What Bernhard Heusler Knows About Leadership That No Seminar Can Teach

Bernhard Heusler – Leadership in the Age of AI. What leadership skills are needed today and tomorrow?

There’s one question that has been on Bernhard Heusler’s mind for years. A question he’s asked both in the stadium and in the boardroom. A question he hears time and again as a lawyer, as a president, and today as a leadership expert: “A team wins – but why not ours?”

If you’re looking for answers, he’s the right person to turn to. Because Heusler didn’t get his answers from books. He lived them.

From the courtroom to the stadium, and back to the executive suites of the world

Bernhard Heusler was born in Basel in 1963. He studied law at the University of Basel, graduated summa cum laude, and earned his Dr. iur. degree in 1992. This was followed by a postgraduate program at the University of California, Davis, and a stint at the renowned New York law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell. Afterward, he spent many years working as a corporate lawyer and partner in Basel.

A classic career path. Until everything changed in 2009.

In 2009, he took over as chief operating officer of FC Basel 1893, and in 2012, he became president. What followed was one of the most remarkable success stories in European soccer: Under his leadership, FC Basel won eight consecutive league titles, qualified for the Champions League six times, and increased revenue from 30 to 130 million Swiss francs.

But Heusler wouldn’t be Heusler if he’d been interested only in the titles. What fascinated him, and continues to fascinate him to this day, is the question behind it all: How does a team that achieves great things come together? And what does that have to do with leadership?

Bernhard Heusler: The Farewell That Was a New Beginning

On June 2, 2017, Bernhard Heusler stepped onto the field at St. Jakob-Park for the last time as president. The fans stormed the field—peacefully, gratefully, and emotionally moved. They pressed an FCB flag into his hand.

Heusler: “That’s when the fans surprised me one last time. They expressed their gratitude to me in their own way, but I felt the same way toward them. I was too taken aback and moved to properly express my gratitude.”

It’s a farewell that shows what he was never about: power, applause, or self-promotion. Rather, it’s about people. About teams. About shared goals that are greater than any individual. It is precisely this attitude that he has since brought to conference rooms, stages, and leadership seminars around the world.

The book: 31 chapters. Not a single formula.

In October 2023, NZZ Libro Verlag published his book “Ein Team gewinnt immer. Mein Leadership-ABC”—31 chapters full of stories, experiences, and insights from sports and business.

Heusler himself sums up what sets it apart from other leadership books:“It’s simply not a self-help guide. There are plenty of those. My personal Leadership ABC is not intended to lecture the current president of FC Basel, nor any female entrepreneur or CEO. You won’t find any catchphrases or even formulas for good leadership in it.”

Instead: reflection. Honesty. And the rare willingness of an experienced leader to also talk about failure, doubts, and mistakes.

The book is not a conclusion. It is the next step in a journey that Heusler has been consistently pursuing since 2017—from practitioner to sought-after thinker and communicator on leadership.

What he knows today – and how he shares it

Heusler is convinced: Authenticity is the foundation of all good leadership. An authentic person acts in accordance with their convictions and is honest with themselves and others. While that doesn’t automatically make someone a good leader, it is an important foundation.

And he goes even further: “Leadership is a bit like driving a car: You steer actively, but at the same time, you do a lot instinctively.”

That sounds simple. But it isn’t. Because anyone who truly leads, not just manages, must ask themselves every day whether their behavior reflects their attitude. That requires a great deal of self-reflection.

Today, Heusler shares this knowledge as a speaker, coach, and consultant, in presentations in German and English, in interactive workshops, and as a sparring partner for executives in sports and business. He is a co-founder and partner at Heusler Werthmüller Heitz AG, honorary president of FC Basel 1893, Co-President of the Swiss Sports Aid Foundation, and President of the Foundation for Sick Children in Basel.

Who is Bernhard Heusler the right speaker for?

His keynote speeches resonate particularly with companies that realize good intentions alone do not make a good team. For executives who want to understand how high performance truly emerges, not through pressure, but through trust, clarity, and responsibility. For organizations that finally want to understand the difference between a team that functions and one that wins.

Heusler: “Responsible, decisive leadership and the ability to bring diverse people together into effective teams are key factors for success, not only in elite sports, but also in the high-performance professional world of our economy.” This statement isn’t just theory. For Bernhard Heusler, it’s his life story.

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