Ralph Hamers was appointed as ING’s youngest-ever CEO and chairman of the Executive Board on 1 October 2013. He introduced ING’s Think Forward strategy, which aims to empower people in life and in business with a differentiating experience that is clear, easy and available anytime and anywhere. Think Forward is accelerating the digital transformation of ING, with the ambition to become the “go to” global digital platform for all financial needs. Hamers joined ING in 1991, and has variously headed up ING in Romania, the Netherlands and Belgium, as well as being responsible for the international networks of ING’s Wholesale Banking and Retail Banking business lines. He holds a Master of Science degree in Business Econometrics/Operations Research from Tilburg University (the Netherlands).