I started my career at the rebirth of the Hungarian market economy in 1990, after finishing my five years university studies in Moscow in the University for International Relations.
I joined a company that was started by a few close friends. Within a decade Wallis grew into one of the largest holding companies in the country.
I learned by doing and observing excellent leaders around me in business development, employee engagement and change management.
I started as a salesman in the import department trading with former states of the Soviet Union, especially with Lithuania.
In 1994 I changed inside the holding to a television production studio, named Land Studio. Not only did I get to work in the media business which was incredibly inspiring at the time, but also worked closely with Land’s CEO who became one of my greatest mentors.
I was given the opportunity to manage creative people, and to also interact with powerful media businessmen.
In 1996, we started our own media and creative agency, Walking ’34 where I stepped into a leadership role.
In the year 2000 Wallis, my mother company decided to found an integrated on line off line communication and web development company, Webigen. It was a pioneering venture and a great opportunity for us all. I learned how to manage a larger company, gained significant experience in online communications, and started to practice designing corporate strategies.
After 2 years we redesigned the company, separate it into smaller entities, and I started with my new friends and partner a new communication agency, which became the highlight of my Hungarian career. We were building the largest communications agency in Hungary, we built a network, the Café Affiliate Network (We_CAN) in 16 countries in Central and Eastern Europe. I was fortunate to have had partners who were the very best in their fields. Together we built close to ten specialized agencies and combined them under one roof, culture, and brand name to provide the best services along with holistic advisory capabilities in communications.
I am grateful that we were able to service and gain the trust of some of the largest corporations in the country including OTP Bank, the leading Hungarian bank as clients.
I spent 22 years (1994 to 2016) of my career working in the media and advertising business. I did so because I believed in what it stood for: independence, inclusiveness, opportunities.
Unfortunately since 2010 Hungarian politics and economy gradually changed and significantly deviated from its values in the 1990s and 2000s.
My wife and I made the painful decision to leave our home city, parents, and careers behind to spend our 50s and the coming decades in a country that aligns best with our values. We moved to Berlin, Germany with our 14-year old son in 2016. Our older son lives in the UK and our daughter lives in the US.
In the last years, I focused my efforts mostly on social projects and found several companies with amazing partners.
In 2016-2018 we took part with my family and friends in the New Shape Prize of the Global Challenges Foundation. Our aim was to redesign democracy for the digital age. Our thoughts you can find here.
I co-founded the Re-agency in 2018, a creative and graphic agency that only employs refugees who arrived from Syria, Afganisthan in the 2015 refugee crisis. Our aim was to create a business-focused solution to contribute to the integration process. After a year of planning and hard work, we closed the company. I am very thankful to get to know some great people.
In 2018 I met Meike Ziegler, some months later we found the Handshape Project Company.
Parallelly to my work in Handshape I am more and more advising and mentoring leaders. I am convinced every leader needs a companion. Someone, who can be a sparring partner in problem-solving, helping to bridge the gap between goal, vision, and operative reality. With whom is good to talk, because experienced, honest and independent. Contribute to the success of others – that motivated me in all my life.