Hello.

I am Karen Rene, a Professional Certified Coach (PCC, ICF) and the Founder of Sidrlabs. I help individuals and organisations build new careers, ventures, and systems through executive coaching, startup mentorship, and career design.

Below is a summary of my background, my coaching track record, my work with early-stage startups, and how I might be able to help you.

Background

I am an ex-Big 4 with 15+ years of experience in Business & Tech. I held roles at Deloitte, L'Oréal, and Aesop, managing teams of auditors, product owners, engineers, e-commerce operations specialists and project managers. My versatility stems from years of strategically pivoting across functions primarily - Sales, Operations, Digital & Tech - leveraging country relocations and side ventures to forge a broad Business & Tech expertise. This led to my tenure at Aesop, where I served as the Global Head of Digital Operations and a member of the Aesop Digital & Tech Global Leadership team, overseeing the e-commerce operations strategy, guiding 100+ staff members across 15+ markets - top markets included the US, the UK, Australia, Germany, France and Japan. I am French-Australian and currently residing in the Netherlands.

Coaching
track record & System thinking

As an Executive Coach, I work with director-to-board-level leaders across business, tech, and creative industries at organisations including Microsoft, Condé Nast, Amazon, Unilever, HSBC Innovation Banking, Sanofi, Capgemini, and more. I helped leaders: - Progress their career amid systemic disruptions - Adapt and lead systemic change - Build and strengthen effective partnerships across functions - Grow their influence, network and visibility - Develop high-performance teams As a career design coach, I help discover, plan and start new career paths, building a supportive network along the way. On systems: I bring a systemic understanding of organisations shaped through experience across business functions, industries, and international environments. Combined with executive coaching and training in systems thinking, my background in Applied Economics and Financial Advisory allows me to connect internal execution with the broader economic forces shaping how organisations evolve and perform. I am a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) credentialed by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), the world’s leading professional coaching body. I hold a Professional Practitioner Diploma in Executive Coaching from the Academy of Executive Coaching (AoEC), where I developed advanced capability in systemic executive coaching. AoEC is a globally recognised institute with triple accreditation from the Association for Coaching (AC), the European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC), and the International Coaching Federation (ICF).

Startup Mentorship

As an early-stage startup mentor, I help aspiring entrepreneurs build lean ventures from the ground up, from business ideation through product-market fit and MVP launch. I mentored Sportech, SaaS and Fintech early-stage startups through the Amsterdam Centre for Entrepreneurship (ACE). ACE supported 130+ incubated startups, with ventures raising €50M+ and achieving a 72% survival rate after two years. ACE alumni include LUMICKS (~$27.1M revenue in 2025), ENPICOM (~$3.6M revenue in 2025), Metrica Sports (~$1.8M revenue in 2025), Dyme (~$2.4M revenue in 2025, acquired by RISK), and Lalaland.ai ($5.2M revenue in 2024, acquired by Browzwear). I partnered with Impact Hub (a global network of 30,000+ impact-driven entrepreneurs) to help Dutch start-ups navigate key milestones through all development phases, from MVP to full-scale product. I designed and ran ideation programs to help LATAM cleantech engineers, scientists, and researchers build lean business ventures.

Why Sidrlabs?

I came up with Sidrlabs while reflecting on the side moves that shaped my path, often positioning me as an outsider as I changed careers, built side ventures, and worked on system-level change.

Sidrlabs is a boutique practice for those who don’t follow traditional paths. It helps them shape their own and turn intent into action without fear of others’ opinions (FOPO).

Is this for you?

You’re an independent-minded individual or a pioneer-led organisation that sees beyond conventional paths. You’ve succeeded by doing things differently. You often show traits such as:

Deep internal drive

High autonomy

Unconventional thinking

Struggle with politics

Comfort with ambiguity

Quiet disruption

Isolation risk

Low visibility

Self-directed growth

You’re ready to take it to the next level - to lean into what sets you apart, make your voice heard, take the bold move you’ve been holding back on, and build beyond what’s expected.

That’s where Sidrlabs comes in.

What sets my work apart

Functional versatility

Made side moves across finance, sales, operations, digital, and technology while independently developing hands-on expertise in product, publishing, app development and others.

Breadth Across Industries

Hands-on experience across financial services, luxury beauty & personal care, FMCG, short-term rentals, retail, and travel technology
Consulted and audited CFOs in luxury goods, luxury hospitality, automotive, and FMCG
Mentored founders in saas, sportech, cleantech, and fintech
Served as executive coach to senior leaders in technology, e-commerce, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, banking, cloud services, publishing, online travel, and other industries

Cross-cultural agility

Lived and worked in the Netherlands, France, and Australia
Led teams and mentored founders across 20+ markets, including Japan, the US, Hong Kong, South Korea, Germany, Switzerland, the UK, LATAM, and the Netherlands
Coached Business & Tech leaders from France, Finland, Germany, the UK, Switzerland, and the Netherlands

Work with me

If you are a driven individual ready to build what comes next, or an organisation undergoing transformation and seeking system-level impact, apply for a private discovery call.

Apply for a Private Discovery Call →

This is to explore fit and assess how we might work together. A short wait may apply as availability is limited.