Bernhard Ries, PCC (ICF)

Executive Coaching Experience

Bernhard is a professionally certified coach with 30+ years at the intersection of strategy, technology, and human development. He partners with senior executives and leadership in complex, matrixed organizations, to navigate inflection points, scale leadership, and build healthy, high performing organizations.

His coaching integrates the inner and outer game of leadership: self discovery, purpose, and sustainable ways of working paired with clear choices, decision quality, and disciplined execution. Evidence based and systems minded, he is both candid and deeply supportive, helping leaders align who they are with how they lead, clarify what matters, elevate presence and communication, and build operating rhythms that turn intent into results.

Common engagements include: stepping from functional excellence to enterprise leadership; aligning executive teams on strategy, accountabilities, and ways of working; upgrading decision-making and governance; leading through transformation and ambiguity; and operating effectively in complex, matrixed, and global contexts.

Career Background

Bernhard spent over two decades at Intel in progressively senior roles spanning technical product and brand marketing, market intelligence, and corporate strategy—culminating as Head of the Corporate Strategy Office reporting to the CEO. There he led cross functional strategy, portfolio, and transformation efforts across AI, data center, and semiconductor manufacturing.

He later served as an internal executive coach, designing and scaling company‑wide coaching programs and earning the ICF PRISM Award. Today he coaches CEOs and senior teams on strategy, operating models, and culture.

Before Intel, he led e‑commerce solutions at Siemens Business Services. He has worked across Europe, North America, and South America.

Education and Certifications

Bernhard holds an M.Sc. in Computer Science from the Technical University of Munich and is a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) with the International Coaching Federation. Trained at the Hudson Institute of Coaching, he is certified to use Birkman and Hogan assessments and the 6 Team Conditions (Team Diagnostic Survey). His practice draws on adult learning and behavior‑change research and incorporates Internal Family Systems (IFS) for coaches.

Based in Mountain View, California, Bernhard has lived and worked across Europe and the Americas. Outside of work, he’s an avid skier and tennis player and a long time meditation and breathwork practitioner — passions that keep him grounded and inform his work with leaders.

Credentials

Hudson Institute of Coaching • ICF PCC • Birkman Certified • Hogan Assessments

Areas of Specialization

• Enterprise Transformation & Operating Model Design
• Strategic Clarity, Decision Quality & Governance
• Executive Team Alignment & Operating Rhythms
• Stakeholder Engagement & Cross functional Execution (Product, GTM, Finance, People)
• Leading through Ambiguity, Change & Disruption
• Executive Presence, Storytelling, and High stakes Communication
• Performance, Well-being, and Sustainable Leadership

Representative Client Feedback

“Bernhard helped me step from functional expert to enterprise leader. We clarified priorities, reset decision processes, and strengthened my executive relationships. The impact shows up in execution and culture.” — President, PE-backed software company