Profile: Dr Thomas Heyn AltoPartners Operating Committee Member / Managing Partner Jack Russell Consulting Munich

“Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better”, this quote by Samuel Beckett encapsulates Thomas Heyn’s view that failure is a natural part of our daily lives, however it is how you learn, grow and keep trying that is important in shaping your character. It is this strength of character and his quest for constant learning that has driven Thomas throughout his diverse and exciting career.

Thomas credits the fact that he has lived and worked in Germany, Austria, Moscow, UK and the USA as providing him with interesting learning experiences and giving him the ability to fluidly adapt his management style to suit multiple teams and clients. His exposure to the most diverse territories and cultures in a dynamic business market has turned Thomas into a truly global business enthusiast. Thomas is a lover of sport and adventure and believes that this personal passion has influenced his business style because it is all about planning, taking risks and making decisions. However, the necessity to plan is enhanced by the ability to quickly adapt to any situation changes and should be underpinned by the capacity to be culturally aware and sensitive – a quality that Thomas believes should be as mandatory for any business professional as the ability to work in Excel spreadsheets!

With over 20 years of hands-on experience in establishing and constantly improving international HR organisations within a demanding corporate environment, Thomas is credited as being a maverick that gets the job done by seeking creative and innovative solutions. In 2002, Thomas, together with Oliver Torster, founded the Executive Search firm Jack Russell Consulting where he is regarded as the creative head and visionary. Motivated by the ethos of “winning in style”, Thomas is driven by the love of helping other people to be successful and achieve their goals. Whether it is in business or on the basketball court, Thomas sets others up to take the shot and win.

Thomas’s expertise is firmly entrenched in the information technology, legal, financial and HR sectors, where he has worked across general management and all C-Suite levels. Thomas spent more than 10 years with Hewlett Packard in several European management positions, including VP Operations Eastern Europe. His move to Tektronix, a technology leader based in Portland, Oregon, as VP Human Resources EMEA, enabled him to play a central role in completing several merger and acquisitions, including the purchase of the Siemens “Test & Measurement” Business Unit and its subsequent successful integration into the parent company. Thomas then moved to Oracle’s European Organisation in the role of VP Human Resources. Tasked with meeting the company’s highly ambitious growth targets, Thomas achieved a number of notable successes, including the introduction of a Management Development Curriculum in cooperation with leading European business schools.

Thomas Heyn graduated from law school and holds a PhD in Labour Law. Thomas sits on the AltoPartners Operating Committee, responsible for new business development as well as the Communications and Marketing portfolio, and is Managing Partner at Jack Russell Consulting in Munich, Germany.