with organizations. In addition, he delivers inspiring keynote speeches, develops tailor-made training programs and methodologies, and writes articles for professional and industry publications upon invitation. As a speaker and inspirer, he addresses topics such as: innovating in complex environments, entrepreneurship as a mindset, brilliant failure and learning from mistakes, building learning organizations together, (international) entrepreneurship, start-ups and scale-ups, healthcare innovation, e-health, behavioral change, and the intersection of sports, movement, and business.

With the innovative sports game YOU.FO, Bas won, among others, the Dutch National Sports Innovation Award and the European Sports Innovation Award. Today, YOU.FO is played in more than 15 countries.

Together with his colleague Professor Paul Iske and in collaboration with the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, Bas annually organizes the IvBM Award in healthcare. In this initiative, patient organizations, healthcare providers, insurers, pharmaceutical companies, and governments present cases in order to collectively learn from failed innovations and research projects.

Bas is also co-editor-in-chief of the Journal of Brilliant Failures. His background includes working as a multimedia publisher (including at Kluwer) and as a developer of new business concepts. He earned his MA in Culture, Organization and Management from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and his Bachelor’s degree in International Business from Haarlem Business School.

The guiding question throughout his work is: how do we create a vital society? More specifically: how do we contribute to vital people, teams, and organizations in today’s globally connected and rapidly changing world?

Simply operating within existing parameters — often driven by fear of failure — is no longer enough. The importance of an open attitude toward taking risks, experimenting, daring to fail, and learning from mistakes continues to grow. To find your way in this era, navigation is becoming more important than control and management. And these abilities are learned precisely through experimentation, making mistakes, and adjusting course.

Bas truly “walks the talk.” As an innovator and entrepreneur, he experiences the importance of this mindset firsthand every day. This makes his story and interaction with audiences authentic, relatable, and especially valuable.