Nicole Lauchart-Schmidl
Nicole has been guiding people and organizations through change processes for more than 25 years. She grew up in a village, surrounded by nature, and learned early on how much strength lies in real relationships – between people, and with the world around us. That shaped her path: Nicole began her career in psychosocial counseling for people with complex trauma at the ESRA association. The experience sharpened her sense for what it means to be human, for relationship dynamics, and for genuine resonance.
She went on to work at Siemens AG and Österreichische Post, where she got to know complex, historically grown corporations from the inside. In systemic consulting, she deepened her expertise in organizational development and leadership. With the founding of her own company, the ‘Institut für Potentialarbeit’, she took on entrepreneurial responsibility herself. Nicole knows, from her own experience, what it feels like when nobody else is accountable for the result at the end of the month.
Where complex structures meet human behavior, the real solutions are rarely found in a manual. Nicole works there with a cool head, a warm heart, and a touch of humor. She has a sharp eye for the detail that matters and uses vivid language to make the invisible visible. When things get messy and dynamic, she picks up speed and steers teams and leaders safely through rough waters.
What is the main focus of your work at dwarfs and Giants?
- Agile systemic transformation processes
- next:land organizational design
- Guiding purpose quests and vision quests
- Leadership development programs
- Establishing a coaching culture
- Introducing and supporting new work practices
What have been your most important learning experiences?
Clearly, my three children. Guiding them on their path to independence.
Is there a quote that particularly inspires you?
The I emerges through the You.
(Matthias Varga von Kibéd, drawing on Martin Buber)
This sentence has stayed with me since the beginning of my career, and still does, in organizational consulting today. Organizations are a web of relationships that we can shape.
The purpose of dG is about “wholesome organizations”. What does wholesomeness mean to you?
To me, wholesomeness means being in real contact – with myself and with everything around me: my organization, my clients, my family, our world. Real contact always means taking responsibility instead of looking away. For example, when a leader notices something is off in the team, the pressure is high, and they address it anyway, even when it's uncomfortable.
