SALMA FODA
Transition & Leadership Coaching
BRIEF CV
Cultural background
Born into an enriching layered culture, I am grateful to have lived and worked across the Emirates, Egypt, France, USA, and Germany, each place touching me in special ways giving me a global perspective and deep adaptability. Growing up trilingual — Arabic, English and French and later Spanish and German. Those languages were keys to unlock cultures and connect beyond identities helping me shape my own values. I think of myself as a citizen of the world — not because I belong everywhere, but because I've learned to find home within myself wherever I am.
What I bring
My coaching practice grew organically — first from years of lived experience navigating major transitions, then through formal training in coaching methodology. Based in Berlin, I work with clients globally, across cultures and time zones. Previously, I worked years in international development — across cultures, sectors, and systems — which gave me a ground-level understanding of how people navigate complex realities at every layer of society. That kind of exposure changed how I listen.
What I bring isn't only professional. I know this work from the inside. My own path — through uncertainty, reflection, and transitions I had to figure out largely on my own. And because no two people are the same, I don't work from a template. Every person arrives with their own world. I start there.
Previous experience
Formal Education
Other Credentials
2010 - 2023
Experience in international development within government, NGOs, and international organisations, including eight years at the World Bank Group and a couple of years at Egypt’s Ministry of International Cooperation.
2009 - 2010
Panthéon-Sorbonne University, Paris
Master’s in Public Policy — spécialité Décisions publiques, Institutions et Organisations
2025
Fired Up GmbH, Berlin
2024
IAPC&M
Artificial Intelligence & Project Management
Expert Coach Accreditation
Filmmaking
Exercising Leadership: Foundational Principles
2006 - 2009
Cairo University, Cairo
Bachelor’s in Economics & Political Sciences
2019
Harvard University (remote)
2021
AoTR, Berlin