About
Anke Thiele
Anke founded The Human Link, a leadership consulting & coaching company based in the San Francisco Bay Area, to bring more awareness, humanity, and focus into organizations.
With 20+ years as a leadership coach and consultant, Anke has worked across industries in executive coaching, leadership development, organizational effectiveness, and change management with Fortune 500 companies as well as midsize and start-up companies. She has been a trusted advisor to organizations such as Google, IXL Learning, Adobe, Clifbar, CreditKarma, HotelTonight, Boehringer Ingelheim, Santen, PwC, UC Berkeley, and many other Silicon Valley companies. Anke particularly enjoys partnering with organizations that are deeply invested in sustainability and employee engagement.
In her leadership development work, Anke combines her academic background and professional experience in three areas - psychology, strategy management consulting, as well as her own leadership experience. She enjoys working with leaders to facilitate increased effectiveness and higher personal fulfillment. She focuses on skills such as emotional-social intelligence, communication, and leadership presence. Her coaching clients describe her as insightful, intuitive and goal-oriented, empowering them to reach their full potential, both professionally and personally.
Anke holds an MBA from UC Berkeley and a Masters in Psychology from Technische Universität Darmstadt in Germany. She graduated from the Professional Coaches Training at New Ventures West in San Francisco and has been certified as Master Coach (MCC) through the International Coach Federation. She serves as extended faculty and coach at UC Berkeley’s Center for Executive Education and the Haas School of Business. She is a certified teacher and facilitator of the Enneagram in the Narrative Tradition and is also certified in the EQi and EQ-360 Emotional Intelligence assessment. Having studied under Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach, Anke is also a certified mindfulness meditation teacher through UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center. As an EMCC trained and certified systemic team coach, she also partners with executive leadership teams to increase team alignment and effectiveness.
Anke’s commitment to share her insights and rich experience is also reflected in publications, such as her book “Innovatives Personalmarketing für High-Potentials”, her Harvard Business Review articles, and through developing and delivering leadership classes that incorporate cutting-edge neuroscience research on mindfulness.
Feeling passionate about her work, Anke makes sure to also enjoy spending time with her family, and replenishing her energy through running, yoga, meditation, enjoying nature and playing the piano.
Anke’s recent articles “How to Regain Your Presence in Stressful Situations”, “Introducing Yourself as the New Manager”, and “Before You Start Collaborating with Someone, Talk About Your Work Styles” have been featured in Harvard Business Review.
Extended Team
Debra Underwood
Debra is a seasoned executive coach and team development consultant, who leverages research in adult development, complexity, and systemic thinking to support leaders to look more deeply at what is true. She helps them be more effective by identifying behavioral patterns and helpful mindset shifts, creating space for more honest conversations and focusing energy towards clear outcomes. Debra earned an MBA from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business and a BS from Louisiana State University. She is certified as a Professional Coach (PCC) through the International Coach Federation and as a Team Coach through EMCC.
Jennifer Liu
Jen is an experienced global executive coach and highly engaging facilitator of leadership development workshops. She shows a fierce commitment to her clients’ growth and employs an innovative blend of experiential learning and practical skill-building. She thrives in fast-paced, high-growth environments. Jen holds a dual BA/BS in English and Business from UC Berkeley. She also graduated from Professional Coaches Training at both Coactive Training Institute and CRR Global. She is certified as a Professional Coach (PCC) through the International Coach Federation.