Beyond Winning: The Leadership Mindsets

WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management

Leadership

Application Deadline Approaching

Last date to apply: May 3, 2027 · Program starts on June 3, 2027

About Programme

Lead in complexity. Perform under pressure.

Beyond Winning is a two-day executive leadership program for senior leaders focused on leadership mindset training, high performance, and leading effectively in complex and uncertain environments. It equips participants to deliver short-term results while building the capabilities, adaptability, and performance culture needed for long-term success.

Today’s leaders face competing demands: perform today and prepare for tomorrow, provide direction and remain adaptable, exploit existing strengths and explore new opportunities. Effective leadership is not about eliminating these tensions. It is about learning to navigate them and use them to create sustainable performance.

At WHU Campus Düsseldorf, participants examine their own leadership identity, purpose, and impact while developing practical approaches to ambidextrous leadership, high performance, and leading under pressure. Through interactive learning, real-world business cases, and insights from elite sports and industry, participants translate these concepts into actionable leadership practices for themselves, their teams, and their organizations.

Programme Content

About the program

Leadership today requires more than short-term wins. Senior leaders must deliver results while building teams and organizations that can sustain high performance over time.

Beyond Winning: The Leadership Mindset is a two-day executive leadership program that translates principles from elite sports into the realities of executive leadership. Participants strengthen their leadership mindset, explore how to adapt their leadership in complex and uncertain environments, and develop practical approaches to unlocking team performance and sustaining success.

Build a high-performance leadership mindset: Explore five proven leadership mindsets and understand how mindset influences leadership behavior and performance under pressure. Learn how principles from elite sports can be translated into executive leadership.

What you will learn

The program is built around the principle Success = Talent × Training × Mindset: talent defines your potential, training builds your capability, and mindset determines how you perform in demanding environments.

Over two intensive days, you will:

Methods: Lectures, case studies, peer feedback, mindset stories, simulations, and guest contributions.

Guest speakers: Renowned athletes, entrepreneurs, and executives complement the program with practical insights.

Programme Audience

Experienced leaders (C-1) responsible for cross-functional and/or international teams

Senior managers preparing for C-level roles

Executives seeking to enhance leadership impact in high-performance contexts

Decision-makers operating in complex environments

Leaders responsible for transformation and long-term strategy

Leaders with around 10 years of leadership experience, ready to expand their mindset toolkit

Programme Benefits

Leadership today means delivering results while navigating uncertainty, pressure, and competing demands.

Beyond Winning equips senior leaders with practical leadership approaches and mindsets to:

Develop a high-performance leadership mindset and translate principles from elite sports into your own leadership context

Balance short-term performance with long-term success by understanding how to manage exploration and exploitation

Lead effectively in complex and uncertain environments and develop a forward-looking leadership stance

Strengthen adaptability under pressure and setbacks and turn ambiguity into a driver of performance

Define your leadership identity, purpose, and style rather than relying on copied models of success

Understand five proven leadership mindsets and how they influence leadership behavior, decisions, and team performance.

Strengthen strategic foresight by exploring megatrends and their implications for leadership

Clarify the value you bring to your team and translate leadership principles into concrete decisions and actions

Connect with experienced leaders and executives who lead in complex environments

Testimonials

"What I particularly appreciated about Beyond Winning was the strong practical focus and the successful transfer of insights from elite sports into everyday leadership. The combination of Talent, Training and Mindset demonstrated that sustainable high performance is not simply a matter of talent, but the result of continuous development and the right mindset. The open discussions, practical examples and diverse perspectives provided valuable inspiration and challenged me to reflect on my own leadership approach. I left the program with several ideas that I can directly apply in leading teams and driving business performance."

Volkmar Günther

Head of Sales, Railpool GmbH

"The learning session with Sascha Schmidt opened up entirely new perspectives on my personal development and potential. Combined with the mindsets that Michael Ilgner conveyed in such a clear, practical, and trainable way, this program is a must for anyone who wants to grow as a modern leader."

Paul Schif

Co-founder, Athletes Allience

"Beyond Winning combines strategic leadership, personal reflection and inspiration from elite sports in an exceptionally practical way. I left the program with fresh perspectives, concrete tools and energy for my personal growth and the leadership challenges ahead."

Jasmin Haasbach

VP Global Brand Partnerships: Head of Europe, ESL Faceit Group

Testimonial Source

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Contact us for the further details

Speak with an Advisor

Pedagogy (case method, experiential learning, coaching, simulations)
Programme Objective
Brochure

Prashansa Uttam

Programme Advisor

+91 9403890085contact@echomind.oneMon – Fri, 9am – 5pm IST

WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management

Executive Education Office

https://www.whu.edu/en/

Vallendar, Germany

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