About me
Life is
an expedition.
You need goals to move forward — and you have to pay attention so you don't miss the here and now.
Where I come from
From the garden into the world.
I come from the Black Forest, and I remember standing in my parents' garden as a teenager, longing to finally leave the small town behind and conquer the wide world. I studied in Mannheim and Budapest and did internships in the United States and Thailand.
After graduating in business administration I started out as a management consultant, moved to an investment company and made my career in the financial industry. As an internet pioneer I was responsible, together with a team, for building Germany's first digital investment account. After a good ten years I became Global Head of Marketing at the Italian banking group UniCredit in Milan.
The turning point
The higher I climbed, the less it meant.
The further up the career ladder I went, the less meaningful what I was doing seemed to me. A decisive turning point was the birth of my daughter Mara. She has Down syndrome and looks at life from a different angle. She lives in the here and now and has a fine antenna for moods. Few people have shaped my life as strongly.
In 2011 I ended my career in the bank's top management. That winter I spent two months in the convent on Frauenchiemsee island and thought about the future. I noticed how much my title, my function and my role in a large organization had held me up. It felt like free fall and like a fresh start at the same time.
What came of it
Two feelings at once.
I trained as a mental coach. In the process I learned to work deliberately with contradictory feelings. We are never only badly or only well; in every moment there is something good and something demanding. Tackling the demanding part with resolve while consciously taking in the good — that is the art that matters.
Since then I have worked as a sounding board for people in leadership and I am Managing Partner of MLI Leadership Institut. Professionally, I am satisfied when I see that light in the eyes of the people I work with — because a connection has become clear to them, or because they have found a goal they can look forward to.
Home
Diessen am Ammersee.
I live with my wife Celia, our three daughters and our dog Fritz at Lake Ammersee. Chance brought us here. Much of it reminds me of my youth in the Black Forest — and the experience of the journey so far makes it a home today in which I feel sheltered.
I am committed to practical climate and nature conservation and volunteer to help young people find their mission. In my free time I write literary prose, I like being outdoors and in motion, and I'm fond of a fire under a starry sky. And deep down I'm someone who enjoys doing nothing at all — when the inner taskmaster allows it.
Zukunftsallianz Mensch und KI
A space to think, not a business.
The Zukunftsallianz Mensch und KI — the Future Alliance for People and AI — sets out to provide constructive impulses for a working world in which people and technology act together. To that end we are developing a vision worth striving for and exchange views regularly on current developments.
The circle brings together entrepreneurs, board members and specialists in artificial intelligence. It is limited to twenty-five members — and I am one of its founding members. If you are interested, write to me.
In the press
Wirtschaftswoche, March 2021.
In March 2021 the German business weekly Wirtschaftswoche devoted a long feature to coaching. Under the headline “Du kannst es besser” — “You can do better” — it examines what makes coaching work, and how executives find the right coach.
I am presented there as one of three leading executive coaches in Germany. The label executive coach is open to debate. The assessment I was glad to read.
Contact
Two ways to start a conversation.
Both lead straight to me — not into a queue. I answer emails personally within two days.
Introductory call
A first conversation about your biggest challenge — not a sales pitch. You choose the time yourself, without back-and-forth emails.
Book an introductory call ↗By email
A few sentences about what is on your mind are enough. Rather talk right away? +49 151 22397593
s.morgner@leadership-munich.org