Vienna, Vienna, Austria
I've sung opera with José Carreras, turned around a publicly traded tech company as CEO, run the Vienna Concert House, and failed with my first startup in Silicon Valley. Now I coach executives and build AI that helps them practice the conversations they keep avoiding. Here's what I've learned: Leaders don't fail because they lack knowledge. They fail because they never rehearsed the conversation that mattered — the termination, the conflict, the feedback that could change everything. They wing it. Once. And it usually goes wrong. That's why I built RolePlays.AI. Practice difficult conversations with AI personas that push back like real people. Get feedback on what worked and what didn't. Then have the real conversation — prepared. I still coach 1:1. I still listen. When you run out of answers, I usually have the right question. But now I also have a platform that lets you practice before you need me. Want to talk about leadership, team development, or how AI changes both? Book a coffee meeting: https://book.bernhardkerres.com/coffee/
I spent 20 years in rooms where one conversation could make or break everything. Board meetings. Investor pitches. Terminations. Turnarounds. I read the books. Attended the workshops. Hired the coaches. And then I walked into the room and winged it. Every time. Because there was no place to practice. No flight simulator for the conversations that actually matter. Musicians rehearse after standing ovations. Athletes train after gold medals. CEOs? One shot. No rehearsal. That gap cost me deals, relationships, and sleep. So I built what I wished existed: RolePlays.ai. It's an AI-powered platform where leaders practice difficult conversations — feedback, coaching, conflict, alignment — with personas that push back like real people. Not scripts. Not theory. Actual practice. Then specific feedback. Then you try again. I've been an opera singer, a management consultant, a tech CEO, and an artistic director. I've built companies and shut them down. I've coached executives at Henkel, Allianz, and PwC. The through-line? The hardest part is never strategy. It's the conversation where you have to deliver it. RolePlays.ai is the rehearsal room that leadership never had. We're live. Free scenarios available. No excuses left.
"Bernhard has the right question ready when you run out of answers." - One client about our work. Bernhard coaches and trains executives, entrepreneurs, scientists, musicians, and others, focusing on leadership and teamwork. Regularly, Bernhard accompanies clients through career transformations. In leadership and teamwork training, Bernhard often combines management and music. Sometimes he even brings musicians to the training adding a much deeper note to the conversations. Coaching takes place in person in Vienna, Austria, or at your offices, as well as online via video conference. Sign up for a free Coffee Meeting at: https://book.bernhardkerres.com/coffee/. Ask us regarding training.
Digital marketing connects AI, technology, digitalization, and human relationships. As an executive coach and AI founder, I often bridge the gap between human presence and AI interest. When friends ask you to join their agency as a (silent) partner, you're happy to do so.
Lecturer for Coaching in the Master's Program on HR Management at the University of Applied Sciences for Management & Communication in Vienna.
HELLO STAGE, often called the LinkedIn of classical music, is the largest community of classical musicians online. It connects musicians with promoters, managers and their fans. Within less than three years HELLO STAGE has grown to over 30,000 members from over 100 countries around the world. Among the members are Itzhak Perlman, the Munich Philharmonic, members of the Vienna Philharmonic, Carnegie Hall, as well as many others.