« Leadership is not a role to perform but a relational process of listening, questioning, and co-creating direction — with yourself, others, and your environment.»

— Marie-Lou Poirrier

Leadership, as I see it, is a conversation.

Not a monologue. Not a performance.

A living exchange with ourselves, with others, and with the future we’re shaping together.

Like any real conversation, it’s about more than words. It’s about listening deeply, sensing what’s unspoken, asking the right questions, and making space for truth to emerge.


When leaders treat leadership as a conversation, they strengthen their mental fitness (clarity with self), relational intelligence (trust with others), and cultural presence (alignment across the organization).

That’s how trust, clarity, and momentum start to grow through connection instead of control.

I‘m passionate about the human potential, how people interact and grow together.

I believe the workplace should be a space where people feel safe, connected, and part of something meaningful. I back leaders to take up real human challenges: unlocking potential and getting the best out of their teams and themselves by enhancing trust, growth, and creativity, while preventing isolation, burnout, conflicts, and talent loss.

As facilitator and speaker I guide them to develop the emotional and relational intelligence that the sustainable growth of their business depends on, through talks, workshops, and curated spaces.

Where I Started

I didn’t begin my career in leadership training.

For seven years, I worked in marketing and design, close to business realities, immersed in different leadership styles, watching how vision, communication, and human dynamics shaped results.

I saw what worked.

I saw what broke teams.

And I began to notice: the most successful leaders weren’t just strategic. They had an unshakable connection to themselves and the people around them.

That’s what made their businesses thrive, and their lives feel whole.

The Human Lens

When my own health broke down, autoimmune illness, depression, and an incapacity to focus, I had to learn to lead myself and my life differently.

Spoiler: medicine wasn’t always helpful. Recovery had no clear map.

I had to piece it together myself, learning how the mind, body, and relationships all shape each other.

  • Through movement and somatic practices, running, and dancing, I learned to inhabit my body again.

  • Through psychology and neuroscience, I uncovered patterns and learned to unlearn them.

  • Through philosophy, I reframed meaning, freedom, and choice.

  • Through connection, I found the support and learnt to ask for help.

What began as a personal necessity became a professional calling.

I started to see patterns everywhere:

  • how a dancer leads and follows,

  • how improv unlocks creative problem-solving,

  • how subtle non-verbal cues can shift an entire conversation.

The more I learned, the clearer it became:

Our ability to lead well — and live well — isn’t about another framework, KPI dashboard, or “growth hack.”

It’s about learning the human skills we were never taught.

From Observation to Creation

L’ve studied hundreds of hours in neuroscience, psychology, and communication —
and translated that into the realities of leadership, performance, and culture.

Through my work with founders and executives, I kept seeing the same patterns:
disconnection from self, fractured communication, and cultures running on empty.

That insight became the foundation for my facilitation work:
Programs and experiences that blend science, movement, philosophy and games to help leaders and teams take on the human challenges, and businesses to thrive sustainably.

Why This Matters to Me

Early on, I thought I’d work in film, not for the glamour, but because the backstage energy felt alive, creative, human.

I also promised friends I’d one day hire them, because I couldn’t stand seeing talented people wither in workplaces that didn’t value them.

That promise stayed with me.

Now, my work is about building conditions where leaders and employees can give their best and feel human and alive doing it.

Not just because it sounds nice, but because the research is clear:

When people are engaged, connected, and supported, companies perform better, innovate faster, and attract and retain top talents

Today I help founders and executives lead in conversation — developing the mental fitness, relational skills, and cultural presence that fuel sustainable and alive success.

How We Can Work Together

Whether you’re exploring this for yourself, your community, or your entire company, we start simple:
One conversation to see what’s needed. From there, we grow what works.

1:1 Executive
Sparring

Reflective, strategic sessions that bring clarity and alignment when you’re navigating pressure, growth or stagnation.

Independent Talks &
Workshops

Inspire fresh ways of leading, from The ROI of Being Human to Leading in the Age of AI. Designed to spark awareness, connection, and conversation across teams or events.

Custom Leadership
Programs

For companies ready to go deeper — a tailored journey combining individual and group work, reflection and practice, and ongoing support to sustain real change.

Request an Intro Call
  • "Awesome speech Marie-Lou! Beside the content being great, you nailed how to make the message land 🙌🏻"

    Jose Almonacid — Co Founder Harmony Studio

  • “Her proposal is wonderful and powerful. We need this approach in our lives more than we think. Add Marie-Lou to your life!"

    Luana Ivorciuc Vatamanu — Founder Tem Osteopatia

  • "Marie-Lou, was a pleasure, everyone really connected to your message"

    Jens Sonnenborg — Co Founder Skytek, Google Partner

Questions?
I’m glad you asked!

  • Most leadership trainings give you models and frameworks. Useful, but they stay in your head — and once the workshop ends, old patterns creep back. What I do is different: it’s experiential and personal. We don’t just talk about leadership, you practice it in the moments that matter. You rewire how you respond under pressure, how you connect with people, and how you lead yourself. That’s what makes the change last.

  • Strategy only works if your people can carry it. Most growth stalls not because of bad strategy but because of hidden human issues (burnout, mistrust, lack of clarity etc.). What you call “soft” is actually the hardest edge: the human foundation that makes strategy stick.

  • The ROI is twofold. Personally, you get your energy, clarity, and presence back, which means you stop leading from reaction and start leading from awareness and confidence.
    Organisationally, when leaders shift, culture shifts: engagement rises, hidden problems surface sooner, and people perform because they feel trusted. Research shows this translates into higher retention, faster innovation, and stronger growth. The ROI is a culture that sustains your business and sustains you.

  • Success on paper doesn’t always feel like success inside. Many leaders reach the point where the business runs itself, but they feel disconnected, lonely, or stuck in the same patterns. This work isn’t about fixing what’s broken, it’s about expanding what’s possible. It’s about leading in a way that gives you energy and meaning again, deepening your relationships, and making sure success feels good to live, not just good to measure.

  • That’s exactly why this work matters. If you’re stretched thin, adding hours isn’t the solution. Rewiring how you lead is. One small shift at the top saves hundreds of wasted hours downstream in firefighting, disengagement, or turnover. This isn’t another task, it’s how you reclaim your time and energy.

  • I build a peer culture at the top. Instead of each leader carrying their struggles alone, they practice together (listening, challenging, and supporting each other). This not only strengthens the team, it sets the tone for the entire company: people learn what leaders model.