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ABOUT
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Most C-level executives don’t have the luxury of dedicating 18-24 months to an Executive MBA program. These programs require frequent classes, coursework across various areas like accounting and project management, and are often geared towards general management. As a top-level leader, you’re not seeking general management knowledge — you are aiming for leadership growth that fits your specific role and leadership challenges.
Programs such as 3-day leadership bootcamps may sound appealing, but we know that leadership isn’t built in a classroom over a weekend. Real leadership is developed through continuous growth, reflection, and action on the job.
As Director of an Executive MBA in Switzerland who has spent a decade designing leadership development programs, I bring you a reflected and customized approach to your leadership development.
When you engage me, I am all about results. Results not judged by me, nor you. Results judged by those who contact with you on a regular basis, those who can observe your improvement on the job: your board members, your subordinates, your team.
THE START
My career began in an internet start-up company in Eastern Europe. I was the employee number 9. Young, ambitious, and eager to make a mark, the opportunity arose to work under the mentorship of the two CEOs: Tomaz Dimnik and Ales Zalatel. Despite not speaking the local language and being in the early twenties, they soon entrusted me leadership roles. From opening new offices in Serbia and Bosnia, to attracting foreign clients to use our services, I understood what it took grow, scale and ultimately sale a start-up company.
Driven by a desire to deepen my understanding of business, a PhD in Management Science was pursued, which led me to the United States of America. Studies began at the Thunderbird School of Global Management in Arizona and concluded at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.
By the end of my Ph.D., I was ready to get back to business. The journey took a significant turn upon meeting the leadership of the Silicon Valley based start-up accelerator Founder Institute while I was in Santa Monica, California. Soon after, I decided to become their European Managing Director in Portugal.
The Founder Institute start-up accelerator taught me a targeted coaching methodology focused on preparing entrepreneurs to raise millions from venture capitals. Adeo Ressi, the CEO and Founder, became a mentor and a friend, possibly one of the smartest people I ever met. Working closely with him was an enriching experience.
Coaching entrepreneurs, helping them raise capital and build companies became my new north star. For five years, I coached 30 entrepreneurs weekly to prepare them to run successful tech companies. In total, I worked with over 100 founders, helping launch more than 20 companies in Europe. Some of these companies grew to become full-sized firms in the tech sector, raising millions in capital.
This experience led to an invitation to teach executives programs across Europe. By 2015, the Swiss National Agency for Innovation (INNOSUISSE) hired me to help with their entrepreneurial leadership program. That same year, the HEG School of Management Switzerland asked me to join their team. Soon after, I was appointed as Director of the Executive MBA.
THE JOURNEY
One of the most profound realizations I've had in my career as an executive leadership coach is the necessity for continuous evolution. This was vividly clear during my tenure at the Founder Institute Silicon Valley. There, I witnessed explosive growth in some of the start-ups coached, expanding from a founder and a small team to large teams spread across the globe. Such rapid expansion underscores the critical need for me as a coach to adapt and evolve my approach to coaching leaders to ensure sustainable success.
In a start-up stage of a company, when a team might be just a couple of people and a dog in a garage, tactical execution—getting things done—is crucial. My coaching style was initially focused on performance, helping the CEO solve problems and execute tasks as quickly as possible. This approach was vital for building prototypes and securing initial funding from investors
However, as these start-ups grew and required broader, more nuanced leadership, my former coaching practice struggled to address the challenges of leading large organizations. My coaching had to shift from providing short-term solutions to helping the CEO guide the team in finding their solutions. This required the start-up CEO to ask the right questions, actively listen to their employees, and understand each team member's unique challenges and strengths. While this approach is more time-consuming, it scales far better than solving every problem ourselves.
My leadership practice shifted from focusing on immediate wins to coaching for long-term success. This involved helping leaders develop a deeper understanding of their team members, encouraging open communication, actively listening, and fostering an environment where everyone aligns with the leader’s vision.
Meeting Marshall Goldsmith and his team was a turning point in my coaching journey. Recognized globally, Marshall's coaching methodology, particularly Stakeholder Centered Coaching, stands out as one of the most effective approaches. Incorporating this method into my practice, alongside my performance-based coaching experience from Silicon Valley, creates a unique blend. This unique combination is designed to help already very successful executives, get even better.
THE METHOD
IT´´´´ S NOT ABOUT ME
In my work as a leadership coach, I have gone through three distinct phases.
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In phase one – I believed that my clients would become better because of me. I thought that the coach was the key variable in behavioral change. I was wrong. Research from Marshall Goldsmith based on 86,000 respondents reveals that the key variable for successful change in leadership behavior is not the coach, teacher or advisor. The key variables that will determine long-term leadership progress are the leaders being coached and their work colleagues. It is not about proving how smart I am.
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In phase two – I spent most of my time focusing on my coaching clients. I slowly learned that a motivated, hard-working leader was more important than a brilliant coach. I learned that their ongoing efforts meant more than my clever ideas. Don´t expect that it’s the coach’s responsibility to make you change. It’s not the coach’s job. It’s yours. Too many people think that a “celebrity coach” will solve their problems. That’s like thinking you’ll get in shape if you have the world’s best personal trainer. A good trainer will help, obviously, but in the end the only way you’ll get in shape is if you work out. I believe it is Arnold Schwarzenegger who said, “Nobody got muscles by watching me lift weights.”
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In phase three (where I am now) – I learned to spend most of my time not with my coaching client but with the key stakeholders around my client. I focus on helping my clients learn from everyone around them. Rather than having some coach explain to you how to be a great listener – which you can find easily online - what you need is a process of asking the people around you, “What are some ways I can do a better job of listening to you?” They’re going to give you specific, concrete ideas that relate to them—how they perceive you as a listener—not the generic ideas a coach or the internet would give. Even though they’re not experts on the topic of listening, they actually know more about how you listen, or don’t, than you do, or certainly than a coach does.
PERFORMANCE GUARANTEED
Since I use a “pay only for results” coaching process, I have had to learn to qualify my coaching clients. This means that I only work with clients that I believe will greatly benefit from my coaching process.
I do not work with leaders who are not really motivated to change. Have you ever tried to change the behavior of a successful adult that had no interest in changing? How much luck did you have? Probably none!
I only work with executives who are willing to make a sincere effort to change and who believe that this change will help them become better leaders. My most successful coaching clients are executives who are committed to being great role models for leadership development and for living their company’s values.
I have personally worked with several CEOs. One reason that they are so effective in leading people is that they are always trying to improve themselves – not just asking everyone else to improve.
WILL IT WORK FOR YOU?
While behavioral coaching is only one branch in the coaching field, it is the most widely used type of coaching for executives. Most requests for executive coaching involve behavioral change. While this process can be very meaningful and valuable for top executives, it can be just as useful for high-potential future leaders. These are the people who have great careers in front of them.
People often ask, “Can executives really change their behavior?” The answer is definitely yes. If they didn’t, my work would be meaningless. Everybody can improve their leadership behaviors.
At the top of major organizations even a small positive change in behavior can have a big impact. From an organizational perspective, the fact that the executive is trying to change leadership behavior (and is being a role model for personal development to the team) may be even more important than what the executive is trying to change.
One key message that I have given every Leader that I coach is “To help others develop and grow – be the driver - start with yourself.”
