My Story
Who Am I, Jens Heitland
I wasn’t always the innovative leader, entrepreneur, and voice for CEO legacy that you see today. My story started on the cold, dusty construction sites of Gütersloh, Germany, where I worked as an electrician. It was my first job, hands-on, unforgiving, and deeply human. I got the job because, during the renovation of our family home in the mid-90s, I was mesmerized by the invisible power of electricity. I watched the electricians work, and I thought, This is fascinating. You can’t see it, but it works. I want to learn that.
My father was well known as the local pastor, and perhaps his reputation helped my application, but the rest, I earned. Those first years taught me more than just wiring buildings. They taught me how people behave under pressure, how some lead with empathy and others with fear. I still remember the day I was unfairly blamed for following an instruction that turned out to be wrong. I was just 17, humiliated in front of the company owner. I was furious, but it shaped something in me: a deep commitment to accountability and a growing curiosity about leadership.
Even then, I began observing the people who led me, both the good ones, like Maik, who treated young workers with dignity and fairness, and the "little dictators" who led with fear, manipulation, or ego. I didn’t know it then, but I was already beginning to study leadership as a human behavior, not just a job title.
Then came the first major turning point: I was made redundant.
I still remember the day in 2004. It was a Friday, right before my annual visit to Spiekeroog. On this small, remote island, I had once completed my nine-month civil service, helping low-income families take holidays they could otherwise never afford. That island became my sanctuary. I still go back every year, except during the lockdowns.
On the day I was let go, I went to the island. On that ferry ride, I started reaching out to everyone I knew. I landed a new job within a week, but I also applied for many more, casting a wide net, including one to Deutsche Bank.
A few months later, I worked as a technician at Deutsche Bank, driving a van to service their branches. One day, I was watering plants; the next, I was fixing HVAC units or replacing lightbulbs. It was a whole new world, corporate, polished, and structured, but it taught me so much. I became the quiet observer, the "fly on the wall," allowed into every corner of the organization. I watched how executives treated their staff. I noticed who said hello and who didn’t even look up.
The experience was like working in a human behavior laboratory. The leaders who stood out were not always the loudest or most powerful. They were the ones who saw me, the young guy with a watering can, and treated me with respect. That’s when I started devouring leadership, psychology, and human behavior books. I often talked with my father, drawing on his insights from working with communities. The seed had been planted: I didn’t just want to lead. I tried to understand what made a great leader.
Over time, I moved up. I helped roll out new property management tools and processes. I took on more responsibility, leading without a title. I often found myself being the youngest person in the room, full of energy, sometimes too much of it. I had to learn to pace myself, to lead with awareness, and to respect where others were on their journey.
That mindset carried me through a series of leaps: from Deutsche Bank to IKEA, from local facility manager in Ulm to Regional Manager of 11 stores, to national roles at IKEA Germany HQ. However, the breakthrough came with my first international project: The Global Sustainable IKEA Store Project.
At age 32, I led a cross-functional global team, reporting to top executives and presenting to the IKEA Group Board. That led me to Russia, first as Head of Sustainability, then also leading Innovation & Customer Experience. Eventually, I moved to Sweden to become the Global Head of Innovation for IKEA Centres.
I led teams across countries and cultures, often without direct authority. I had to learn cultural empathy, matrix leadership, and how to build trust across time zones. My mentors at IKEA taught me something priceless: It’s all about the human.
As an engineer, that wasn’t always easy to accept. But I learned to lead by inspiring, educating, and empowering others. I saw firsthand that when people feel safe and supported, they create brilliant ideas. When they don’t, they simply comply.
And then came the train.
It was 2019. I was on a train from Copenhagen to Malmö, listening to Seth Godin, when it hit me: I’m just collecting dots. I need to connect them. I had lived in several countries, led global innovation, and worked at the highest levels, but I was still dependent. I remembered the feeling from 2004. I said to myself, "No more."
So I left.
I joined FJORD, Accenture's design and innovation arm, to learn the consulting world. But I also started building something of my own: Heitland Innovation, which is focused on human innovation ecosystems. My belief was simple: If you want to innovate a product, project, or company, it has to start with people and culture.
Then, in 2021, everything changed again.
My father passed away.
After the funeral, I sat with my daughter and listened to old radio clips of him sharing stories from the early 2000s. His voice was calm, wise, full of depth. But that was all we had. A few recordings. The rest? Gone. Memories fading.
I thought: Damn. There’s so much to learn from him, and we have nothing.
That moment hit me harder than anything in my career. It sparked a new mission. I began recording myself, daily vlogs, video reflections, learning how to share ideas so others could benefit. I studied lighting, editing, social platforms, and storytelling formats, not to become an influencer, but to help people learn. To capture thought patterns, values, and leadership wisdom before they disappear.
That’s how Heitland Media Group was born.
Today, I work only with CEOs. Not because of status, but because they set the tone for everything that happens in an organization. They often hide behind their brands, unsure whether anyone wants to hear their story. They fear it may sound like vanity. But I believe the opposite:
When CEOs share their real story, they become thought leaders people look up to and learn from, not just employees and peers, but friends, families, and future generations.
I help them make their experience visible. Their influence is tangible. Their legacy is real.
Because when a leader’s voice is amplified with purpose, it doesn’t just inspire.
It lasts.
That’s who I am. That’s why I’m here. To make sure no powerful story gets left untold.
If that mission speaks to you, maybe we’re meant to build something that lasts.
About Jens Heitland
Helping leaders turn their stories into influence, their influence into impact, and their impact into legacy.
Jens Heitland is an internationally recognized expert in CEO personal branding, leadership development, innovation strategy, and organizational transformation. Over more than 25 years, he has worked at every level of business — from electrical engineer to global head of innovation — shaping cultures, launching innovations, and empowering leaders to inspire through their actions.
Today, as the CEO of Heitland Media Group since May 2021, Jens helps CEOs around the world craft authentic personal brands, share their experiences meaningfully, and leave legacies that resonate for generations.
A Journey From Engineer to Global Innovator
Jens began his career in 1997 as an Electrical Engineer at Brockbals GmbH, where he worked for seven years, managing electrical design, customer service, troubleshooting, and maintenance until 2004. That same year he also briefly worked at Elektro Ruthmann GmbH, handling project engineering and electrical infrastructure.
From 2004 to 2007, he worked at Bilfinger (then M+W Zander DIB), serving as Electronic Infrastructure Manager in Bielefeld, Germany, delivering facility services to more than 40 bank subsidiaries, conducting audits, and improving customer satisfaction while reducing costs.
Between 2005 and 2007, he also served as Regional Project Manager, documenting and planning maintenance for all sites and implementing CAFM (Computer-Aided Facility Management) software systems.
From 2007 to 2008, Jens advanced to Deputy Country Facilities Manager, overseeing operational facility services for over 90 Deutsche Bank subsidiaries throughout Germany, managing service levels, and improving operational efficiency.
Driving Transformation at IKEA
Jens joined IKEA in June 2008 as Team Leader in Ulm, Germany, where he led strategic development of facilities services, improved energy efficiency by more than 20 percent, reduced costs by 10 percent, and elevated service quality.
From June 2009 to June 2011, he served as Regional Facilities Manager, supporting 11 IKEA stores in western Germany, improving maintenance processes, reducing costs, and building strong, collaborative teams.
Between June 2011 and June 2013, Jens worked as Country Project Manager, where he developed and rolled out a legal delegation concept and led the implementation of a CAFM system in Germany on time and within budget.
From June 2012 to June 2017, he served as Global Project Manager, developing IKEA’s sustainable store concept, piloting it in Germany, introducing life-cycle cost analysis, and embedding sustainability into the real estate strategy.
From June 2014 to June 2017, Jens was Head of Sustainability at IKEA Centres in Moscow, where he embedded the People and Planet Positive strategy, achieved measurable sustainability goals across sites, and shifted organizational mindsets toward sustainability.
In July 2016, he became Head of Innovation and Customer Experience at IKEA Centres Russia, where he built and trained the first innovation team in Russia, delivering innovative pilots including a virtual reality fashion show, personal shopping assistant, and neighborhood co-creation project, as well as establishing a cross-organizational innovation lab. He held this role until June 2017.
From June 2017 to June 2019, Jens served as Global Head of Innovation at IKEA Centres, where he designed and implemented the global innovation system, developed scalable processes for scenario planning and prototyping, and embedded innovation thinking into leadership roles worldwide.
Business Design and Executive Leadership
From August 2019 to December 2020, Jens worked at Fjord (Accenture) as Business Design Lead, integrating human-centered business design into client organizations in retail, banking, and professional services while enhancing internal collaboration and business design culture.
At Foot Locker EMEA, from June 2022 to May 2025, Jens served as Director of Facilities Services, where he developed an innovative office lab concept, reorganized the service delivery model to improve customer satisfaction by 80 percent, and executed an EMEA-wide tender for integrated facility management.
Entrepreneurship and CEO Branding
In August 2019, Jens founded Heitland Innovation, where he guided organizations across industries through people-centric transformation in the United States, United Kingdom, Sweden, Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, and Spain.
In May 2021, he launched Heitland Media Group, where he currently serves as CEO, helping CEOs globally transform their leadership experience into influence and measurable impact through personal branding and storytelling.
From October 2022 to April 2025, Jens co-founded and served as CEO of WeAreSucceed, where he developed the Succeed Leader Index, a data-driven tool adopted by hundreds of professionals, teams, and founders to measure and improve leadership performance.
Speaking, Teaching, and Mentoring
Since January 2014, Jens has been a sought-after keynote speaker, delivering talks at renowned organizations and events including Airbus, Bank of America, Bayer, BAT, Mobile World Congress, Berlin Fashion Week, Invest in Africa Summit, Copenhagen Institute for Future Studies, and many more. His keynotes blend personal narrative with actionable insights, leaving audiences inspired and ready to take meaningful steps.
He has served as a Lecturer at the University of Amsterdam since September 2022, teaching corporate innovation and entrepreneurship through action-based learning.
Since December 2021, Jens has also mentored at StartUB! Universitat de Barcelona, where he has helped founders refine business models, secure funding, and develop leadership skills.
In June 2023, he became a mentor for 4YFN – Four Years From Now, contributing to the Women Innovators Programme in partnership with the UNDP, supporting women-led startups in the Arab States.
From July 2023, he also mentors at Rockstart in Amsterdam, helping energy startups navigate go-to-market strategies and scale their innovations.
Community Leadership
Since January 2025, Jens has been the Country Organizer for 24 The Planet Germany, leading a sustainability movement with its pilot event in Munich. He also founded the Rising Stars Community in August 2024, a global platform empowering thought leaders, speakers, and innovators to build strong personal brands and careers.
Recognized Impact
Across his career, Jens has delivered more than 25 innovation pilots, corporate acceleration programs, and labs, with many adopted permanently into organizations. At Foot Locker EMEA, he improved customer satisfaction by 80 percent, while at IKEA Ulm he reduced energy use by 20 percent and costs by 10 percent.
He developed IKEA’s sustainable store concept and piloted it in Germany, created the global innovation system at IKEA Centres, and mentored over 200 founders, students, and executives. His speaking engagements have inspired thousands of professionals worldwide to embrace authentic leadership and innovation.
Vision and Mission
Jens believes that leadership is a responsibility to inspire, innovate, and leave a legacy that matters. His mission is to help leaders discover their authentic voice, articulate their story with purpose, and turn their experience into measurable impact.
By blending strategic insight, global experience, and authentic storytelling, Jens empowers others to grow — as leaders, innovators, and human beings.
If you are ready to make your story count and create a legacy worth remembering, Jens Heitland is ready to help you make it happen.
