For Organisations

Executive programmes · Workshops · Advisory

Iris Schneider is W3 Professor of Social and Organizational Psychology at the University of Cologne. Before moving into academia, she worked for several years in industry in the Netherlands — in assessment and recruitment consulting, and in training and quality assurance at an internet provider. That background shapes how she works: her research addresses problems organisations actually face, and she translates findings into formats that practitioners can apply.

Her research asks what happens when people encounter conflicting evidence, mixed signals, or competing values — in individual decisions, in teams, and in how leaders are perceived and judged. She holds a Research Fellowship at the USC Mind and Society Center, leads the Ambivalence Research Collective (an international, interdisciplinary research network she founded), and serves as Speaker of a university profile area. Her work is supported by the Excellence Cluster ECONtribute and DFG funding. She teaches Global Leadership at Cologne and in CEMS, the international business school network.

What she works on

Why decisions stall when the evidence points both ways The psychology of ambivalence: what it is, why it paralyses, and what moves people through it.
How visible uncertainty affects whether a leader is trusted What happens to credibility when a leader publicly weighs both sides — and when that helps or hurts.
Reading and managing ambivalence in teams How to recognise mixed signals in a team, and how to work with them rather than around them.
Why stated preferences do not predict behaviour The gap between what people say they want and what they actually do — and what that means for surveys, strategy, and hiring.
Self-leadership and growth through discomfort Based on the Leading for Growth programme: how to use difficult emotions and conflict as a development resource rather than a problem to eliminate.
German leadership in international context How leadership styles shaped by the German system are read differently abroad, and how to close that gap.

Formats

Keynote

A 45–60 minute talk for conferences, company all-hands, or opening sessions. Content is tailored to the audience and occasion.

Half-day or full-day workshop

Coaching-style, with exercises and group work rather than frontal teaching. Participants leave with tools they can use the following week.

Executive programme session

A module within an existing programme — MBA, EMBA, leadership academy, or in-company track. Can be repeated across cohorts.

Company programme

A multi-session engagement designed around a specific challenge: a restructuring, a leadership transition, a culture initiative.

Selected commentary

Expert contribution on leadership in Germany
Submitted September 2026 — publication pending

If you are putting together an executive programme, planning a company event, or looking for someone to work with a leadership team on any of the topics above, get in touch directly.

iris.schneider@wiso.uni-koeln.de