Annette Schüller has never been one to take the easy path. Throughout her career, she has consistently chosen challenging opportunities that pushed her beyond familiar territory.
A German-American lawyer with a prize-winning PhD, she was on track for a prestigious career path in private practice in Germany. However, a move to London to join her now husband marked a turning point when she discovered that her qualifications and experiences couldn’t be put to use in the English legal market. Fortunately, as a qualified New York attorney, she secured a role with a leading US international law firm in London, working on corporate finance and cross-border M&A transactions.
When she moved to Switzerland five years later, she came up against the same barriers. The bilateral agreements between the EU and Switzerland hadn’t yet come into force, creating an unexpected obstacle. As a senior associate on the verge of making partner at her law firm in London, she faced a stark choice. “If I wanted to continue practicing in private practice, I had to go back to the first year of law school.” While most would have seen this as a career setback, Schüller embraced it as her next challenge.
“Somehow I seem to have always spent a lot of time being outside my comfort zone and having to reinvent myself,” she reflects. This willingness to lean into uncertainty would become the defining thread of her career.
Embracing the unexpected
The move to Switzerland in 2004 marked a pivotal shift from traditional legal practice to corporate leadership. Her entry into this new phase began as Legal Director at Tetra Laval International SA, where she later also served as a director on the company’s employee pension fund, following the completion of a finance qualification and her designation as a CFA Charterholder.
When she joined Swiss fragrance and flavor maker Givaudan in 2010, her remit shifted again substantially. Starting as Corporate Ethics & Compliance Officer, she successively added roles as Head of Enterprise Risk Management, Crisis Management, and Board Secretary – a portfolio that would challenge any executive.
By 2019, despite building this solid foundation across ethics, compliance, governance, and risk management, Schüller sensed something was missing. “I had been working on establishing myself and was being recognized as a leader. And then, at that point, I took a step back and asked myself, ‘Is this the right path for me?’”
This questioning led her to IMD’s Breakthrough Program for Senior Executives (BPSE). “It was important for me to take some time out and ask myself: ‘Am I where I should be?’”
Finding her ikigai
The program would provide answers she hadn’t expected.
“I tend to always look at what I can improve. Being forced by the BPSE program to take stock of what I am good at and appreciated for was counter-instinctual for me, but was very powerful and important,” she says.
The program helped her to understand her value proposition. An unexpected validation came through 360-degree feedback during the program. “As head of ethics and compliance, my role often requires saying no. The testimony I received was that my ethics advice and concerns were appreciated. This is especially important when you’re working in ethics, compliance, and risk management, where you are usually having to tell others they can’t do whatever they want, or at least not in the way they propose to proceed, so you don’t necessarily get that feeling of being appreciated at the workplace.”
For Schüller, one of BPSE’s most significant revelations was the importance of passion in professional fulfillment. Central to this discovery was the program’s exploration of ikigai, the Japanese concept of life’s purpose. Reflecting on the four areas of the ikigai, Schüller explains: “I was good at what I did, my work was necessary, and I got paid for it. But did I love what I was doing? Some part of the ‘I love it’ seemed to be missing. I realized that one mustn’t lose sight of what one really likes doing. Sometimes that can get lost in the day-to-day work. I needed to find opportunities to do more of what I’m good at and, at the same time, what I love doing. I also learned that ethics, compliance, and governance is really important to me, as is being part of the strategic discussion.”
Tools for transformation
Beyond personal insight, BPSE equipped Schüller with practical tools to advance her leadership approach.
One of the program’s most enjoyable lessons came from Robert Hooijberg’s negotiation simulation, which challenged participants to create value for all parties rather than simply trying to win. “It was part of the ‘Negotiation for Value Creation’ module,” Schüller recalls. “Sometimes, something that isn’t worth much to you may hold significant value for the other party. It’s about both sides ending up with something that matters to them.”
Another key area where BPSE improved her approach was team management. “I have always valued teamwork. What has helped me was learning to manage my own teams better by looking at what people need – how much closeness, leadership, as well as freedom they need – which is an aspect I’ve since taken pains to consciously apply,” she explains.
These strategic thinking tools and leadership frameworks from BPSE enabled Schüller to accompany her further transition from legal expert to strategic business leader, eventually leading to her participating in co-developing Givaudan’s 2020–2025 group strategy.
Leading with renewed purpose
The learnings from the BPSE are also serving Schüller well in her current role as board member of Ethics and Compliance Switzerland, a non-profit organization she co-founded in 2014 to foster collaboration between compliance professionals across sectors, and as a judge for MassChallenge Switzerland, a startup accelerator focused on early-stage startups. The approach has confirmed that ethical leadership, governance, and business success are not opposing forces, and that it’s possible to navigate complex business environments while maintaining high ethical standards, even if this isn’t always easy. But that is, of course, what makes Schüller thrive.
Since completing BPSE, she has continued her development with the IMD Board Director Diploma while applying these principles across her expanding portfolio of roles, including teaching and writing for the University of St. Gallen and other institutions. Her journey from legal expert to strategic leader and board member reflects an ongoing commitment to growth, no matter how daunting: “Every time I start something new and get out of my comfort zone, I know this is how I will get better at what I do – and hopefully find something new I love doing.”
