Koen Breyne facilitates peer groups for Product Management Leaders, Supply Chain & Logistics Leaders, CPOs, Customer Service & Success Managers, Facility Managers, and Corporate Communication Directors. With an MBA from VUB and a career that took him from account manager to general manager and country manager across multiple sectors, he now works as a team coach – connecting people’s behavior to their motivations and turning those insights into action. In the room, he listens as much as he speaks.
Koen says:
My entire career has been in sales – from account manager to sales director, general manager, and country manager in different companies and sectors. That experience means I can quickly picture what peers are talking about when they bring a challenge to the table. It helps me rephrase and sharpen the real issue: what is it actually about? Today, as a team coach, I also pay close attention to body language and make sure everyone gets a chance to participate – not just the loudest voices in the room.
Guests who walk into one of my peer group meetings typically describe it as open, respectful, and safe. That doesn’t happen by accident. I work with a structured approach to make sure we tackle the themes that peers actually care about. When someone uses jargon or an abbreviation I don’t fully understand, I ask – that alone signals that no question is too basic. And when someone shares something delicate or says it in an awkward way, I make sure the room stays respectful. People need to feel they are not alone in their challenges, and that their peers are not necessarily further ahead — just differently experienced.
When the network makes a difference
Being a Chair gives me personal energy – it doesn’t cost me anything, it fills me up. I get to guide a group of intelligent people, challenge them, and create an environment where they genuinely thrive. What drives me is simple: seeing people put to their strengths. More than once, someone has walked into a meeting torn between two options – should I do this, or rather that? By listening to peers who have no personal stake in the answer, they get honest, unbiased input grounded in real experience. That’s the moment I think: this is exactly what a peer group can do.