Meet Ana
Outside in
German by passport, globe-trotter by choice, Dr. Ana Lueneburger is a sought-after executive coach and leadership advisor with contagious energy and a flair for unlocking human potential. Ana founded Fox Meets Owl Ltd., a global leadership advisory boutique, following a 15-year career with organisations such as Danone and The Boston Consulting Group. Today she works with senior leaders world-wide, either one-on-one or with the whole leadership team.
Ana works best with determined leaders who want to grow and get results. Clients describe her as warm and intuitive, going about her work with creativity and humour. Her approach focuses on strengths, as this is where clients feel most energised and find the steepest learning curves.
Ana helps clients with:
- Practising agile leadership in complexity
- Executing on a strong, authentic leadership brand
- Transitioning into a new role with impact
- Building a winning team, delegate and empower
- Communicating effectively and navigating difficult conversations
- Influencing across complex, global organisational structures
- Prioritising, maximising resilience and energy
- Operating successfully in the boardroom
Ana has taught at INSEAD and Columbia University, is a founding fellow of Harvard’s Institute of Coaching, and serves on the HBR Advisory Council. She’s also an active member of the International Positive Psychology Association, the American Psychology Association and International Psychology Today.
Ana is a Master Certified Coach (MCC) of the International Coach Federation, held by fewer than four percent of coaches worldwide. Her work has been broadly published, from the International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching, to Elle Magazine.
Ana has trained in mediation and conflict management at Columbia University and the New York Peace Institute. She holds a PhD in business from the University of St Gallen, Switzerland, was a post-doctoral research fellow on Change Management at INSEAD and is also an accredited psychotherapist through the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).
Inside out
Bios are just snapshots. They never give you the whole picture. As Maya Angelou said, there is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you. So here’s my personal story. After all, coaches need to walk the talk.
After high school, I wasn’t really sure what to do with myself, so I enrolled in business school. And I really went for it — by the age of 27 I had secured my PhD. But also around this time, I had a freak accident and my heart stopped beating for a minute or two. A responsive medical team and pure luck saved my life.
I’d never ever experienced such a sense of fatalism and foreboding. And I felt a deep yearning to find meaning in my life. And as I entered the predictable corporate world, I was never quite the same. I began asking myself those big existential questions: Why was I here? How could I make my life matter? And who did I want in my life?
Becoming a parent helped me straighten my priorities. Hiring my own personal coach gave me greater clarity about my strengths and where I fall short. And looking forward, how I might become the best version of myself — as a team leader, as a wife, as a mother and as a friend.
Thirteen years ago, I became an executive coach myself. Since then, I have also trained as a therapist. My business experience coupled with rigorous psychological training allows me – together with my clients – to step into a safe space where transformation can happen.
I treasure my work with clients. It’s a privilege to learn their stories, to lift their worries and enable their dreams. Coaches operate in the shadows, supporting those who should be in the light.
My spare time is largely filled with family and friends. Ever the introvert, I like to recharge my batteries with a good book, often next to my loyal companion Apple, a freckled Cocker Spaniel who shows me what graceful ageing is all about.
Ana was a great listener, challenged me to think outside the box, and helped me tweak my behaviour to have the results I wanted.
Mina Papapanou
Senior Investment Officer, IFC/World Bank
A strengths-based lens
If you could just blink and do any job – regardless of experience, skills or education – what would it be? Or perhaps more tellingly, who would you be?
Most of us have set ideas about the person we’re supposed to be and the choices available to us. But maybe they just don’t feel right or do us justice.
Read more +
Because deep down, you know what brings you joy. What you’re good at. What makes you feel optimistic about your future. At your very best, you look beyond immediate rewards to focus on what’s most meaningful to you, professionally and personally.
My client work is based on the science of positive psychology, which has over two decades of published theory and research behind it. Unlike ‘positive thinking’, which relies on repetition of positive statements to change attitudes (and can be quite harmful), the concept of positive psychology uses empirical methods to build competence, boost resilience, and promote excellence.
What I believe in
Answers are within.
The answer to ‘what needs to be done’ and ‘how to do it’ is often already inside us.
Challenge and support.
Thought partnership is critical. So is candid feedback and advice that clients might not get elsewhere.
Balance.
We will find ways to manage energy together as we move towards our goals.
Laughter.
Life is too short not to have fun. Injecting some playfulness into the situation encourages creativity and innovation.
Walk the talk.
I give back by offering pro-bono strategic advice and coaching to support trailblazers and not-for-profits..
Who I work best with
My clients are already successful. They want this success to continue as they develop as people and leaders.
They work in fast-paced environments.
My clients need to juggle. Extremely well. Handling stress and finding focus are key.
They are quick and astute.
My clients learn fast. They admit to their blind spots, overcome personal blockages and cultivate strong relationships. They always want to know more.
They want purpose.
My clients seek. Not just meaning for themselves, but how they can line up their own values with their company’s values.
Who I won’t work with…
Successful change takes time and practice. ‘Quick fixes’ don’t stand the test of time. So I don’t go there. I also don’t do coaching for leaders who have been written off by their organisation and are sent to me against their will. Finally, leaders who indulge in any form of dubious behaviour will not make it onto my client list.