"I am passionate about leadership, putting people first, fostering a positive community culture, and delivering performance. I have experience from multiple industries and countries, gained from roles as a people leader and an advisor. In addition I have solid academic merits and a foot in the business school world."

Rolf Illum-Engsig

Rolf Illum-Engsig

Rolf Illum-Engsig is Director and Executive Consultant at Illuminatio ApS, his family-owned company located in Aabenraa, Denmark. He is advising C-Suite executives, HR leaders, and other top executives on growing people-centric cultures for organizational success, utilizing experience and data-driven approaches.

Simultaneously, Rolf Illum-Engsig is a Director and Executive Consultant at Leadership Pipeline Institute, based out of Copenhagen, Denmark. Leadership Pipeline Institute is a leading global provider of leadership development programmes and solutions, and his role involve building leadership-powered cultures together with clients, developing and facilitating leadership programmes, and coaching of executives and senior leaders.

In addition, Rolf Illum-Engsig serve as an External Examiner at Copenhagen Business School, a role he has been fulfilling since 2022, and at SDU - University of South Denmark, Faculty of Social Sciences since 2024.

Rolf Illum-Engsig holds a Doctorate of Business Administration degree form Business School Lausanne, Switzerland and a Master of Science in Economics degree from Copenhagen Business School, Denmark.

Rolf Illum-Engsig was the Senior Executive, Head of People and Culture Globally – CHRO – at Dr. August Oetker Nahrungmittel KG in Bielefeld, Germany from 2020 to end of 2024. Before that, he worked as Vice President in Group Human Resources at Danfoss A/S in South Jutland, Denmark, from 2017 to 2020.

Rolf Illum-Engsig's career also includes a long tenure at Nestlé S.A. where he held various positions over 9 years, including Human Resources Manager at Nestlé Research - Nestlé Institute of Health Sciences in Vevey, Switzerland, from 2014 to 2017, and Human Resources and Innovation Support Manager at Nestlé PTC Lebensmittelforschung GbmH in Singen, Germany, from 2011 to 2014. Additionally, he was the Human Resources Development Manager at Nestlé Nespresso Globally Managed Business from 2008 to 2011 in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Earlier in Rolf Illum-Engsig's career, he held multiple roles at IBM, including Senior Managing Consultant in Business Consulting Services EMEA in Copenhagen, Denmark from 2007 to 2008 and in London, UK from 2003 to 2006. He was also a Department Manager for Change Management and Learning Services at IBM Global Services from 1999 to 2003, based in Copenhagen, Denmark and Brussels, Belgium.

At the beginning of Rolf Illum-Engsig's career he served as International Human Resource Development Manager at Rockwool International A/S from 1996 to 1999 and as a Management Consultant at Tack TMI from 1994 to 1996, engaging with clients across the Nordics, UK, Africa, and middle East.

Lastly, Rolf Illum-Engsig contributed as an External Lecturer and Examiner at Copenhagen Business School in various roles from 1994 to 2008.