Unlocking Leadership Potential: Coaching the Hidden Parts of European Start-up Founders at EU-Startups Summit Malta 2025

Next week, the EU-Startups Summit in Malta will once again bring together Europe’s most ambitious founders, investors, and innovation leaders for two days of inspiration, networking, and deal-making.

As I prepare to join this vibrant community, I’m reflecting on the unique journey of the European start-up founder—and the often-overlooked “parts” that shape their leadership as they scale from seed to Series A and beyond.

After more than 7,000 hours coaching founders, executives, and teams since 2004, and as a Master Certified Coach (MCC) with the ICF, I’ve witnessed a recurring theme: founders are rarely just one thing. They are a complex blend of visionary, engineer, strategist, and—sometimes reluctantly—leader. In the early days, technical expertise and relentless focus on product-market fit serve them well. But as their start-up grows, so does the need to integrate new parts: the communicator, the culture builder, the team developer, the storyteller for investors.

This transition isn’t always comfortable. Many founders arrive at events like the EU-Startups Summit laser-focused on their next funding round, wary of anything that feels “soft” or subjective. Yet, scaling across Europe’s diverse markets demands more than technical brilliance and regulatory navigation across the 27 states. It requires the ability to build trust across cultures, inspire teams, and adapt to rapid change—skills that emerge when founders are willing to explore and develop the less familiar parts of themselves.

Leadership coaching, especially when grounded in evidence-based practice and deep experience, isn’t about changing who you are. It’s about unlocking the full spectrum of your leadership potential. It’s about learning how to step back from the part of you that solves problems in the lab, and step into the part that can set vision, navigate ambiguity, and empower others to deliver at scale.

At the Summit, surrounded by 2,000+ peers and investors, every meaningful connection is a chance to discover and develop these parts. Whether you’re pitching on stage, networking on the terrace, or reflecting over coffee, consider which part of you is leading the conversation—and which part needs a voice as your company enters its next chapter.

I'm eager to meet other founders and exchange insights on how coaching can assist in scaling both your business and personal growth, one step at a time.

PM on the EU-Startups Summit 2025 app or connect with me on LinkedIn