Sense Activator, Flamenco Dancer, Storyteller.
Over 16 years of experience in corporate design, e.g. at Merck, E.ON, BASF, Novartis, Lanxess, etc. She has already managed a design agency and is responsible for complex narratives at FocusFirst, among other things.

Contact Melanie Esteban directly

Entrepreneur, Father, Frank Sinatra Singer.
Over 20 years of experience in the global corporate environment, including several senior leadership positions. International keynote speaker, author and senior advisor for achieving goals and accelerating complex transformations.

Contact René Esteban directly.

Twenty-six years with Merck, SVP, global and regional roles, responsible for driving business transformation. Expert in Leadership, Communication and Stakeholder Engagement. Besides his Senior Advisor role at FocusFirst, David is Owner of Beganya Business Services Ltd.

Contact David Jeans directly.

Senior Leader and Coach with 30+ years of experience in Financial Services. Expert in sales, business growth and employee development and engagement. Highly skilled in building high-performing teams. Former CEO and Branch Manager Bank of New York Mellon, Frankfurt SA/NV. Besides her Senior Advisor role at FocusFirst, Kathie is Executive Coach for Teams and Leaders.

Contact Katherine Starks directly.

Experienced consultant with over 24 years of experience and certification who has worked with over 20,000 global leaders across the Finance, Energy, Chemicals, Retail, Tech and Pharmaceuticals sectors. Her expertise spans Leadership, Inclusion, Executive Coaching, Intercultural Competence, and Organisational Development. Besides her role at FocusFirst, Mui Hwa is an independent consultant, facilitator and keynote speaker.

Contact Mui Hwa Ng directly.

Biologist by training with more than 28 years of experience in the health care, life science, chemicals, and diagnostics industry. Leading large teams in global big corporates (Hoechst, Novartis, Merck KGaA) and grown-up entrepreneurial companies (Protagen AG). Coach educted by the Coaches Training Institut (CTI) – CEO Protagen AG – VP Licensing Healthcare, Merck KGaA – Head of Business Field Performance Solutions, Merck Chemicals – Head of Technology Foresight & Scouting, Merck Central Functions – Frequent member in supervisory boards

Contact Christoph Huels directly.

Experienced Change and Project Manager with over 10 years of experience in consulting and working with FTSE100 multinationals in complex, multi-cultural project environments. Experienced and certified in Change Management, Scrum, and Project Management. Besides her role at FocusFirst, Astrid is an independent consultant and co-founder of Schoolf4Life.

Contact Dr. Astrid Benker directly.

Susann Kunz is an international leadership coach and trainer specializing in transformational leadership, agile team management, and talent development. With over 15 years of global experience — including senior roles in marketing, sales, and project leadership at adidas — she brings deep expertise in guiding organizations and teams through complex transformations in matrix environments.

As a lecturer at the International University, she teaches Leadership 4.0, Organizational Design, and People Management, and advises companies on launching and scaling agile initiatives. Her focus areas include effective communication, strengths-based leadership, and implementing lean, agile, and hybrid frameworks.

Besides her Coach role at FocusFirst, Susann is Managing Director of Starke Marke Agency, she supports companies and start-ups in building or repositioning their brands and developing targeted go-to-market strategies.

Contact Susann Kunz directly.

Elisabeth merges a 14-year leadership background in technology, startups, and corporations with a deep understanding of organisational behaviour and psychology. A versatile consultant and executive coach, she specialises in supporting transformative movements in organisations. Her expertise includes being an adept OKR Coach and a certified Scaled Agile Consultant (SAFe 6.0). Besides being an Expert at FocusFirst, Elisabeth is the founder and owner of Tafelmeyer Change Consulting.

Contact Elisabeth Tafelmeyer directly.

Lawyer by profession. +35 years of experience in communications management, primarily in the tech industry. Former Director of Communications, Member of the Management Board, Microsoft Germany. Besides his Senior Advisor role at FocusFirst, Thomas is Founder of KommunikationNeuDenken!

Contact Thomas Mickeleit directly.

Over 25 years in management consulting and training in various industries and countries. Strategy Consultant, trainer, and coach for project and transformation management. Besides her Senior Advisor role at FocusFirst, Petra is Managing Partner at DKC GmbH.

Contact Dr. Petra Kring-Kardoš directly.

Expert, Senior Strategic Program Manager

Program ownership and delivery of transformational & strategic change founded in lean six sigma principles. Expert in delivering accelerated change in a range of environments & across disciplines. Sectors covered: Banking, Chemicals, Healthcare, Financial Services, Energy, Technology, Medical, Automotive, Commercial and Professional Services. Besides his Expert role at FocusFirst, Tim works as a Programme Management Consultant at BJSS.

Contact Tim Shaw directly.

An agile, curious, creative and empathetic leader and coach. Over 30 years of experience in the global corporate world, holding several positions, including eight years of leading a multinational learning and development team. Always striving to stretch her comfort zone through lifelong learning. Besides her Expert role at FocusFirst, Gerlinde works as an independent senior consultant with a focus on the pharmaceutical sector.

Contact Gerlinde Jayme directly.

Executive Coach, Change & Transformation Consultant and Communication Expert with over 20 years of experience in multinational companies in the sectors Chemicals, Energy, Industry, Software & Digitalisation. Former Head of Change & Transformation at Körber AG, and Head of Corporate Communications at tesa. Besides her Senior Advisor role at FocusFirst, Carolin is Founder of Carolin Adler Coaching. Change. Communications.

Contact Carolin Adler directly.

Twenty-five years of successful IT project management worldwide, from the telecom industry to the automotive industry. Passionate in the field of digital communication and web-based information technologies. Besides his Expert role at FocusFirst, Matthias is founder and owner of Finke Consulting.

Contact Dr. Matthias Finke directly.

Hands-on, innovative technology leader with 30+ years (including ca. 15 years in senior leadership positions) of wide-ranging technology consulting, systems integration and outsourcing experience in international, multi-lingual environments across industries and 15+ countries in Europe and Asia. Akhil focuses on IT transformation strategy and implementation, IT organisation design, delivery and sourcing models, leadership and personality development, communication skills and intercultural competence. Besides his senior advisor role at FocusFirst, Akhil is owner of XCEL Transformation Coaching.

Internationally savvy with over 15 years of leadership experience in the life sciences and chemical industry, most recently as Group CEO of Pulcra Chemicals. High expertise in stakeholder engagement, communication, and leadership. Besides his role as a Senior Advisor at FocusFirst, Ümit is an independent consultant.

Contact Ümit Yaldiz directly.

Skilled Change Facilitator and Moderator with over 10 years of experience in the global corporate world. Background in Organizational Sciences and trained in Systemic Consulting with high expertise in Change Management, Multilingual Workshop Moderation, and Management Trainings. Besides her role at FocusFirst, Anne-Cécile is the founder of acG Management Solutions.

Contact Anne-Cécil Graber directly.