Sometimes a new perspective is all it takes to set everything in motion.
Sometimes it is a moment that suddenly opens up a different view. A story that resonates. A real-world experience that makes it clear: There is another way. Those are exactly the moments I bring. Not as theory, but from real leadership practice. So that it does not end with a simple “that was interesting” — but with the impulse to truly see things differently and do things differently.
Inspiring keynotes & speaking topics
For corporate events, I offer keynotes and talks on HR, modern leadership, women in leadership positions, and AI. If a topic sounds interesting for your event, please feel free to send me an email. The content can be tailored to your company.
Untangling AI knots: Why leadership comes before software
AI is not an IT project you can simply delegate; it is a management responsibility.
Many companies are falling behind because they view AI as a technical issue. Yet the real lever lies in how we make decisions and delegate responsibility. Learn how to radically shorten decision-making paths and build real momentum without losing your company’s identity. AI starts at the top — with the courage to adopt a new architecture.
Ideal if you…
see AI not as an experimental playground, but as a strategic turning point
Female Leadership 2.0: The power of intuition in the age of algorithms
Women lead differently — and that is exactly what matters now
AI now provides everyone with the same information. The difference no longer comes from knowledge, but from decisions.
This is precisely where many women have a major strength: listening, recognizing patterns, understanding people, and deriving smart paths from that.
This keynote is about how you can use these skills intentionally. Not as a “soft skill”, but as real leadership strength.
Learn why a new kind of leadership is needed right now — and how women can shape it with confidence.
Ideal if you…
recognize that AI is reshaping hierarchies — and opening up a new playing field for female leadership.
HR in the fast lane: From service provider to future architect
Ideal if you…
want to rethink decision-making structures instead of merely digitizing processes.
AI is changing everything — except the question of what we stand for.
AI makes us faster, but speed without direction is blind. In a world where data seems to anticipate every decision, managerial judgment becomes the most important resource. AI may make us faster, but it does not relieve us of responsibility — it merely raises the stakes. When the pace increases, the crucial question is: How do we stay in control instead of merely reacting to algorithms? It is about the tension between efficient data and human values. In the end, your own leadership personality remains the final filter for quality and ethics in the company.
Ideal if you…
want to actively shape the balance between efficiency, judgment and ethics at C-level.
Substance beats speed.
How to make your organization crisis-ready before the numbers explode.
Start-ups rarely fail because of the idea — but almost always because of their own growth spurt. When the informal rules of the early days no longer apply, culture and leadership often cannot withstand the massive pressure. Scaling starts in the mind long before the numbers explode — and this is where HR becomes a vital key function rather than mere admin support.
It is time to dispel the myth that agility is just about colorful frameworks. If you want to turn the corner, you must maintain the balance between your start-up DNA and necessary professionalization. Investors now pay far more attention to leadership maturity and cultural stability than to polished business plans. Make your organization crisis-ready for the next phase — with structure, not just speed.
Ideal if you …
as a founding team feel that leadership and culture no longer work “on the side”.
AI gives us data, but no direction. In a world full of algorithms, human values are the decisive compass.”
My experience on stage and in companies
In recent years, I have had the privilege of working with a range of companies and organizations and providing impulses on topics such as leadership, HR and AI. The following references offer an insight into these collaborations.
Interview + magazine
AI does not replace leadership: Why technology is a cultural issue
In an interview for New Work Evolution 2026, I make it clear: For me, AI is not merely an IT project, but a central transformation task for the C-level. As technology increasingly takes over administrative tasks, the true core of leadership moves even more into focus — empathy, vision and ethical responsibility.
In modern collaboration between people and AI, technology can provide data and speed up processes. Yet as a leader, I still see myself as the company’s moral compass. Potential analysis also shows this: AI can make performance more transparent and objectively visible. However, the final assessment of ambition, development potential and cultural fit remains a profoundly human decision.
My conclusion: If you introduce new tools but do not truly lead, you will lose your team. Real AI competence requires emotional intelligence more than ever.
Startup Valley magazine
HR as a scaling engine: Substance wins
Start-up success is not decided by the idea, but by the resilience of structures. When informal rules fail during growth, HR becomes a strategic key function.
True scaling requires agility rooted in mindset, cultural resilience in the face of setbacks, and structures that grow along with the company without suffocating its DNA. Investors now look for leadership maturity rather than just KPIs. Because in the end, the team that combines growth with substance wins.
Issue of March 27, 2026 | HR as a driver of start-up success
Tech Conference
International HR Tech Conference: The Leading Event for Global Mobility, HR Innovation & People Tech
On November 18, 2025, Leipzig became the hub of HR innovation, and I am delighted to actively help shape the International HR Tech Conference as an ambassador, speaker, and jury member.
My highlights from the conference
Panel talk: Together with Daniel Zinner and others, I discussed the theses of my new book “HR in the Biotech Start-up”. We examined how leadership, innovation and culture need to be rethought in the tension between agility, resilience and digitalization. Impulses for change: It is about courage and mindset — and the important question of how we anchor HR in the company so that real, sustainable change can emerge.
People Tech Award: As a member of the expert jury, I have the opportunity to evaluate and honor the most innovative solutions in the field of People Tech.
For me, the International HR Tech Conference is more than an industry event — it is a plea for technology to serve people, not the other way around.
Meeting recording
PeopleTech in SMEs: Change management as a success factor
As part of the GPM Talk, Maike July discussed the digital transformation of HR work in small and medium-sized companies together with a panel of experts. The focus was on how change management can accompany the introduction of digitalization and automation (PeopleTech) in a way that ensures people are not left behind.
The talk made it clear that technological innovation in SMEs can only realize its full potential when cultural acceptance and clear leadership processes go hand in hand. I provided valuable impulses on strategically embedding HR technologies to make SMEs not only more digital, but also more resilient for the future.
Are you planning to introduce PeopleTech in your company? I would be happy to support you in shaping digitalization not only as an IT project, but as a successful cultural change. Let us take a look together at how technology and people can become a dream team in your organization.
Executive LinkedIn Live:
Human meets AI — leadership reimagined
In an inspiring Executive LinkedIn Live, Maike July discussed how heart, values and high tech can form a new, effective unity. At the center was the conviction that artificial intelligence is not a replacement for humanity, but its most important ally in a modern leadership strategy.
The talk’s three core perspectives:
AI in HR strategy: How technology can meaningfully support processes from recruiting to people development without losing focus on the individual.
AI in coaching: How targeted tools promote reflection and structure, thereby improving the quality of consulting.
Ethics & values: Why trust and clear values must form the foundation as soon as AI enters work with people. A plea for a future that emerges not in spite of, but through humanity — and an invitation to leaders to find the courage to connect empathy and efficiency.
Female Business Networking
INSPIRE! Female Business Networking: Impulses for the next level
At the INSPIRE! Female Business Networking event at NRW.BANK, the power of female entrepreneurship took center stage. As a panel speaker, Maike July had the pleasure of sharing valuable impulses on scaling and strategic leadership with around 60 founders and entrepreneurs, together with other experts, under the motto “Take it to the next level”. In an atmosphere full of openness and energy, numerous “aha moments” emerged about the courage to grow and the necessity of continually redefining one’s role as a leader.
The platform initiated by Düsseldorf’s business development agency once again highlighted how crucial exchange and mutual empowerment are for long-term business success.
An inspiring day that showed: True innovation needs visibility and a strong community to turn visions into tangible success.
Rethink leadership in the age of AI — let us talk.
My keynotes do not deliver buzzwords, but food for thought that reimagines leadership and makes the future shapeable.
My focus areas:
AI in SMEs:
Why culture beats even the most expensive software — and how leadership teams can set the course now.
Women in leadership:
How female leaders can maximize their visibility and redefine influence in the age of AI.
Future HR:
Why people strategy becomes a question of survival — and how you can develop your HR department into a strategic power factor.
Decision intelligence:
How to preserve our judgment in a data-driven world and lead with values.
