Pieter Jeroense has a long track record in local government. He started his career at the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs and soon after decided to dedicate his career to local government. He held several management positions at the municipalities of Leiden, Rotterdam and Alphen aan den Rijn, where he was the city manager. In 2017, he became Deputy Managing Director of the Dutch Association of Netherlands municipalities. Since May 2022, he is also executive director of VNG International and a board member of the VNG Fund for Emergency Aid, Reconstruction and Peace Building.