In this episode of the Arete Executive Podcast, I sit down with Birgit Schnelle, Certified EOS Implementer, business coach, and former health professional with a unique background spanning healthcare, leadership, and entrepreneurship.
Birgit shares her journey from elite kayaking and sports rehabilitation in Germany to building and running a successful multi-site Australian business, where she first discovered the power of the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). What began as a quest to bring structure and calm to chaos became a career-defining pivot — from leading a team of 100 staff to guiding leadership teams across Australia to achieve clarity, alignment, and traction in their businesses.
We explore how EOS helps founders and executives transform reactive organisations into cohesive, self-managed teams. Birgit unpacks the three core pillars of EOS — vision, traction, and healthy teams — and explains how applying discipline and accountability can actually create more freedom, not less. She also discusses the “Rocket Fuel” concept — the powerful partnership between the visionary and the integrator — and how identifying your natural leadership type can unlock both business performance and personal satisfaction.
Birgit shares candid stories from her own business journey, as well as case studies of companies that have gone from founder-led chaos to team-led excellence. Her insights reveal why many leaders stay “stuck in the weeds,” how to identify the right people for the right seats, and what it truly takes to shift from constant firefighting to sustainable growth.
The conversation is full of practical takeaways for founders, CEOs, and leadership teams ready to create a business that runs smoothly without relying solely on the founder. Birgit’s reflections on clarity, courage, and connection remind us that structure doesn’t stifle success — it enables it.
Key Timestamps
2:00 – Birgit’s early career in sports medicine and journey from Germany to Australia
6:00 – Running a national business and discovering EOS through Daniel Davis
8:00 – What EOS is and how it drives vision, traction, and team health
10:40 – Building structure and accountability into growing businesses
16:20 – Transitioning from founder to facilitator: finding her superpower
19:00 – The “Rocket Fuel” concept: visionary and integrator dynamics
25:00 – Managing misalignment and resolving leadership conflict
27:00 – Getting the right people in the right seats
30:00 – Family business transformation: from founder-led to team-led
35:00 – When to implement EOS: signs your business has hit a ceiling
39:00 – Slowing down to speed up — Birgit’s philosophy on life and leadership
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