🏆 Award-Winning Global Thought Leader |
🌎 Transformation Evangelist |
🎙️ Keynote Speaker |
📚 Author |
⚙️ C-Level Consultant |
🌐 Movement Architect

„If you transform people-first, people solve problems. If you transform process-first, people satisfy processes.“

A fireside chat at the 2024 Kubecon Europe in Paris in German.


Sebastian Kister is an influential figure in enterprise transformation and a top consultant for C-Level executives. Currently running for the Governance Board at CNCF, he combines hands-on leadership with visionary insights, spearheading a Competence Center at AUDI focused on IT infrastructure.

A dynamic startup professional, Sebastian has played a pivotal role in guiding products from conception to market leadership through innovative, cutting-edge technologies. He is committed to challenging the status quo, fostering a culture of innovation, and driving continuous progress within organizations.

Sebastian emphasizes the distinction between mere reorganization and true transformation. He advocates for a „people-first“ approach, believing that when organizations prioritize their people, they empower them to solve complex problems. Conversely, a „process-first“ mindset often leads to mere compliance rather than genuine problem-solving.

As a movement architect, Sebastian aims to elevate community engagement among enterprise leaders and startup entrepreneurs globally. He is set to share his insights on „people-first transformation“ at the 19th IT Directors Forum, inspiring others to embrace meaningful change.


1st April 2025 |📍 London – t.b.a.
AI in Platform Engineering
C-Level Registrations available – private link via pm in linkedin


Exploring C-Level Advisory & Interim Leadership Opportunities

If you’re planning for an Interim CTO/CIO role in the next few months, I’d be happy to discuss how I can support your leadership and technology strategy needs. Let me know if you’d be open to a conversation. Drop a message on linkedin.


Keynotes

Don’t fight the silo! – a hands-on session on how to create end-2-end value streams in enterprises.

There is no greenfield! – escaping the trap of change and cultivating transformative momentum.

The DevOps legacy! – about AI OPS and platform engineering hands-on KPIs and tools.

There is no change without a business case! – about implementing sustainable change in enterprises.

Transformation is a mindset, not a project! – about people, tools and processes.

Time 2 Market and Cost of Delay by Security-First-Culture – platform engineering for C-Level.

AI doesn’t take your job; people using AI will. – about the people-first-transformation enablers and AI Ops




Next dates – upcoming events I’ll be speaking at:

1st April 2025 – London – AI in Platform Engineering
C-Level Registrations available


Speaker highlights and references:

2025 🎙️
  • Kubecon AI side event, Speaker, London
  • CIONET Roundtable ’25, Speaker, Frankfurt

2024 🎙️
  • Cloud Superstream with Katie Gamanji ’24, Keynote, O’Reilly Verlag
  • Bitpanda DevCon ’24, Keynote
  • Container Days ’24, Keynote, Hamburg
  • KubeCon Executive Summit ’24, Paris
  • Cloud Native Conference ‘24, Closing Keynote, Epstein
  • Commerzbank Offside ’24, Speaker, Frankfurt
  • CIONET Roundtable ’24, Speaker, Munich
  • AI:NOW Conference ’24, Keynote, Munich
  • 19th IT Directors Forum ’24, Keynote, Athens
  • AUDI Roundtable during Websummit ’24, Speaker, Lissabon

2023 🎙️
  • Container Days ‘23, Hamburg
  • CNCF KubeCon Executive Summit ‘23, Amsterdam
  • 🏆 Cloud Native Culture Award 1st Place ‘23, Epstein
  • Amadeus Conference ’23, Erding
  • IT Executive Roundtable ’23
  • KCD (Kubernetes Community Days) ’23, Zürich
  • KCD (Kubernetes Community Days) ’23, Munich
  • Swiss CISO Panel ’23, Keynote, Zürich
  • Sofa Summit ’23, Keynote, Online
  • Data Management Summit ’23, Keynote, Amsterdam

2022 🎙️
  • Container Days ‘22, Hamburg
  • CNCF CTO Summit ‘22, KubeCon, Valencia
  • Data Innovation Summit ‘22, Stockholm
  • RedHat Summit ‘22, Boston
  • CloudExpo ‘22, Frankfurt
  • Aviatrix Podcast Interview ’22, Online
  • ShipIT Podcast Interview ‘22, Online
  • CISO Panel @Aqua Splash, Milan
  • Data Science Conference ‘22, Belgrade
  • SphereIT Conference ’22, Krakow



2021 🎙️
  • Audi MQ Summit Workspace Lead, Ingolstadt
  • Container Days, Keynote, Hamburg
  • F5 CEO Round Table at SPRINT, Online
  • ITCS, Keynote, Online
  • CIO Magazin Interview, Online
  • Bitkom Open Source Monitor, Online
  • 🏆 Digital Leader Award ’21