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The People
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Podcast #20

#20 – Michaela Matus | Chief People Officer (CPO), censhare

About the guest
Michaela is an energetic people leader passionate about shaping organizations and cultures of trust and impact. Her mission is to create an employee experience that enables all team members to develop and grow in an inspiring work environment. Michaela believes that building human connections within an innovative, collaborative mindset is key to aligning the demands of our volatile, digital working world with individual needs. Join us as we dive deeper into Michaela's vision and learn how she strives to bring together people and products to create a #bettertogether experience.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #20

#20 – Michaela Matus | Chief People Officer (CPO), censhare

About the guest
Michaela is an energetic people leader passionate about shaping organizations and cultures of trust and impact. Her mission is to create an employee experience that enables all team members to develop and grow in an inspiring work environment. Michaela believes that building human connections within an innovative, collaborative mindset is key to aligning the demands of our volatile, digital working world with individual needs. Join us as we dive deeper into Michaela's vision and learn how she strives to bring together people and products to create a #bettertogether experience.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #19

#19 – Thomas, Amiel & Stratos | Rewards, compensation, bonuses fireside chat

About the guest
In this podcast episode with Amiel and Stratos, the hosts discuss various topics related to rewards and incentivization. We explore the EU 2023 Directive, the gender gap, and pay transparency. Then, we delve into a conversation about best-in-class grading, job titles, and the effectiveness of rewards schemes. They also address listener questions on topics such as sign-on bonuses, the impact of rewards on profitable growth, and tips for young rewards professionals.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #19

#19 – Thomas, Amiel & Stratos | Rewards, compensation, bonuses fireside chat

About the guest
In this podcast episode with Amiel and Stratos, the hosts discuss various topics related to rewards and incentivization. We explore the EU 2023 Directive, the gender gap, and pay transparency. Then, we delve into a conversation about best-in-class grading, job titles, and the effectiveness of rewards schemes. They also address listener questions on topics such as sign-on bonuses, the impact of rewards on profitable growth, and tips for young rewards professionals.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #18

#18 – Jakob Gillmann | Co-Founder HiPeople

About the guest
Jakob Gillmann, the Co-Founder of HiPeople, is an innovative entrepreneur with a passion for revolutionizing the way companies approach talent management. With a keen understanding of the modern workforce, Jakob has leveraged his expertise in HR technology to create HiPeople, a cutting-edge platform that empowers organizations to make data-driven and people-centric decisions. His entrepreneurial spirit and strategic vision have driven the success of HiPeople, like his deep industry knowledge, leadership skills, and commitment to disrupting the HR landscape. With a track record of driving innovation and delivering results, Jakob Gillmann is a recognized thought leader in the field of talent management.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #18

#18 – Jakob Gillmann | Co-Founder HiPeople

About the guest
Jakob Gillmann, the Co-Founder of HiPeople, is an innovative entrepreneur with a passion for revolutionizing the way companies approach talent management. With a keen understanding of the modern workforce, Jakob has leveraged his expertise in HR technology to create HiPeople, a cutting-edge platform that empowers organizations to make data-driven and people-centric decisions. His entrepreneurial spirit and strategic vision have driven the success of HiPeople, like his deep industry knowledge, leadership skills, and commitment to disrupting the HR landscape. With a track record of driving innovation and delivering results, Jakob Gillmann is a recognized thought leader in the field of talent management.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #17

#17 – Hannes Schmidt | Chief Business Builder at Exxeta

About the guest
As the Chief Business Builder at Exxeta, Hannes Schmidt is a dynamic leader who empowers teams to independently arrive at optimal conclusions through his unique leadership style of freedom and responsibility. With a proven track record in driving strategic accounts, Hannes is skilled at developing and executing innovative strategies to achieve business objectives. Passionate about addressing climate change, he envisions a future with car-free cities. Hannes fosters a culture of accountability, creativity, and collaboration, empowering his teams to take ownership of their work and drive meaningful results.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #17

#17 – Hannes Schmidt | Chief Business Builder at Exxeta

About the guest
As the Chief Business Builder at Exxeta, Hannes Schmidt is a dynamic leader who empowers teams to independently arrive at optimal conclusions through his unique leadership style of freedom and responsibility. With a proven track record in driving strategic accounts, Hannes is skilled at developing and executing innovative strategies to achieve business objectives. Passionate about addressing climate change, he envisions a future with car-free cities. Hannes fosters a culture of accountability, creativity, and collaboration, empowering his teams to take ownership of their work and drive meaningful results.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #16

#16 – Andreas Schmitz | Chief People Officer NanoTemper Technologies Ex-Roche | Ex-SAP

About the guest
Andreas is a dedicated family man, experienced senior leader, and passionate advocate of human-centric leadership. With a background in basketball, he brings a unique perspective to his leadership approach. Andreas has a proven track record of driving positive change in people and culture, having led HR functions at reputable organizations such as SAP and Roche. Currently, he is spearheading the growth transformation at NanoTemper Technologies, a biotech startup. Andreas runs his own podcast - With People. For People.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #16

#16 – Andreas Schmitz | Chief People Officer NanoTemper Technologies Ex-Roche | Ex-SAP

About the guest
Andreas is a dedicated family man, experienced senior leader, and passionate advocate of human-centric leadership. With a background in basketball, he brings a unique perspective to his leadership approach. Andreas has a proven track record of driving positive change in people and culture, having led HR functions at reputable organizations such as SAP and Roche. Currently, he is spearheading the growth transformation at NanoTemper Technologies, a biotech startup. Andreas runs his own podcast - With People. For People.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #15

#15 – Dr. Alexander Insam | Partner at GÖRG, Lawyer, Employment Law Expert

About the guest
Dr. Alexander Insam is a seasoned expert in remuneration and labor law and sustainable decision-making, with over 12 years of experience advising banks on compliance with laws, regulations, and guidelines for compensation systems. He helps banks balance compliance and competitiveness, drawing on his extensive experience with over 30 major institutions. Alexander also has a passion for craftsmanship and mechanical watches, which inspire his innovative approach to finding practical and sustainable solutions for his clients. He occasionally works as a mediator, particularly in the aviation industry, and shares his knowledge through LinkedIn to help navigate the regulatory complexities of BaFin, EBA, and the EU.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #15

#15 – Dr. Alexander Insam | Partner at GÖRG, Lawyer, Employment Law Expert

About the guest
Dr. Alexander Insam is a seasoned expert in remuneration and labor law and sustainable decision-making, with over 12 years of experience advising banks on compliance with laws, regulations, and guidelines for compensation systems. He helps banks balance compliance and competitiveness, drawing on his extensive experience with over 30 major institutions. Alexander also has a passion for craftsmanship and mechanical watches, which inspire his innovative approach to finding practical and sustainable solutions for his clients. He occasionally works as a mediator, particularly in the aviation industry, and shares his knowledge through LinkedIn to help navigate the regulatory complexities of BaFin, EBA, and the EU.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #14

#14 – Carrie Krehlik | Biopharma Executive | Private and Public Company CHRO

About the guest
Carrie is an experienced HR executive with expertise in strategy, managing global organizations, team leadership, and M&A. She is known for advising and influencing in complex organizations, and has a reputation as a systems thinker and well-rounded leader. Her passion lies in executive leadership, mergers & acquisitions, leadership development, and organizational effectiveness, among other areas of expertise.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #14

#14 – Carrie Krehlik | Biopharma Executive | Private and Public Company CHRO

About the guest
Carrie is an experienced HR executive with expertise in strategy, managing global organizations, team leadership, and M&A. She is known for advising and influencing in complex organizations, and has a reputation as a systems thinker and well-rounded leader. Her passion lies in executive leadership, mergers & acquisitions, leadership development, and organizational effectiveness, among other areas of expertise.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #13

#13 – Marie Toby | People Leader & Community Builder

About the guest
Marie is a strategic and creative thinker who excels in leadership, coaching, and advisory roles. She is known for being generous and hands-on when it comes to managing people. Marie is passionate about shaping the future of work and making a positive impact on people's lives and her expertise and dedication make her a highly valuable leader in driving positive change and shaping the future of work.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #13

#13 – Marie Toby | People Leader & Community Builder

About the guest
Marie is a strategic and creative thinker who excels in leadership, coaching, and advisory roles. She is known for being generous and hands-on when it comes to managing people. Marie is passionate about shaping the future of work and making a positive impact on people's lives and her expertise and dedication make her a highly valuable leader in driving positive change and shaping the future of work.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #12

#12 – Catharina Riedl | COO of SAP Germany

About the guest
Catharina Riedl, the COO of SAP Germany, is in charge of the sales and service organization that includes ~2500 people. Catharina is a humble and creative individual who loves exploring new ideas and approaches and values transparency, honesty, and being a dependable team player. Catharina encourages having fun and embracing everyone around her to create a positive change within the organization and her passion is designing, creating, and building things.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #12

#12 – Catharina Riedl | COO of SAP Germany

About the guest
Catharina Riedl, the COO of SAP Germany, is in charge of the sales and service organization that includes ~2500 people. Catharina is a humble and creative individual who loves exploring new ideas and approaches and values transparency, honesty, and being a dependable team player. Catharina encourages having fun and embracing everyone around her to create a positive change within the organization and her passion is designing, creating, and building things.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #11

#11 – Aki Friedrich | Director Learning Exp. Superside

About the guest
Aki is a talent development expert who is passionate about creating learning cultures within modern, busy work environments. He believes in confronting hard truths such as disengagement and overconfidence while embracing the potential of workplace learning to develop and retain talent. Aki strives to drive initiatives prioritizing impact over glamour and creating a culture of psychological safety combined with high ambitions.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #11

#11 – Aki Friedrich | Director Learning Exp. Superside

About the guest
Aki is a talent development expert who is passionate about creating learning cultures within modern, busy work environments. He believes in confronting hard truths such as disengagement and overconfidence while embracing the potential of workplace learning to develop and retain talent. Aki strives to drive initiatives prioritizing impact over glamour and creating a culture of psychological safety combined with high ambitions.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #10

#10 – Amiel Barrimond | Director Total Reward, Payroll, People Analytics & People Technology, AUTODOC

About the guest
Amiel Barrimond is a Total Rewards professional who is passionate about creating solutions and problem-solving within the Rewards arena. With hands-on experience in all aspects of reward design and management, Amiel believes that the reward function should be robust and agile, yet flexible enough to move with changes in the business and regulatory environment. Amiel's expertise includes executive and general compensation, incentive design, policy, structure and governance, benefits, performance management, job evaluation, career frameworks, and pay range design.
Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #10

#10 – Amiel Barrimond | Director Total Reward, Payroll, People Analytics & People Technology, AUTODOC

About the guest
Amiel Barrimond is a Total Rewards professional who is passionate about creating solutions and problem-solving within the Rewards arena. With hands-on experience in all aspects of reward design and management, Amiel believes that the reward function should be robust and agile, yet flexible enough to move with changes in the business and regulatory environment. Amiel's expertise includes executive and general compensation, incentive design, policy, structure and governance, benefits, performance management, job evaluation, career frameworks, and pay range design.
Here you find the whole episode
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Podcast #9

#9 - Virgile Raingeard | Founder & CEO of Figures

About the guest

Virgile is the founder of Figures – the first product allowing start-ups and scale-ups to know if their compensation philosophy is fair. He has a diverse background of studying computer science and working as an engineer as well as did a master’s in human resources and worked as an HR Director and compensation specialist.

Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #8

#8 - Daniel Vonier | Leadership & Org-Dev Consultant Ex-SAP | Siemens | TIER

About the guest

Daniel is a proven expert on the future of work, an independent „leadership developer“ and (HR) organizational consultant, systemic coach, author, and guest lecturer at various universities.

Through his exposed and global leadership roles at Siemens, Deutsche Telekom, and SAP, he brings in-depth experience and broad expertise in Leadership & Talent Development, Organizational Development, and Culture Change from some of the most prominent Dax corporations.

He is the author of several publications and last year released his new book „Unlearning Hierarchy“ – A Journey into Self-Organization.

His mission: to make work, leadership, and organizations more present- and future-ready through his contribution as a consultant, org developer, facilitator, and keynote speaker – for him, that means, more adaptive, effective, and meaningful.

Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #7

#7 - Katerina Cerveny, Ex-Adobe | Tesla | UiPath

About the guest

In this podcast, we’ll explore the recruitment at tech giants with Katerina Cerveny, a recruitment professional with extensive experience from Tesla, UiPath, and Adobe. Katerina has worked with a variety of clients, from startups to global brands, and has developed effective recruitment strategies for her clients. 

Learn from Katerina’s expertise in recruitment and her experiences working with some of the biggest names in the tech industry.

Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #6

#6 - Anna Ott | VP People, HV Capital | Kienbaum

About the guest

Anna Ott is VP People and responsible for ESG initiatives at HV Capital, one of the leading VC funds in Europe. She has more than two decades of experience in HR, focussing on start-ups. She’s worked with venture builders, incubators, and venture capitalists‘ portfolios. 

Before HV Capital, Anna worked as an independent consultant. Her clients spanned corporates, SMBs and start-ups. She also advised various European HR Tech start-ups.

Anna is part of Capital Magazine’s „Top 40 under 40“. She is also acknowledged as an „HR Influencer“ by various leading magazines in this space.

Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #5

#5 - Martina Ruiss | Ex-Director Talent, Personio

About the guest

At McKinsey, Martina was responsible for hiring new consultants into their German and Austrian offices with a focus on diversity. She also spent time in Dubai improving the Middle East hiring processes and attracting top talent from UK and US universities into all EMEA offices. In her final two years at McKinsey, Martina co-managed all German/Austrian hiring efforts.

In 2018, she joined Personio as their Head of HR and later as Director of Talent. Under her leadership, the company grew from 50 to 1,400 employees in just 4 years. Martina understands the challenges that come with hyper-growth and is experienced in maintaining a high hiring bar.

Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #4

#4 - Stefan Ries | Ex-CHRO SAP, HR Punk

About the guest

Stefan Ries is a highly experienced Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) and Labor Relations Director. He served in these roles at SAP SE and was a member of the Executive Board with global responsibility for HR. 

With a background in executive roles at companies like Microsoft, Compaq, SAP, and Egon Zehnder International, Stefan is also passionate about sports, particularly German football, tennis, and European Handball. 

These days, he enjoys supporting HR tech startups as a business angel and is an external advisor for McKinsey on digital transformation projects.

Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #3

#3 - Sonita Uijt De Haag | Builder not a Bureaucrat

About the guest

At multiple companies, Sonita managed the entire employee experience cycle from employer branding, through talent acquisition and onboarding, to structured compensation and employee growth. With this, she owned P&L responsibility and operational excellence. 

Long before diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging were a trend, cross-cultural management and diverse teams have been her passion. 

She is a serial builder, whether it’s planning life, or growing a company, Sonita enjoy collaborating with others to create structure and plans that make sense for all involved as you can hear from the episode.

Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #2

#2 - Romy von Roeder | Ex-SVP People TIER

About the Guest

Romy is a seasoned HR professional with over a decade of experience in both corporate and startup environments. She believes that the key to success lies in the perfect balance between structure and agility.

Romy’s passion is to help people and organizations grow both strategically and operationally. 

With a strong focus on HR development, she has expanded her expertise to include all aspects of HR management and is a skilled networker who loves to connect with people.

Here you find the whole episode
Podcast #1

#1 - Thomas Kohler | Podcast Host, CEO pplwise

Show Summary

The People Factor Podcast, hosted by Thomas Kohler, co-founder of pplwise, explores the impact of talent, HR function, executives, leaders, and managers on business performance in various stages of an organization’s lifecycle. 

In the podcast, Thomas interviews leaders from startups, scale-ups, and corporates to gain insights into the importance of the people factor in driving business success. The podcast provides a platform for leaders to share their opinions, principles, and best practices and discuss current news. 

It also offers future leaders from different organizational stages a place to listen and get inspired, shaping their ideas for success.

Here you find the whole episode

About the podcast

Welcome to „The People Factor,“ where we explore the role of the people function in driving business success. 

We will dive into top organizations‘ strategies, tactics, learnings & failures to drive strategic objectives impacted by the people function.

Thomas chats with industry experts and thought leaders about news, the latest trends and best practices related to develop an organization. 

Tune in to „The People Factor“ to learn how to unlock the full potential of your team and organization.

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Thomas Kohler

Podcast Host | Co-Founder & CEO pplwise GmbH

He started his HR career in recruiting at a Viennese B2B fintech and subsequently led talent acquisition departments at two Unicorns. Within the last six years, he scaled organizations from 50 to over 3,000 employees across Europe. He then co-founded pplwise with Mina Golesorkhi to help companies achieve their growth goals. pplwise specializes in recruiting & consulting in HR.

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