Introduction to Vertical Development
The must-read stories for everyone who is new to the area of vertical development.
Arthur Lankester
Inner purpose and creativity
The human mind’s capacity to discover one’s inner purpose, express creativity and form connections to surmount challenges has long fascinated Awarego founder Arthur Lankester.“A caterpillar is not meant to die as caterpillar, it has destiny to grow wings and fly.” (Robert Kegan)
About The Author
Arthur Lankester curiosity and desire to harness human motivation led him to be an organisational psychologist (Master degree). He has coaching licenses and certification from the DevOps Agile Skills Association, Global Leadership Associates and Gladwell Academy for Scaled Agile Framework or SAFe Program. He is also a Scrum.org and INSEAD-certified agile-lean professional.
Coaching Profile
Arthur Lankester currently serves as Senior Agile Coach at a large pension administration organization PGGM. Prior to this, he provided leadership and SAFe training to Volkswagen Pon Financial Services, which specialises in fleet management solutions. He also coached ABN-AMRO Bank’s management and customer interaction teams for its DevOps and cloud transition customer interaction teams. At Dutch retailer Ahold Delhaize, he oversaw the roll-out of its SAFe roadmap and facilitated Program Increment events.
For over a year, he worked on a change strategy for knowledge-sharing under the European Commission’s environmental city projects. He was able to create a platform that enabled multiple stakeholders to share, view and build on the information about projects supporting innovation. His agile expertise also allowed him to co-develop an innovation readiness assessment and company training program with Radboud University for Inovus Institute. During his stint at Top Employers Institute, he developed an HR analytics web app that was adopted by over 1,000 companies in over 100 nations.
Arthur Lankester is also a Vipassana meditation practitioner and spends long solitary retreats to develop a clear view on the mind. He combines his insights from Vipassana and his certified mindfulness training to bring out the best in teams and organizations.
Inspiration Behind Awarego
Arthur Lankester established Awarego on the premise that individuals need to develop a greater sense of self-awareness (awareness + ego) to create a brighter future for themselves, their workplaces and their communities. As an advocate of vertical development, Arthur Lankester would like to see Awarego helping people widen their perspective on personal growth to rise above their limits. It encourages participants—university undergrads and business execs alike—to examine their current self/team management styles and explore new approaches where talents freely flow and silos are broken down. Awarego is currently helping organisations in transformation within Europe.
Through Awarego’s courses, Arthur Lankester hopes to see more teams adopting transformational leadership, which values inspiration and collaboration over control and processes, which characterise transactional-style businesses. He’s committed to building up business leaders with these fresh perspectives so that they can navigate through today’s fast-changing and demanding environment.
The learning modules are open to students and professionals in Europe and beyond through online, in-person and hybrid settings. The centre has several physical locations across the Netherlands, with coaching offices near Amsterdam.
Arthur Lankester formed a team of like-minded, post-conventional moral thinkers with extensive backgrounds in vertical leadership development to join him at Awarego. His team customises modules based on the learner’s needs, with opportunities for blended learning if necessary.
Educational Background
Arthur Lankester finished his Master of Science degree in organisational psychology with honours (cum laude) at the University of Groningen. Moreover, he holds a master’s degree in business administration (specialising in international management and cultural change) from the University of Twente. He also took up mindfulness training and has a certification to teach this subject.
Invigorating Pastimes
In his free time, Lankester loves to ride his motorcycle and visit neighbouring countries. He doesn’t just enjoy feeling the wind on his face on land but also on the water through kitesurfing. Besides the adrenaline rush, controlling the power of his kite and sliding across the water makes him appreciate the interplay of human and nature’s strength.
Get On a Call With Arthur Lankester
Do you share the same interest in people and organizational development and do you have a request, question or want to get in contact, please leave a note.