Nicola Winter (born 1985) from jet pilot to rescue helicopter pilot via McKinsey. Nicola was a fighter pilot in the German armed forces for over a decade. She was one of only three women in the air force to fly the Eurofighter, trained young pilots in the USA for several... Read more
Nicola Winter (born 1985) from jet pilot to rescue helicopter pilot via McKinsey. Nicola was a fighter pilot in the German armed forces for over a decade. She was one of only three women in the air force to fly the Eurofighter, trained young pilots in the USA for several years and was most recently a major.
After her time in the German army, Nicola advised large companies for McKinsey & Co. and experienced a few emergencies as an emergency medical technician. She then moved from the aviation industry into space project management.
The “Spiegel” bestseller author is now a sought-after speaker and advisor for Leadership trainings, team builidings and crisis competence centers.
She applies her expertise in crisis management and leadership not only to aeronautical research, but also as a lecturer in emergency and crisis management. At the same time, she is doing a doctorate in space science and is on her way to becoming an air rescue helicopter pilot with ADAC Luftrettung. The challenging transition from jet pilot to helicopter pilot demonstrates her tireless commitment and adaptability in constantly taking on new teams and roles.
Flying, space and adventure are Nicola’s passions. After being a finalist in the “Die Astronautin” initiative in 2017, Nicola made it through the ESA selection process again in 2022, beating out over 22.500 applicants to become part of the astronaut reserve. In her keynote speeches on leadership and teamwork, risk and crisis, empowerment and resilience, Nicola shares with her audience in an entertaining, informative and humorous way how to achieve your goals despite all obstacles and how she found her way into the fighter jet despite her small size.
In her private life, Nicola is a mother of a young daughter. Her first book, “The Sky Is No Limit”, was published in October 2024.
Nicola’s credo: With courage, empathy, discipline, passion and a bit of luck, we can make it anywhere – even to the moon.
Sooner or later, every company finds itself in exceptional situations – when this happens, it is important to have proven strategies at hand to master them. These include routine risk analysis, precise crisis communication, a focus on the essentials and rapid decision-making.
After a decade as a...
If you want to reach high, you have to learn how to deal with obstacles and setbacks – a self-confident appearance, keeping your own limits, unerring multitasking and prioritizing as well as a focus on the right and important things are essential. In the process of realizing our dreams and...
Nowadays, even fighter pilots are led with empathy and respect – a new understanding of leadership is more necessary than ever.
Outdated leadership cultures and hierarchies encourage mistakes in everyday work that can have serious consequences. Using concrete practical examples from my time as an officer and pilot in the...