- Programme studied: MSc International Employment Relations & Human Resource Management
- Year of Graduation: 2008
- LinkedIn
After graduating, Katrin joined Airbus where she spent eight years working in Germany and France in a variety of their HR departments including talent management and international HR as well as holding the role of an internal team developer at the Airbus Leadership University.
In 2018, Katrin started her own leadership development company, The Globe Team, where, via an online programme, she supports and equips upcoming leaders with the necessary skills for their new roles.
Tell us about your career journey since graduating from LSE.
Graduating in December 2008, in the middle of the financial crisis, was a rocky start for my career, however, I was very fortunate to have been recruited by Airbus on their graduate programme. It allowed me to discover different areas of HR in a large corporate environment. My MSc at the LSE gave me a good foundation in a variety of areas, especially HR development and leadership, which I have benefitted from since in my work at the Airbus Leadership University and of course later setting up The Globe Team.
How did your time at LSE influence your career journey?
What was so special for me at the LSE was the international diversity of students and the strong drive of my peers to contribute to making the world a better place! As idealistic as it sounds, this made me want to connect my work in HR with doing something for the greater good, too. This is why at the end of 2017 I left the big corporate world to work for a multitude of clients, such as NGOs, political think tanks, purpose-driven start-ups, and governmental arms of development cooperations.
What has been the biggest challenge you have faced in your career, and what have you learned from it?
When I share that I left a great (and secure!) career in a large international corporate environment to start my own company from scratch, I am confronted with some confused faces. Making this decision was for sure the biggest challenge I faced, but it was the best career decision that I have ever made! The experience in HR at Airbus gave me a great foundation, network, and reputation however, now my work at The Globe Team enables me to shape leadership development topics that I care about. Running your own company enables you to identify your client’s needs and provide adequate products much faster than a large corporation.
What motivated you to start your company, The Globe Team?
As a team developer within the Airbus Leadership University, I often saw upcoming leaders not being very well prepared for their new role, which inspired me to develop the First-Time Leaders Online Community at The Globe Team. This focuses on the crucial transition phase from team member to team leader. It includes hands-on leadership tools for finding out what motivates your team members, carrying out difficult feedback conversations, balancing operational and leadership tasks, and much more. In addition, the community provides a supportive environment with lots of opportunities to exchange thoughts and ideas amongst peers from different organizations and our pool of coaches. Our participants have provided us with great feedback, including the relief of not feeling alone on their leadership journey, which continues to motivate me!
What is one piece of advice you would share with current students or recent graduates looking to follow in your career footsteps?
I would say that academia is important but shouldn't be the only thing that shapes your LSE experience! In addition to the interesting classes, I took great joy in my extracurricular activities such as being an events officer for the LSE UN Society. The skills I learnt in setting up a big networking event for more than 100 students interested in jobs in the UN were just as beneficial later on in my career as the course content! And also made for good examples of project management skills in my job interviews!
Share with us your fondest memory of the Department of Management.
My fondest memory is the people – both, the academic staff and the students! What is better than sharing classes with so many interesting characters from around the world and on top of that, being right in the middle of one of the most exciting cities in the world?! I especially enjoyed staying in touch with my LSE friends after graduation, from attending a wedding in India, meeting LSE friends in New York and Singapore, to coming together for a mini reunion in London.
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