The Authority Shift™ for Financial Services
Maria Pennanen
Your Best Women Are Leaving Because You Promote on Potential, Not Preparation
We make Director-level women promotion-ready in 12 weeks with measured behavioral shifts managers can observe - or your competitors hire them first.
(Maria Pennanen: 17+ years Corporate Operations, Accelerator Frankfurt co-founder, +10 years Executive Coach, Master in Organisational Psychology, MBA and MSc. Process Engineering)
The Hidden Cost of "Wait and See"
Your high-potential women have the performance metrics. They get put on the slate. Then:
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They hesitate in exec meetings (interpreted as "not ready")
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They over-explain decisions (interpreted as "lacks conviction")
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They defer to louder voices (interpreted as "not leadership material")
So you "give them another year" - and they leave for a competitor who saw their value immediately.
Cost: €180K-€450K per departed Director (replacement + lost productivity + team disruption)
What We Do Differently
We don't teach "confidence." We measure and shift the 12 authority behaviors that promotion boards actually observe:
Day 0: Behavioral diagnostic identifies gaps
Weeks 1-12: Targeted coaching + manager alignment
Day 30: Measured shifts documented
Week 12: Board-ready presentation + promotion case
Outcome: Managers see the change. Promotion boards have documentation. Your talent stays.
Last 120 Days:
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European bank: Director → VP within 4 months of program completion
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German fintech: Director added to promotion slate after being "not quite ready" for 18 months
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Nordic consulting firm: 3-person cohort, 2 promoted within 6 months, 1 retained (previously flight risk)
Individual results vary. These outcomes reflect participants who completed the full program with manager engagement.
Finnish National TV YLE interview
Female Founders for Tech Startups — What does it take to succeed? A talk about culture, funding and founding. Maria is the author of book "How to fuck up your startup"... Biggest obstacle for a startups success is the founder.
Thought Leader Interview: Women in Tech
Why are there so few women in leadership positions in technology? What can women themselves do to change it and grow into themselves?
FROM STARTUP FOUNDER TO AUTHORITY EXPERT
How to F*ck Up Your Startup" isn't just about entrepreneurship - it's about the authority patterns I observed in 100+ startups that determined success or failure.The same behavioural insights that help founders command investor attention now help executive women command boardroom respect.
“Wow what a page turner.
The book reads like a thriller, except that the “Who Dunnit” was clear from the start. I enjoyed it immensely, but what a terrible story of incompetence, frustration and indeed of Narcissism...."
- Mik van den Noort, Holland
“I had to read the book in one go, could not put it down until I finished.”
- Anu Honkalinna, Finland
