René Sonneveld

About Me

I’ve spent my life navigating complexity across boardrooms, family dining tables, and international negotiations. I’ve worked and lived on four continents, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s this: what breaks teams, families, and legacies isn’t a lack of strategy. It’s what goes unspoken.

I began my career as an international tax lawyer, working in the Netherlands, Hong Kong, and Curaçao. Over time, I transitioned into executive leadership, holding roles as CEO, Managing Director, and Chairman across Europe, the U.S., South America, and Asia. I built markets, closed deals, managed crises—and yet the real learning came not from the titles, but from witnessing what happens when emotion is left out of the equation.

I’ve led business development efforts on the ground—opening the Latin American market for Germany’s Warsteiner brewery, expanding an Argentine family’s commodities business globally from Geneva, and guiding wealth strategy at UBS and Deutsche Bank. I concluded my corporate chapter at Citibank New York as Family and Corporate Governance Champion for Latin America.

But the turning point came when I began to notice the emotional undertow beneath the surface: succession stalled by fear, partnerships fraying from pride, boardroom silence masking deep insecurity. That’s when I shifted from leading companies to helping people lead themselves—and each other—with more clarity, courage, and connection.

Today, I coach:

• ‍Enterprise families, helping them navigate generational handovers, governance dilemmas, emotional dynamics, and long-term legacy.
• ‍C-suite leaders and boards, aligning leadership capacity with business transformation.
• Athletes and national teams, developing mental performance and resilience in high-pressure environments.

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I’m also deeply committed to building a sustainable future. One of my current ventures involves developing a green hydrogen supply chain between South America and Europe—linking decarbonization with local opportunity.

My academic path includes a law degree from the University of Amsterdam, an MBA from the University of Chicago, and certifications in team coaching, sport psychology, and leadership coaching. I teach at Rutgers, North Carolina State, and American University, and I serve on the Global Board of Coaching Education for the International Coaching Federation.

In August 2025, I’ll publish my first book, The Elephant in the Family Room, a reflection on the emotional forces that shape business families—and the courage it takes to face them.

In 2012, I was appointed Honorary Consul General of the Netherlands in Uruguay, a role renewed by the King in 2017 and again in 2022. While largely ceremonial, it’s not as glamorous as it sounds, but it taught me a lot about diplomacy, patience, and how culture, trust, and timing shape relationships, whether in business or between nations.

Today, I call Uruguay home, where I live with my soulmate and our five children—balancing work, family, writing, sailing, flying, a love of sports, and Indonesian cooking for friends.