By Manfred Kets de Vries In many organisations, the top executive team is described in heroic language. It is said to be the “strategic brain,” the “guiding coalition,” the “engine room,” the “place where the future is made.” These descriptions are...
By Oriane Kets de Vries and Alicia Cheak “Our simultaneous need for closeness and distance is a fundamental reason why people often find it so difficult to work successfully in groups and teams.” – Kets de Vries Most leaders don’t need to be told...
Last month, we explored how psychodynamic team coaching transforms team effectiveness. We examined how it surfaces the emotional and relational forces beneath performance. This month, we shift from why team coaching works to what makes it work...
When organisations invest in leadership or team development, the question inevitably arises: What’s the return on investment (ROI)? In an age of budget constraints and strategic accountability, demonstrating the impact of coaching interventions is...
In the Hedgehog Effect: Building High-Performance Teams, Manfred Kets de Vries discusses why it is important to acknowledge and embrace the inherent complexity of teams. He refers to the dilemma of the Hedgehog, as presented by the philosopher...
As a follow-up to our previous post on Future of Work trends, KDVI Research Associate Alicia Cheak delves into a particular trend that caught her attention: performance management practices shifting from controlling employees’ work to empowering...
By Manfred Kets de Vries (2015) "Group Coaching is second to none to have executives sing on the same page" The challenge for many senior executives is to get everyone, from top to bottom, on board to make their organisations work—to implement...
We caught up with Programme Director Margot Schumacher and asked; Why Group Coaching? The Group Coaching Practicum (GCP) will give you the confidence to work with the psychodynamic-systemic approach in group and team coaching. It will allow you to...
Manfred Kets de Vries, 2005 "Effectiveness of group leadership coaching" In this article, Manfred Kets de Vries advocates the effectiveness of group leadership coaching. The argument is made that although one-on-one coaching can be highly...
Oriane Kets de Vries is CEO and owner of the Kets de Vries Institute. She leads a global team of coaches, consultants and educators dedicated to developing reflective, emotionally intelligent leaders and cultivating workplaces where people can thrive. In her faculty role, she draws on extensive experience designing and directing leadership programmes for senior executives, contributing her expertise in psychodynamic coaching, organisational culture, and transformational leadership development.
Oriane has served as consultant, coach, and programme director for clients including Pictet, Deutsche Bank, Merck, UBS, Mishcon de Reya, and Engie, and she has taught on open-enrolment programmes with leading institutions such as Cambridge Judge Business School, Oxford Saïd, INSEAD, ESCP, ESMT and CEDEP. Her interests centre on the human side of leadership, particularly identity, creativity, entrepreneurship and gender dynamics. She holds an MBA and Executive MA in Coaching and Consulting for Change from INSEAD, has trained at the Harvard Kennedy School, and brings more than a decade of professional experience in creative and entrepreneurial industries into her work with leaders.
Manfred Kets de Vries is a pioneering authority in leadership development, coaching, and organisational change. He is a founder and director of the Kets de Vries Institute (KDVI) and served as Distinguished Clinical Professor of Leadership Development and Organisational Change at INSEAD. With academic credentials in economics (University of Amsterdam), management (MBA and DBA, Harvard Business School), and psychoanalysis (trained in Canada), he brings a uniquely interdisciplinary perspective to leadership. His work bridges management theory and clinical insight, establishing him as a global thought leader in executive coaching and transformation. At INSEAD, he founded the Global Leadership Centre and led the flagship programme The Challenge of Leadership for 31 years. He also served as scientific director of Coaching and Consulting for Change, an 18-month Executive Master’s programme that has shaped over 3,000 senior leaders and executive coaches worldwide. He has advised and coached senior executives at global firms including Goldman Sachs, BP, Shell, Unilever, McKinsey, and Volvo. A prolific author of over 60 books and 400 articles, his work appears regularly in The Financial Times, The Economist, and Harvard Business Review. Recognised by Le Capital, Wirtschaftswoche, and The Financial Times as one of the world’s top 50 management thinkers, he is widely regarded for advancing more human-centred approaches to leadership.
Senior Adviser (Luminary) at Accenture and executive coach with over 12 years of board experience. Formerly a banker and McKinsey consultant, Yulia has led banking transformations in digital, agile, organisational change, and talent development. Her coaching spans the finance, tech, and consumer goods sectors, blending technological insight with emotional intelligence to guide leaders through transformation. Recently, she advised BBVA on agile methodologies and senior talent development. Influenced by thought leaders such as Manfred Kets de Vries and Gabor Maté, Yulia brings an analytical, reflective approach to leadership. She has lived and worked across the UK, Spain, the US, and Russia.
Elizabeth has worked closely with Manfred Kets de Vries for many years and has served as a Senior Lecturer and Research Fellow at INSEAD. Her extensive background in leadership development spans organisational consulting, executive coaching, and academic research. She holds advanced degrees in Organisational Development and Clinical Organisational Psychology and is a certified Coaching Supervisor through the Tavistock Institute. Her doctoral research explored experiential domains in executive education, and she has authored or co-authored numerous academic articles, case studies, and books on leadership and organisational dynamics. Elizabeth led the development teams behind KDVI’s diagnostic instruments, including the GELM, OCA™, and ITI. Drawing on her diverse training and global experience, she brings deep cross-cultural insight to her work with leaders worldwide. Originally from California, Elizabeth has made France her home for over 30 years.