Prof. Dr Wolfgang Jenewein

Between the boardroom and elite sport

For over 25 years, Wolfgang has worked as an equal with the top boards of DAX and SMI companies. He advises and coaches international corporations at board level and supports high-performance teams where the pressure is greatest – in critical situations and in phases of change. His coaching is trusted by figures such as Michelin-starred chef Sven Wassmer, world-class athletes like ski star Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, extreme sailor Oliver Heer and big-wave world-record holder Sebastian Steudtner, as well as coaches such as Marie-Louise Eta of Union Berlin and Hansi Flick of FC Barcelona. And he has stood by high-performance teams in decisive moments – from the German national football team to the Alinghi sailing team and the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, through to various clubs in the German football Bundesliga.

He lives what he teaches

His closeness to high performance is not scientific theory. What Wolfgang teaches, he lives himself: a passionate athlete, he fulfilled his dream of elite sport as a «mid-ager» and made it into the world’s top 30 in CrossFit. The foundation of his work, however, is and remains science. After studying in Munich and Innsbruck, he completed his doctorate and habilitation at the University of St Gallen, taught as a full professor at RWTH Aachen and the University of St Gallen, and received numerous awards – including «Best Teacher Worldwide» of the international CEMS programme and the «Credit Suisse Best Teaching Award». In his research and teaching, he is devoted to positive leadership, the cultural transformation of organisations, and the leadership of high-performance teams in business and sport. And it is precisely this question – how people succeed at change – that takes on new urgency today.

Leadership in the age of AI

Because few changes currently challenge leadership as much as the leap into the age of AI. Wolfgang Jenewein is among the most distinctive voices when it comes to shaping this change in a human way: he guides boards and leadership teams in making their organisations future-ready not only technologically, but above all culturally. «AI changes how we work – but whether transformation succeeds is decided by leadership. By people who provide direction, build trust and make a new mindset possible», says Jenewein.

Today, the Munich-born expert shares his knowledge far beyond lecture halls, seminar rooms and stages: as a LinkedIn Top Voice and as a columnist for Harvard Business Manager and Focus magazine, which named him one of the five most influential leadership trainers in Germany. And yet, in the end, everything leads back to the conviction that has always carried his work: the greatest lever for peak performance is unlocking people’s true potential.