Personal. Practical. Powerful.

We help leaders and teams challenge the way they work so they can change the way they do business.
Certification Notice
We blend big-picture thinking with attention to detail, combining behavioural science with the human realities of working as a team to create value and increase sustainability in an complex, challenging world. In the process, we help leaders and teams tackle challenges, navigate conflict, gain clarity, and simply work better, individually and together.

Our consulting, coaching, and advisory services are aimed at helping leaders and teams engage better – with each other, with clients, and other stakeholders. Often, our clients are in transition: an individual stretching into a new leadership role or a team facing external challenges or internal changes that require a fresh perspective, new structures or ways of working. Clients engage us because we bring researched best practices, real-world experience, and practical approaches to make the changes needed.

While our expertise and approaches are industry-agnostic, many of our clients work in complex technical, scientific, or highly regulated fields, such as the life sciences, healthcare, and medical devices. They may find themselves or their teams at cross-roads and needing an objective, clear-eyed partner to help spark a breakthrough. They are CEOs, General Managers, leaders of leaders or members of teams.

We are a diverse, complementary team of experts whose careers include commercial and technical leadership, direct line management, executive and Board experience, and public service. While we come from different countries, chose different fields of study, and pursued different credentialing, we are united in our desire to help leaders and teams be better, both individually and collectively.

What Our clients say

  • "Our impact as an executive team is night and day thanks to our work with Apriori. We are clearer, more aligned, and it shows in our outcomes."
  • "They are technically very good. They have a great line of enquiry and questioning. They help me explore my own path and empower me to come up with my own solutions. Working with them has been a very rewarding experience."
  • "When you get coaching from Apriori, you have a team. Their tandem coaching approach is totally unique. I was able to tap Philip’s CEO and Board experience and Joanne’s communication skills as I assumed my first CEO role. I really hit the ground running, thanks to them."
  • "They bring a unique mix of the qualitative and quantitative. They apply an evidence-based approach and this really takes away any judgement that could creep in. They create an environment in which people can acknowledge their emotions. They can build a bridge as people move from one state of mind to another. This allows critical discussions."
  • "For them and for clients, it never feels like this is just another contract."
  • "They have a great skill in asking questions. They listen very deeply and are able to distil our conversations in ways that we could not on our own."
  • "Their focus is pragmatic, practical, doable, tangible. They easily toggle between strategy and pragmatism. This is important because we are on the hook for outcomes."
  • "Our executive team has been working with Joanne and Philip for the past year. They designed and moderated our year-end review and planning meeting. We left fully aligned around our priorities for the year ahead and have already cascaded them to the organization. That clarity – what an accelerator!"
  • "They do a really good job of corralling and gently guiding people. They move us along when we get stuck."
  • "They make everyone feel seen, heard, and part of the process. They judge the problem, but not the person."
  • "Joanne and Philip are able to be in the room, but it doesn’t feel like they are orchestrating. The team always feels like we are getting there by ourselves."
  • "They have been able to find the path that aligns with me as a person. There are so many possible solutions; no wrong or right. They have enabled me to demand things from the system, such as empowerment, diversity and inclusion."
  • "I feel like I learn something new each time we work with Apriori. They make us smarter and maybe even a little kinder."
  • "When we went through a big transformation, all the structures changed, but no one really knew how to operate within them. Apriori introduced very practical, tangible ways of working that helped us make sense of it all and get back to business."

Joanne Steiner, founding partner

Joanne founded Apriori in 2000 with the aim to help clients become effective leaders who build productive, engaged teams. Before Apriori, she held executive roles within Canon USA and the American Management Association, leading the development of custom learning solutions, facilitating transformation initiatives, and designing high-engagement organizations. Joanne is a sought-after advisor, who is frequently tapped to help groups...

Amy Lakusiewicz, practice leader, coaching & performance development

Amy leads Apriori’s coaching and performance development practice. The organisations and individuals who work with her are creating better learning experiences, increasing knowledge transfer, and rethinking their approach to leadership development. Clients benefit from Amy’s experience working in technically complex environments, as well as from her knowledge of human performance and adult learning...

Reinhard Juraschek, PhD, senior advisor & strategist

Reinhard is a results-driven R&D executive with 25+ years of diverse global experience in the consumer and medical device space. He advises leaders on strategy and how they can build high-performing teams that blend scientific expertise with entrepreneurial savvy. While leading several global turnarounds for Proctor & Gamble and Johnson & Johnson, Reinhard deftly integrated matrixed functions to deliver market-relevant product innovation by defining and...

Roxane Kiefer, SUSTAINABILITY PROJECTS & RESEARCH MANAGER

Roxane joined Apriori in February 2024 to support client engagement as Sustainability & Special Projects Manager, bringing her expertise in sustainable development, climate policy, and project management. Roxane holds a bachelor’s degree in political science, psychology and Turkish and is currently working on her Master’s degree in Sustainable Development with a focus on Economics at the University of Basel...

Philip Steiner, Managing Partner

Philipp is a seasoned executive and strategic advisor who, before joining Apriori in 2015, held senior leadership roles in the US, Switzerland, Germany, and France. He advises executive and C-suite clients in highly regulated, policy-driven environments, bringing analytical depth to complex topics. As CEO of Spitex Bern, he guided the successful transformation of the 500-employee healthcare non-profit following significant cuts in public funding...

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