1. Who is responsible for your data?
The website cfo-excellence.com and related services are operated by:
CFO Excellence – Erik Gruwel
Based in the Netherlands
Email: erik@cfo-excellence.com
For the purposes of applicable data protection law (including the EU General Data Protection Regulation – GDPR), Erik Gruwel is the controller of personal data processed via this website and in the context of introductory conversations and advisory work.
2. What data do we collect?
We collect and process only the data needed to respond to your request or operate the website. This includes:
Information you provide directly
- Contact form data – name, email address, company, role, approximate company size, topic of interest, your message and any other information you choose to share.
- Emails and calendar invitations – if you email directly or schedule a call, the information in your email, calendar invite and any attachments.
Information collected automatically
- Basic technical data – IP address, browser type, device type, approximate location and similar technical information, collected via standard web server logs and analytics tools.
- Usage data – pages visited, time spent, clicks and navigation patterns. This is used in aggregate to understand which pages are most useful.
3. How and why we use your data
We use your personal data only for clearly defined purposes:
- Responding to enquiries – to read your message, understand your context and respond with next steps or a recommendation.
- Scheduling conversations – if you book time via Calendly or by email, your details are used to manage the meeting, including confirmations and reminders.
- Providing services – where an advisory or interim engagement is agreed, your data is used as necessary to perform that work.
- Improving the website – understanding which pages are visited and which topics are most relevant to visitors.
- Legal and compliance purposes – keeping basic records to meet legal, tax and accounting obligations.
The legal bases for processing under the GDPR are typically: legitimate interest (e.g. replying to your request, improving the site), performance of a contract (where an engagement is in place) and legal obligations (e.g. tax and accounting rules).
4. Cookies and analytics
This website may use cookies and similar technologies for basic analytics and to support embedded tools (for example, Calendly for scheduling conversations).
- Analytics – anonymised or aggregated analytics to understand how the site is used and which pages are most relevant.
- Functional cookies – to ensure the site and embedded services (e.g. Calendly scheduling widget) work correctly.
You can control cookies via your browser settings. Most browsers allow you to block or delete cookies if you prefer.
5. Where and how your data is processed
This website is hosted by a third-party provider (for example, Netlify or a similar hosting platform). Contact form submissions may be stored by the hosting provider and are forwarded to email systems used by CFO Excellence.
When you schedule a meeting, the scheduling tool (currently Calendly) and underlying calendar and email providers (for example, Microsoft or Google Workspace) process your data in order to organise the call.
These providers may store data in the European Union and/or other countries, including the United States. Where data is transferred outside the EU/EEA, the aim is to rely on appropriate safeguards such as standard contractual clauses approved by the European Commission.
6. How long we keep your data
Data is retained only for as long as necessary for the purposes described above:
- Enquiries – contact form submissions and related emails are typically kept for up to 2 years to track context and follow-up.
- Client work – engagement-related records may be kept for 7 years or longer, in line with legal, tax and accounting obligations.
- Analytics data – kept in aggregate form and not linked to specific individuals where reasonably possible.
7. Sharing of data
Personal data is not sold to third parties. Data is shared only with service providers where needed to operate the website and services, for example:
- Website hosting and form handling.
- Calendly and calendar/email providers for scheduling.
- Analytics tools used in conjunction with Google Tag Manager.
- Professional advisors (such as accountants) where legally required.
All such providers are expected to handle your data securely and only for the purposes agreed.
8. Your rights under GDPR
If you are located in the European Union, the UK or a similar jurisdiction, you have specific rights in relation to your personal data, including:
- Right of access – to ask which personal data is held about you.
- Right to rectification – to request corrections if data is inaccurate or incomplete.
- Right to erasure – to request deletion of your data, where legally permitted.
- Right to restriction – to ask that processing is limited in certain circumstances.
- Right to object – to object to processing based on legitimate interests.
- Right to data portability – to receive certain data in a structured, commonly used format.
To exercise any of these rights, you can email: erik@cfo-excellence.com.
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority. In the Netherlands, this is the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens).
9. Links to other websites
This site may link to other websites (for example, LinkedIn or external resources). CFO Excellence is not responsible for the content or privacy practices of those sites. You should review their privacy notices separately.
10. Changes to this policy
This privacy policy may be updated from time to time, for example to reflect new services, legal requirements or changes in technology. The “Last updated” date at the top of the page will be adjusted accordingly.
If the changes are significant and you have an ongoing engagement, reasonable efforts will be made to let you know directly.