Speakers

Mr. Fred Kofman

Mr. Fred Kofman is President and Chief Spiritual Officer (CSO) of Axialent. Fred has created and taught programs in leadership, personal mastery, team learning, organizational effectiveness, and coaching for thousands of executives worldwide.
Fred has led seminars in the U.S., Europe, South America, and Asia and presented his research in numerous academic institutions. Fred is the author of the book Conscious Business, which has been translated into more than 10 languages, and has published other books and publications.

Mr. Jose Angel Fernandez Izard

Mr. Jose Angel Fernandez Izard with over 20 years of professional experience in the field of Human Resources became, after the merger between Gas Natural and Unión Fenosa, Director of the Gas Natural Fenosa Corporate University.

José Ángel is a member of the EFMD’s CLIP Steering Committee, member of the advisory council of the Global CCU (Global Council of Corporate Universities) and has completed a General Management Program at IESE (2003), a Manager Development Program at Euroforum/INSEAD (1992), and a Masters Degree in the Energy Sector at the Spanish Energy Club and is a Civil Engineer by the Polytechnic University of Madrid.

Mr. Xavier Coll

Mr. Xavier Coll is currently Senior Vice-President of Human Resources and member of the Management Committee of Caixabank, one of the premier financial institutions in Spain, with 27.000 employees. He has developed his professional career in the United States, Luxembourg and Spain. In the past 25 years he has held several top management positions in the healthcare, multinational development and financial sectors.

Dr. Xavier Coll has a Master of Business Administration from University of Chicago, Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins University and is Doctor of Medicine from the Universitat de Barcelona.

Mr. Rory Simpson

Mr. Rory Simpson is currently Chief Executive Learning Officer of the Telefónica Group. He was hired in January 2011 to look after the development needs of the company’s top 1,500 executives, to lead the Telefónica Corporate University and generally drive the initiative of using “learning as a lever for transformation” in the company.

He is also an Adjunct Professor (Leadership), Associate Fellow (Imperial College, London), former Associate Dean of London Business School and founder of “Leadership Essentials”.

Rory has twice been an elected board member of UNICON, the global industry association for Executive Education.

Mr. Paddy Miller

Mr. Paddy Miller is professor of Managing People in Organizations at IESE Business School. His interests lie in the area of leadership and the management of change, and they have recently focused on the specific issues of leading change in multinational organizations. Dr. Miller’s particular approach to these areas has been to take a longitudinal perspective to organizational change, sometimes over a period as long as a decade. In line with these views, he has become extensively involved in management development issues in many organizations during the transition to globalization.

Ms. Tatjana Thiel

Ms. Tatjana Thiel is Vice President of Management Development at MAN SE. She also has responsibility for Talent Management in the global organization. She joined MAN Group in 2003 and led the Personnel Development, Recruiting and Administration in various locations and divisions. Ms. Thiel has more than 20 years experience in Marketing and Sales in international companies.

She holds a degree in Industrial Psychology from the University of Moscow, Russia and Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany.

Mr. Lutz Kaufmann

Mr. Lutz Kaufmann holds the Chair of International Business & Supply Management at WHU since 2001. He is the academic director of WHU’s Executive Development Programs, WHU’s Campus for Strategy conference, and the director of the WHU Asia Center. In April 2010, he became an Associate Fellow in Executive Education of the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford.

Professor Kaufmann teaches in many executive programs, at WHU, Oxford, and in numerous individual companies. His advisory roles and teaching activities bring him in touch with executives from around the world.

Ms. Sapna Arora

Ms. Sapna Arora is the Global Corporate Manager at ArcelorMittal University and is the Deputy to the Global Head of ArcelorMittal University. Her current responsibilities include the scope of managing & designing Training programmes and group-wide learning interventions spanning management, leadership, bespoke and functional trainings, for ArcelorMittal Worldwide. Sapna’s 16-year international career has seen her working in several industries, functions, countries and continents.

Sapna holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree in English Literature from St. Xavier’s College, Calcutta (India), a Master’s Degree in Communication from Mumbai (India) and an MBA (specialization in Marketing) from Nanyang Technological University, Nanyang Business School, Singapore, where she graduated as a Dean’s Honour List graduate.

Mr. Peter McGrath

Mr. Peter McGrath joined Royal Bank of Scotland in May 2008 and assumed the Group Head of Leadership & Performance Management. RBS employs 165,000 people and operates in 57 countries. His role also involves responsibility for the RBS Business School, which is located on the RBS Head Office campus in Edinburgh, and he is responsible for the design and delivery of executive development curricula and thought leadership. Peter  has over 30 years’ experience in HR as a generalist and a functional specialist working in financial services, media, retail and aerospace industries. His experience has also included a significant period as a Senior HR & OD consultant working in both the private and public sectors.

Mr. Joe Folkman

Mr. Joe Folkman is one of the original designers of the 360-degree survey assessment and a founder of two successful leadership development firms, Novations and Zenger Folkman. He has developed a unique, tried-and-tested method to improve organizations and develop employees by building on strengths. He is a respected authority on assessment, feedback and change, and an acclaimed keynote speaker at conferences and seminars the world over.

He is an internationally renowned psychometrician. His 30 years of expertise in survey research and change management have led him to work with some of the largest organizations in the world including: AT&T, General Mills, Conoco Phillips, & Boeing.

Ms. Camelia Ilie

Ms. Camelia Ilie has a PhD in Management from ICADE, with a dissertation focusing on the impact of management development on business strategy. Camelia holds a degree in Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Bucharest, an MBA from the Universidad Externado de Colombia and Senior Executive Program from ESADE. Prior to joining ESADE, she served for 17 years in multinational companies and business schools in Europe, U.S. and Latin America.

At present, she is responsible for the marketing strategy at ESADE Business School. Executive Education and Director of Executive Education in Madrid, and she is leading innovative training projects in Spain, the United States, Latin America and Asia.

Ms. Brigitte Durand

Ms. Brigitte Durand, a French citizen, holds a Masters degree in Economic & Social Sciences from Paris X University. After 15 years holding various event organization positions in an International convention Center, event communication agencies and freelance missions (from project manager to convention center Manager; organizing, managing & creating corporate or professional events), she chose to get closer to the HR communication sector. Campus Veolia Environment recruited her in 2006 to create the Veolia’s Trades Promotion department. She is now in charge of promoting Veolia Environment training policy, coordinating relationships between Veolia and universities and developing integration programs for Veolia’s managers.

Joan Cornet and Prat

Mr. Joan Cornet and Prat, born in Manresa (Barcelona. Spain). A Technical Engineer, and graduate in Clinical Psychology. After working as a clinical psychologist in a General Hospital, in 1979 he was elected mayor of Manresa. In 1988 he became top official in the European Commission in Brussels, and in the in 1994 in the European Parliament.  In June of 2004 he was appointed General Secretary of the Department of Health of the Government of the Generalitat de Catalonia. In September 2005 the Government entrusted him to start up the “Bioregió of Catalonia” (Biotechnology) and since January 2007 he is the CEO of the Ticsalut Foundation in Barcelona.(HIT). He has been a MBA professor on “Cross Borders Leadership” at  Free Brussels University ( Solvay School) in Brussels. He is also Professor of the University of Barcelona (IL3) and  UOC (Catalonia Open University). He has published several research papers on leadership, organizational psychology, change management and behavioural drives in organizations.

Mr. Luis Vives

Mr. Luis Vives is Associate Professor of the Business Policy Department at ESADE Business School, and Academic Director of ESADE Programs at the Universitas Telefónica and the Santander Corporate University.

Luis joined ESADE from MIT, where he was Postdoctoral Fellow at the Sloan School of Management, and won his PhD at the IESE Business School. He has taught and participated in conferences in Europe, the Americas and Asia.

His work has appeared in the Sloan Management Review, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Long Range Planning, Academy of Management Perspectives, and in a number of books on international business.

Ms. Renee Aeckerlin

Ms. Renee Aeckerlin is Regional Learning Manager EMEA at Starbucks. Renee holds a Masters degree in Education, Training & Development from Sheffield Hallam University (UK). Prior to joining Starbucks in 2006, she developed her career for 12 years in the hospitality industry with the Four Seasons Company, as Training Manager, and with Conrad Hotels, as Director of Training and Quality Assurance.

She joined Starbucks in 2006, with responsibility for the Management of Learning Strategies for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. She has focused on learning & development policies for Starbucks’ business partners, in order to help them develop in the areas that make the company successful.

Ms. April Samulewicz

April Samulewicz (born in the United States) is Global Head of Talent Acquisition CoE at Zurich Financial Services. She holds an MBA in International Human Resources from the Chaminade University, Hawaii, and has more than 15 years’ experience in Group Human Resources leadership positions.

Before joining Zurich, Ms. Samulewicz was the Managing Director for Human Resources & Operations for Bearing Point Inc., Asia Pacific and Latin America.

Ms. Samulewicz’s key areas of expertise are building strategic HR organizations and initiatives to accelerate business transformation and growth, including, but not limited to, employer branding, recruitment marketing, innovation in human capital and talent acquisition strategies and practices.

Mr. German Ramirez

German Ramirez is Global Head of Digital at Zurich Financial Services, one of the world’s leading insurance companies. He is a marketing & sales professional with vast experience in strategic marketing, innovation, new business acquisition and global brand & business development, as well as the creation, execution and management of marketing and communication campaigns across all channels. He has worked across a broad number of industries, from Consumer Markets (Cosmetics or Food & Beverage) to New Media or Strategy Consulting. As an entrepreneur, Germán has been involved in the foundation, strategy, start-up and roll-out of several successful new media-related ventures.

Mr. Josep M. Navarro

Mr. Josep M. Navarro studied occupational psychology. Josep is the Managing Director of the Aqua Development Network for Agbar and is also the Training and Development Director of Agbar.

Prior to working at Agbar, Josep has worked for several companies in positions that include Managing Consultant Director for Tea-Cegos, Assistant Managing Director for Hay Seleccion and HR Manager of South Europe for Seminis and EMEA Training Coordinator.

He is currently Professor and Coordinator of the HR Area at the EUNCET University.

Mr. Pablo Vercelli

Mr. Pablo Vercelli was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1972. After finishing his Degree in Industrial Relationships he took, again in Buenos Aires, a Masters degree in Human Resources and Organizational Change Management. Later on he completed an MBA in Warwick Business School in England. Pablo has worked for various global organizations, such as PPG Industries, ICI Paints and recently AkzoNobel, where he held a number of roles both in HR and Marketing. He is currently HR Director for the Decorative Paints business in the EMEA region at AkzoNobel.

At present he lives with his family (wife –Carmen-, and 2 children –Joaquín and Maia-) in the Netherlands.

Mr. Stefaan van Hooydonk

Stefaan van Hooydonk is an internationally recognized expert in Corporate Education and e-learning. He is currently the Head of Philips Lighting University at Philips Lighting and Board Member at Cambridge Pragmatix. Previous to his appointment at Philips, Stefaan was Head of Agfa Academy at Agfa Healthcare, and Global e-learning director at Nokia. He also has a experience at the Vlerick Leuven Ghent Management School and CEIBS, where he was Executive Education Director.