Karin Sode
Associate
Karin is an experienced strategic and commercial business leader, advisor, coach and Non-Executive Director, providing strategic partnership and leadership support to C-suite leaders and boards. Karin started coaching with Stratton in 2023.
She co-founded and led a start-up company, People’s Energy, the UK’s only crowdfunded and social enterprise energy supplier, from zero to 365,000 customers, 450 employees, and a turnover of over £500m in just four years. As joint CEO, she led all areas of the business, as well as engaging with external stakeholders, including potential investors and policy makers up to senior ministerial level within the UK government. She has also led a short-term turn-around agenda for a global leadership strategy consultancy, prior to a planned trade sale.
Karin has provided executive coaching (individuals and teams), top team strategic support, and conflict resolution services to senior executives and Boards across a range of businesses and sectors. These include tech and fintech (Skyscanner, Nucleus Financials); utilities (Scottish Power, TDC – largest Danish telecom); pharmaceuticals and bio sciences (Astra Zeneca, Danisco/Dupont); finance (RBS, Standard Life/Phoenix); FMCG (Diageo, Kerry Foods, Noble Foods) and manufacturing (Velux). Her client list also includes a series of rapid-growth SMEs and charities. She has also recently joined the Board of Social Enterprise UK.
Clients report on finding Karin incisive and insightful, supportive but also honest and direct in her challenge. She seeks to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the individual leader, working jointly with them to help them achieve ambitious goals.
Educated at the Universities of Edinburgh, Copenhagen and Jerusalem, Karin holds a PhD in linguistics/organisational communication. She is a Visiting Fellow at the University of Oxford and has guest lectured at Saïd Business School. Karin is also a Certified Practitioner, Corporate Transformation Tools (The Values Centre), accredited in psychometric tools (Hogan, Myers Briggs, Saville, Firo B, Level A), a trained team coaching and coaching supervisor (Peter Hawkins, Bath Consultancy Group) and a trained mediator/ conflict resolution practitioner (Core Mediation, Edinburgh; and Non-Violent Communication)