ABOUT SHERPA HR

SHERPA HR LOVES…

to help organizations with great purpose to climb the mountains of their strategic intentions and driving meaningful transformations and coaching leaders to unlock their potential.

SHERPA HR DESIGNS…

organizations, desired culture, talent practices, great learning experiences and coaching solutions that are tailored to the context of the individuals and their organizations:

SHERPA HR OFFERS…

Our SHERPA’s have extensive experience as HR Business Partners and Leadership roles juggling the day-to-day operational challenges AND stepping up to be strategic trusted advisors to the business
Passion for developing and coaching talented people to push beyond their perceived potential
Deep expertise in making the people dimensions in strategy and transformations a success
A state-of-the-art consulting, coaching and learning experience that works within the client’s context
Just-in-time-coaching to help you unlock your challenges and opportunities in real-time

FOUNDER – SHERPA HR

Martin Jessen

Founder

Martin is half Danish and half German, living with his family in San Francisco. He has extensive experience working with organizations and their leadership teams in different industries, from start-ups that are getting ready to scale to large global organizations.

Martin has an extensive background in HR leadership, having led both functional HR missions and the HR Business Partner teams for global and regional divisions at IBM and Schneider Electric. He has experience in building and managing teams of all sizes and thrives on coaching and developing individuals to exploit their greatest potential.

As the founder of Sherpa HR, Martin is helping organizations solve complex business challenges and achieve their strategic objectives. He partners with his clients to design effective organizations, create impactful HR strategies, coach & develop leaders, achieve greater efficiency and productivity, and get ahead of the competition.

Martin has a hands-on approach to problem-solving and enabling execution. With empathy for different cultures and perspectives, Martin has a passion for inspiring teams to work towards a common purpose by creating an inclusive and collaborative environment.

What people say about the Sherpa HR

Martin represents what can be possible in a Human Resources partnering role. He has a great ability to create true trusted advisor relationships with his business partners that deliver real value to the organization. Whether that’s in the core HR functions of people, rewards, etc., or in more extended areas like business strategy design, Martin excels. In addition, Martin is an outstanding people manager that truly cares about his direct and extended team.

Patrick CassedayStrategic HR Leader & Executive Coach, Schneider Electric

Martin’s passion for developing others and high energy is infectious and endearing. He spent time getting to know my individual passions and because of his unwavering belief in my abilities, I was motivated to try harder. He would often dive into the details, ask thought-provoking questions and challenge me. What I didn’t realize then was that he was coaching and preparing me for when I had to present my strategy to my account leaders.

Ginarae LescaultSr. Development Partner, Schneider Electric

Martin understands the business and the business of people, he sees the big picture and is very elaborated in his reflection and decisions. He has a wealth of knowledge in the HR domain and specifically in strategic workforce planning, and he is always open to share it. I personally learned a lot working with him.

Alban JacquinLearning Experience Leader, Schneider Electric

I experienced Martin as a trusted partner and change champion: Both as an HR business partner engaging in a business unit’s transformation and as a leader driving organisational change inside his own regional team. He’s not only a conceptional thinker, he also shows particular strength in translating the big picture to the target organisation coaching both leaders and teams to accept and play out the new strategy. That aside, I consider Martin not just a great professional, but also an honest and reliable guy who is a lot of fun to work with.

Thore KirketerpHead of HR Services, DACH, Danone

I have witnessed Martin’s ability to connect, guide and enable the success of the business he is supporting. He has been able to effectively demonstrate to business leaders, the fundamental interlocks between a sound people strategy and a positive business outcome. It is through his effective ability to partner and influence business leaders, that they embrace his solutions and often, his solutions can be positively disruptive to the status quo.

Clayton MohamedVice President, HR Schneider Digital

Martin has been a great thought partner for Mekonos and a solid sounding board for our developing leadership team. He helped us design our people strategy essentially from scratch using his fantastic facilitation skills. Personally, Martin’s fluid yet structured coaching style has helped me gain clarity in my thinking, focus and improved confidence!

Nova SyedVP Product, Mekonos Inc.

The Sherpa HR approach to building strategic muscle is perfect for HR Business Partners who desire a credible “seat at the table” with internal clients. Business Partners will take away tools, case studies, and exercises that will help them engage with internal clients in new ways. The course experience was truly awesome – less lecture, more skills building than any other Strategic Skills course currently offered. I highly recommend it.

Jennifer GreenManaging Principal Consultant, Green Global Resources

Martin has the ability not just to understand the strategic goals of a business but also to translate that strategy into the detailed actions that are needed to support the strategic journey the business is going on. I learned a lot about influencing and convincing leaders while working with Martin, and this has helped me in the success I’ve had in my roles since.

Holly CookSenior Manager Reward Solutions, Schneider Electric

Working with Martin has been a huge positive for our organization. I have really appreciated his ability to customize our engagement to meet us exactly where we are and where we need the most support at any given time. The impact has been an efficiently organized structure to our company, with optimized systems in place from onboarding to performance management to project governance, and more. I feel confident to say that Mekonos is both more productive and has a better culture thanks to Martin’s strategic contributions.

Jake LesnikVP Business Development, Mekonos Inc.

Click to watch a testimonial video

Sherpa HR Advisor Network

Patrick Casseday

Organizational Transformation & Leadership Coaching

Patrick is an organizational transformation expert and executive coach with over 25 years of global experience as a strategic HR leader in the IT, Telecom, Automation, and Energy Management industries. He has built and led learning organizations for both internal and external customers in companies ranging from startups to Fortune 500 firms. He has a track record partnering with executives to lead high impact organizational change initiatives and global leadership and executive development programs that deliver results.

Nenuca Syquia

CEO, Managing Partner, BOXD, Better Organizations by Design

Nenuca is an organizational effectiveness practitioner who specializes in organization design, team coaching, and executive facilitation. She co-founded Better Organizations by Design with the mission of enabling small and medium businesses to achieve scale, disrupt industries, and create currently unimagined value for people. She has driven change through various HR roles in the tech and professional service industries, as well at a large multi-industry conglomerate.

Caroline Jessen

VP of HR, Zendesk

Caroline provides strategic advice and consultancy to Zendesk’s CEO and the leadership team, with a focus on Business Transformation, Organizational Design & Change Management, Executive Talent Strategy, Employee Engagement & Culture, Talent Acquisition, Leadership Development & Executive Coaching, as well as Rewards & Retention Strategies.