How do you summarize 57 years of living here? All these experiences and memories that I have.
Especially since my job is to listen and ask good questions, not tell about myself 🙂
So maybe my best showcase will be Customer Reviews,
But on the other hand, I understand that we want to know whom to trust with our dilemmas.
My name is Ryszard Skarbek. I am a certified coach.
I am also a Mentor and HR Advisor.
I mainly work in the areas of mentoring and business coaching
with middle and senior managers.
I help leaders working in large corporations, as well as board members and presidents of medium-sized companies.
Many years of experience in the field of HR allows me to support HR Managers, HR Directors, and heads of global HR functions in large organizations, in particular, those that work
in the shared service center model.
I have 32 years of professional experience. Over 20 years spent in an international, multicultural corporation as a manager and head of global functions. So I know the realities of the "corpo-world", all its pressures and unwritten rules.
I am an IT specialist by education and an HR specialist by choice.
This rare combination of IT and HR is supported by a very strong experience in the field of project management in both classic and agile methods.
I have been working in the HR department for over 12 years. I started my regular coaching adventure in 2012 after obtaining the Performance Coach (CfPAC) and Executive Coach certificate at the British Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM), which follows the path of Sir John Whitmore, co-creator of the GROW coaching model. The result of the certification was the start of regular coaching practice.
At the moment, I have over 1,000 hours of individual coaching sessions behind me.
I also participated as a pro bono Mentor in various mentoring programs, conducted e.g. by the Business Leaders Foundation, Project Management Institute, and WomenGoTech.
For several years I have been (and still do) cooperating with the Krakow School of Business which is operating at the University of Economics.
I was also the leader and passionate advocate of a project aimed at implementing a coaching style of management in the global service organization where I worked (Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, with over 600 employees). You can find my full professional profile on LinkedIn.
At the beginning of 2020, I left my corporate job and decided to start my own journey.
I started alone, and today I am happy to see how the originally created "About me" section
changed to the "Meet Our Team" section.
Privately, I am a husband and a proud father of two adult sons. I live in a village near Krakow and I appreciate the simplicity of idyllic life more and more. From this perspective, the "twist" of today's world is much clearer. After intellectual effort, I take a brushcutter or a shovel/rake and go to the garden.
I was also fascinated by wood and metal. I have been restoring for several years
old farm tools. Who knows, maybe the next step will be a sculpture...
Breaking news: I painted my first painting at the age of 55! And since the beginning of 2022, I have been painting regularly. I would have never ever expected this (of myself) 🙂
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Coach and Mentor
Ryszard Skarbek
I am the Mentor of the English edition
Mentoring Program
run by the Business Leaders Foundation
I am a Mentor in postgraduate studies
Executive MBA Program
conducted by the Cracow School of Business
I was a Mentor in the fifth edition of the Mentoring Program run by
the Polish branch of the Project Management Institute (PMI)
I am a member of the EMCC
I am a member of the European Mentoring and Couching Council
(EMCC for short) - Europe's largest organization associating professional mentors and coaches.
Selected Certificates
The following photos and scans confirm obtaining the appropriate certificates.
Full information about the training and development programs
I have completed can be found on my LinkedIn profile.
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Coach Ryszard Skarbek - Client Opinions
I cordially invite you to read the opinions of clients with whom I have worked.
Opinions apply to both individual coaching and mentoring.
They come both from people with whom I worked under an individual contract, from Executive MBA postgraduate students, from managers and leaders for whom their company decided to choose this form of support, from presidents of companies, as well as from charges with whom I worked as a volunteer as part of mentoring programs organized by NGOs.
I hope these opinions will help you find out what measurable benefits coaching brings
and what clients of Empowerment Coaching particularly appreciate in this cooperation.
Gosia, P2P Manager
Rysiek is, in one word, a TREASURE (after all, the name obliges!)
I came to Rysiek looking for many answers regarding my future career, focusing in particular on finding a path for myself. I was a bit lost, I felt that I was not in the right place and I was looking for a change, but I also couldn't answer the question of what else I could do and how to go about it.
From the first session, I knew I had found the right person. Already at the first meeting, Rysiek was able to touch strings in me that I didn't even know existed :) His extraordinary sensitivity and empathy make a person feel safe and thus not afraid to open up. Rysiek drew my attention to many important issues, each time doing it in an unusual, calm, attentive way. I know that without his support I wouldn't be here - I learned to 'stop' in difficult, sometimes inconvenient moments, realizing what is important to me, and I saw how with little steps you can build something big
- a change in yourself.
Thank you Rysiek for this wonderful journey into yourself, for your patience, peace, and sense of security that you build during each session. I am happy that I met you on my way and that you shared your wisdom, knowledge, and experience with me.
Agnieszka, HR Manager
I am really happy to work with Rysiek. I turned to him for help in designing my new career path.
Thanks to this help, not only did I have a new job that gives me real satisfaction, but I also became aware of my natural talents, values, and needs that I had put aside for a long time.
Rysiek is not only great at working with questions, but he also chooses the right exercises and development tools that have brought me a lot of valuable information about myself.
As if by the way, I took advantage of his rich experience in the HR area and "disenchanted" various myths in which I once started to believe.
Rysiek, thank you for our cooperation and the atmosphere you can create during talks. I've always felt that you were listening, and I especially thank you for showing me what I haven't heard myself.
Kamila, Trainer
I came to Mr. Ryszard at a crossroads in my career, at least that's what I thought at the time. During our meetings, we performed an audit of my competences and strengths.
Well-selected exercises helped me diagnose the areas in which I want to develop, taking into account the goals I want to achieve.
It was much easier for me to define them, thanks to Mr. Ryszard's outstanding active listening skills, which helped me see things that were important to me in a broader perspective of my values.
Thanks to our meetings, I believed and trusted myself more. With this feeling, it is easier to make decisions that are good for me, because I am more aware of what I want and what makes me happier.
I am calmer, so I can choose more consciously and I no longer feel the overwhelming time pressure.
Life coaching with Mr. Ryszard was a great adventure, thanks to which I regained my inner compass and I feel that I am now going through life at a good pace and reaching the stations I want. I look into the future positively, I know what challenges I want to take on, I don't take on too much and I know I can handle it.
Mr. Ryszard, thank you once again for our cooperation and I heartily recommend it to you.
Marcin, Head of IT
It's rare to find an HR specialist who understands IT people well. Rysiek has extensive knowledge in both areas and can quickly access his knowledge base to provide very specific examples.
But above all, Rysiek helped me organize my thoughts and very skillfully showed me what I was doing wrong as the head of a relatively large IT department.
Thanks to cooperation with Rysiek, my stress level at work decreased significantly. I also learned to think differently and talk to people differently. I understood the importance of communication and my thinking about leadership at work changed.
Thanks to cooperation with Rysiek, I not only feel more confident as a boss, but also can cooperate much better with key clients. After a few months, I also noticed a change in the attitude of my direct subordinates and I understood that the change in my behavior was the decisive factor.
I highly recommend working with Rysiek. Not only is he a very experienced professional, but he also has something about him that makes you open up and become ready to work through your internal limitations.
Rafał, CEO
Mr. Ryszard not only provided me with comprehensive support in developing my business, but also discussed in detail the key measures and procedures that enable monitoring progress and making strategic decisions regarding the future of the company.
Additionally, Mr. Ryszard demonstrates an extraordinary ability to actively listen - in case of doubts, he asks precise questions that help to thoroughly understand the situation.
To sum up, Mr. Ryszard is an excellent business psychologist and advisor who can identify helpful strategies, support decisions and define processes that help analyze risks.
Andrzej, CEO
First of all, Mr. Ryszard has enormous knowledge.
He can also skillfully select knowledge pills that clearly present the essence of the matter.
He taught me a new way of thinking about business. Having such a sparring partner to talk to is extremely valuable.
Especially when the going gets tough.
As a human being, he seems to have a unique gift for listening and catching important details. His questions sometimes push me to the wall. When he feels that we are facing something important, he does not let us escape from it.
He is always professional, punctual and flexible. I really liked that he didn't stick to the clock and when we were discussing something important he had no problem with extending the session beyond the set time. You can see that he is committed and wants the client to gain something from each conversation.
And what is very important, cooperation with Mr. Ryszard helped me organize not only my professional life, but also my private life.
I sincerely recommend it!
Tomasz, CEO
I sincerely recommend working with Mr. Ryszard Skarbek.
Conversations with Mr. Ryszard allowed me to look at the business from a much wider perspective. Thanks to this, our sessions are a conversation not only about personal development in the context of managerial skills but also about human development.
I really appreciate Mr. Ryszard as a trustworthy person with extensive personal and professional experience, but above all as a partner who is open to talk about all topics.
Coaching with Mr. Ryszard goes far beyond the generally accepted scheme of personal development, opening up the possibility of finding balance and freedom in life.
I believe that this is especially important in a world filled with a constant pursuit of success and information.
Each of our meetings gives me a lot of positive energy and will to live.
Rafał, CEO
Before meeting Mr. Ryszard, I did not know what managerial coaching is. Thanks to our cooperation, first of all, I understood the difference between coaching and mentoring.
Second, I was happy to start using both of these support methods. Of course, led by Mr. Ryszard.
I didn't think so much could be gained from working with questions. Ryszard Skarbek has helped me stop and make the best decisions many times. Simply put: it helped me to realize what mistakes I am making and how much influence my behavior has on the people who work in my company.
A few "effective corrections" have changed the atmosphere in the company dramatically, and I work with much less stress.
I would wish such an experienced "HR specialist" to everyone 🙂
Krzysiek, Head of IT
Thank you, Rysiek, for our journey together so far.
For helping me organize my complicated world, which revolves around long working hours, high emotional stress, and climbing the career ladder.
For the fact that thanks to your advice I answered the fundamental questions: do I want to be here and does what I do give me a sense of personal satisfaction? You drew my attention to important things, gave me simple tools for self-reflection, and built a new value in my head with each meeting,
which everyone around me uses today
from colleagues, through friends, and ending with family.
You are not only a great coach, and mentor with many years of experience, but also a good friend who does not judge, but even approaches difficult topics with an extraordinary level of emotional intelligence, calmness, and serenity, which is provided immediately after the session begins.
Thank you again and see you soon :)
Adam, Project Manager
I had the pleasure to participate in the Program,
in which Ryszard was my mentor.
Thanks to his insight, I reformulated my goals, made them more precise, and created a specific plan for their implementation.
Ryszard also helped me to get to know myself better and led to a discovery that was a big surprise for me.
Thanks to Ryszard, I also learned to think better about matters important to me and I learned techniques that are already working and will surely be useful in the future.
I heartily recommend Ryszard as a mentor. His experience, and his ability to listen, catch important things, and ask accurate questions really make a difference.
Mateusz, Project Manager
I had the great pleasure of meeting Rysiek, who was my mentor for half a year.
It was one of the most important chapters in my life and it will definitely leave its mark on my private and professional life.
Careful listening, empathy, professionalism, and many years of experience allowed Rysiek to discover after the second joint session where the cause lies.
Thanks to the gradual introduction of questions and observations, the seeds finally planted began to sprout. The awakened thoughts started to fall into place and I, following the blow, made changes at home.
By asking accurate questions and showing a different view, Rysiek made me realize how much I adapted to the new environment in which I found myself and started pretending to be someone I was not. He opened me up again. He restored my mental balance and rebuilt my self-confidence and self-esteem.
Adam, Project Manager
I worked with Ryszard as part of a mentoring program.
Although I came to our meetings with a specific question about my career, Ryszard quickly realized that the crux of the problem was elsewhere. Thanks to this, I have a better understanding of my approach to planning and setting goals that I can use in every area of my life.
Ryszard is a very open, empathetic, and attentive person. It allowed me to open up in important areas, and Ryszard's very accurate questions accelerated reaching important conclusions.
Despite the high pace of work, I have very positive memories of each meeting, mainly due to the atmosphere created by Ryszard
I definitely recommend it!
Magda, HR Director
Ryszard Skarbek has this "something" about him, which makes it easy to open up and you get the feeling that someone is listening carefully. You can feel it in all his attitude. In addition, it is extremely professional, which inspires great confidence.
He can flexibly change his style and act equally effectively as a Coach and Mentor. I turned to him looking for the support of an experienced HR Mentor, and in a way, I took advantage of it a lot in the area of my personal development. Ryszard is not only an experienced Mentor but also a very good coach.
Thanks to his patience and great intuition, I found out that
that there are no shortcuts in important matters.
Big changes, important changes, and perhaps most importantly - permanent changes. Thank you!
Michał, Vice President of the Management Board
Ryszard quickly became known as a person with a lot of experience in life and business, a conversation with him allowed me to look at some things from a completely different perspective.
He can hear a person very effectively, even if the problem is presented in a rather chaotic and complicated way 😉
Ryszard helped me through the difficult moment that appeared in my life, and now we are working together on development and goals for the future.
I sincerely recommend and encourage all people who feel that they should change something in their lives and want to find in themselves new amounts of energy.
Tomasz, Manager Logistics
Ryszard has an amazing gift of listening. He heard in my words that which I myself did not hear or realize.
He can ask very accurate questions, sometimes so accurate that there is silence. But he doesn't interrupt her. It does not impose your opinion, it creates a comfortable atmosphere in which you feel wise support and you are not judged.
Thanks to this, I worked through a few topics that hurt me and discovered solutions that would not have occurred to me before.
Even people on my team noticed my change and started asking me what training I was in.
Monika, Manager Procurement
Remarkable empathy. Wisdom and maturity. A lot of experience feels. But not imposing their opinion. And this peace. But not idleness.
Rysiek can push down. It did not allow me to escape from the confrontation with my main challenge, and this confrontation and appropriate work on the subject, now turned into a specific action, bring better results than I expected at the beginning.
Thank you!
Agnieszka, Finance Manager
I am glad that I found Rysiek at the right moment in my life, when I really needed the support of an experienced coach.
During the following sessions, slowly, without rush, I worked through the areas and topics that were important to me.
Thanks to Rysiek's extensive professional experience, his patience, the ability to ask very accurate questions, empathy and excellent listening skills, I reached the source of my limitations, realized them and learned to talk about them openly, which gave direction to the next stages on the way to an important change for me.
I have made many surprising discoveries and made a very big step in my personal development. During the session, we managed to build a partner relationship based on trust and openness.
Without the help of Rysiek and his coaching skills, I would not have reached the point where I am now in a relatively short time. Thank you.
Tarkan, Head of Export Sales
Ryszard Skarbek has helped me regain my confidence, helped me simplify and pin down my personal and business objectives, and provided me with tools that I can use to check myself in balance, making me realize that there is more to life than just work itself.
Working with Ryszard I’ve achieved challenging career objectives which seemed impossible at that time, and improved personal and professional relationships. His techniques not only allow you to realize your strengths but also teach you how to put them to use. He is a trustworthy, patient, skilled listener, and wise person through life experiences in pursuit of achieving goals.
If I must mention one single most important takeaway from my sessions with Ryszard, it would be “know when you need to let go and not to worry over things that you do not have control over instead focus on a contingency plan that would get you through”.
I’m a more confident and fulfilled person today as a result of Ryszard’s coaching and I highly recommend Ryszard as a career and life coach.
Andrei, HR Director
Ryszard Skarbek is a gifted colleague and his expertise is completed by a powerful intuition and the ability to see through situations and people.
Ryszard will always find a way to help you and in his role, he does it with diplomacy and humbleness while offering you very effectively the gift of coaching. His way of using his sense of humor coupled with asking the right mind-provoking questions is always encouraging thinking.
Ryszard has the natural ability to manage tough situations
and he always does it with calm and empathy.
Can, Director Global HR Services
Ryszard is an experienced functional HR Leader with x-experience in IT function. At the same time, he has built working knowledge and hands-on experience in Change Management and Internal Consultancy. He can provide advice and guidance to more junior people on Project Management thanks to his extensive experience built in IT and HR functions.
I enjoyed partnering with Ryszard over seven years, most notably, he served me as a thinking partner when I needed to make important decisions.
I take this opportunity to mention my gratitude to Ryszard for nudging my inspiration for doing the right things for people and PMI as well as supporting me during the implementation phases of such initiatives.
Iza, HR Project Lead
As a fresh people manager, I could always count on Rysiek's advice and support. He's always eagerly shared his knowledge
including mistakes for me to learn and not to repeat.
However, it is his almost supernatural skill to create a soothing atmosphere accompanying our discussions & meetings that has been most astonishing to me.
his complements Rysiek's inborn composure and acquired expertise much broader than just the HR area and makes Rysiek a great supervisor, coach, and mentor.
Anna, HR Project Manager
Ryszard Skarbek is a highly skilled professional having an array
of various experiences. I had the pleasure to be guided and coached by him, what helped me to discover how complex subjects can be simple and how easily to spot an opportunity in an issue.
At the same time, I know very few people who could be so much supportive to challenge the status quo and encouraging to reach out for much greater accountability. His wisdom and composure make every conversation pragmatic and fulfilled with lifelong advices.
Agnieszka, Director Finance
Ryszard was an excellent coach - very calm, balanced and focused on developing his coachees. I've learned a lot from him, and he helped me to understand and improve a lot about myself.
Agnieszka, Marketing Manager
I highly recommend Ryszard Skarbek as a coach. He is a good observer and listener, a balanced and understanding person. Really makes you feel empowered!
Monika, HR Manager
I was privileged to be part of the team managed by Rysiek
and this experience has left a lasting footprint in both my professional and private life.
As a manager, he was able to truly lead and inspire his team, focusing in his role always on people and their growth.
I have always found him exceptional in building authentic and trusting relationships. He has been a go-to person for me when I needed support or advice as I had confidence in his experience, wide perspective, pragmatism and a genuine wish to help.
Renata, HR Manager
As a seasoned professional with natural coaching talents
Ryszard Skarbek in his role of internal coach has supported employees in their journey of learning and development from where they are to where they want to be.
His ability to cultivate the necessary trust and respect has allowed individuals to overcome barriers often stopping them reaching their own top performance and reach their own full potential.
Rohit, Global HR Services Executive
I would like to recommend Rysiek very highly. His enthusiasm to develop people around him (Coaching and Mentoring Skills),
He is very high on self-discipline, His Analytical skills and ability to work with numbers and conclude appropriately, Ability to manage complex organizational projects involving difficult stakeholders with ease.
All in all he is a rare resource with very high Project management, People Development and Management Skills. He is a great resource to have within the team and organization.
Grzegorz, CEO of the Internet Portal
Ryszard Skarbek is a type of "old school" manager who pays the same attention to objective realization and team coaching at the same time (due to strong people understanding competency Ryszard is able to influence on own team performance and their satisfaction from work).
A very calm and cooperative person who is always ready to help. I can admit that his coaching ability is on a high level.
You have read the opinions of my Clients. What now?
What more can I do to help you decide?
You got to know my profile, experience, and customer opinions about me.
If you found a topic there that you come up with, I encourage you to take the last step
and arrange a free, no-obligation introductory session.
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Work for a cause,
not for applause
Live Life to express,
not to impress