ABOUT ÖZGÜR EYLEN

Coach. Lecturer.
Leader. Human.

I was born in Cologne, grew up between cultures, and was shaped by two things that have never let me go: sport and people. As a young man, I played basketball at the top level in Turkey. Not because I was the best, but because I gave everything. On that court, I learned what I would later encounter in every boardroom, every classroom, and every coaching conversation: that performance begins with the willingness to be vulnerable.

After my sporting career, I entered the international hospitality industry — and stayed for over 25 years. Not because it was easy, but because every day I saw people. Guests arriving with expectations, exhaustion or hope. Employees who had more in them than their job title suggested. And I quickly noticed: the difference is never in the procedures. It’s in the people who carry them out.

“In 2016 I was nominated at the International Hospitality Awards in Paris as best hotel manager in the world — not for the glamour, but because it proved that an approach that starts with people, works.”

At Ibis Rotterdam I built a team that didn’t just excel in results — they were genuinely happy. We were recognised as the team with the most satisfied employees and the most satisfied guests in the Benelux. At Hotel Arena Amsterdam we finished 2018 as the fourth fastest-growing hospitality company in the Netherlands. And at Kanteen25 we were named the best terrace in Amsterdam in 2021.

Somewhere along the way, a desire grew to do more than deliver results. I wanted to pass something on. So I became a lecturer in higher and university education, focusing on leadership and hospitality. And what I discovered surprised me: the questions students ask are exactly the same as those of experienced managers. How do I lead without losing myself? How do I deal with pressure? How do I build something that goes beyond myself?

That insight brought me and my partner Laura to something we wanted to see exist: Hands Up Academy. Through intensive leadership programmes, NLP, team coaching and personal branding, we build future-proof leadership — for everyone who seriously wants to grow as a leader and as a person.

Alongside Hands Up Academy, I work with individuals: leaders and professionals who are stuck, who want more but don’t know how, or who simply need an honest conversation with someone who challenges them without losing them. Practical, warm, and confrontational when necessary.

“I believe in people before they believe in themselves. That has always been my starting point — on the field, in the hotel, in the classroom, and in every collaboration I enter into.”

ÖZGÜR EYLEN