Jens Corssen
Psychologist
Specialist in personality development and mental stability and founder of the Selbst-Entwickler® philosophy.
- years of top-level sport & entrepreneurship
- 20+
- keynotes delivered
- 500+
- (inter)national matches as a referee
- 500+
- published books
- 2
About Deniz Aytekin
One path – several perspectives.
Entrepreneur
Deniz Aytekin is co-founder and chairman of the supervisory board of anwalt.de services AG as well as founder and managing director of the online marketplace fitnessmarkt.de. His professional foundation is an apprenticeship as an industrial clerk at Mercedes-Benz AG, which he complemented with a part-time degree as a state-certified business economist. With the foundation of DA Consulting GmbH in 2017 he created the professional framework for his work as a keynote speaker and consultant and for the team development programme “Echte Teams”.
- Co-founder & chairman of the supervisory board, anwalt.de
- Founder & managing director, fitnessmarkt.de
- Founder & managing director, DA Consulting GmbH
Keynote speaker
Since 2020 Deniz Aytekin has been a keynote speaker at corporate and client events. As a speaker he combines his experience from top-level sport with his own entrepreneurial responsibility and well-founded insights from psychology and management research. Deniz Aytekin has delivered more than 500 keynotes in a wide range of formats and inspired thousands of people with his impulses. For internationally operating companies he offers every keynote in English as well.
- 500+ keynotes
- 330+ companies & organisers
- 5 keynote topics – freely combinable
- in German & English
Former referee
Deniz Aytekin is one of the most renowned German referees. Football fans valued his authentic presence, players in particular his ability to communicate difficult decisions with empathy and clarity. In 2019, 2022, 2024 and 2026 he was voted DFB Referee of the Year. As a FIFA referee he officiated 21 Champions League matches, at EURO 2012 and the 2017 DFB Cup final. In May 2026 he ended his active career after 254 Bundesliga matches. Deniz Aytekin works for DFB Schiri GmbH as a referee coach (particularly in communication).
- Bundesliga referee 2008–2026
- FIFA referee 2011–2022
- 4× DFB Referee of the Year
- DFB Cup final 2017
- Coach
Author
Together with Prof. Dr. Andreas Engelen (Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, HHU Düsseldorf) he published the book “Souverän entscheiden und führen – Was Führungskräfte von Top-Schiedsrichtern lernen können”, which systematically explores the transfer between top-level sport and modern business science. In his book “Respekt ist alles – Was auf und neben dem Platz zählt” he offers deeply human insights into professional football from the perspective of a DFB referee.
- Book: Souverän entscheiden und führen
- Book: Respekt ist alles
Mentor
Beyond the stage, Deniz Aytekin is passionately committed as a mentor to talents, leaders and entrepreneurs. He knows how to strengthen people in their individual development, unlock potential and support them in finding their own attitude even in difficult phases. As a mentor he not only passes on valuable impulses from more than 20 years of top-level sport and entrepreneurship, but accompanies change processes with empathy, clarity and orientation. He places particular value on genuine exchange of experience, clear values and sustainable growth.
Human being
Deniz Aytekin was born in July 1978 and lives with his family near Nuremberg. He holds the Bavarian Order of Merit and was honoured in 2023 for the football quote of the year. Beyond his professional activities he enjoys personal development and has a great passion for music. Artists such as Paul Kalkbrenner as well as the pianist Ludovico Einaudi inspire him in particular.
- Bavarian Order of Merit 2023
- Football quote of the year 2023
Change of perspective
Deniz Aytekin in dialogue with experts
Experience gains through reflection. That is why Deniz Aytekin deliberately seeks professional exchange with leading experts and psychologists. He questions, compares his experience with scientific findings and continuously develops his impulses. In doing so he relies on different perspectives and proven expertise from science and practice.
Prof. Dr. Gerd Gigerenzer
Psychologist and decision researcher
Director of the Harding Center for Risk Literacy at the University of Potsdam and director emeritus at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development.
Prof. Dr. Andreas Engelen
HHU Düsseldorf
Expert in strategic and entrepreneurial management with a focus on entrepreneurship, innovation and leadership.
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Jenewein
University of St. Gallen
Expert in leadership, high-performance teams and cultural change, and founder of Jenewein AG.
Dr. Christoph Mund
University of St. Gallen
Expert in transformational leadership, innovation and change management.
Dr. Dirk Eilert
Emotion researcher
Expert in facial expression, body language and emotional intelligence and developer of the Mimikresonanz® method.
René Borbonus
Expert in rhetoric, communication and respect and founder of the training institute Communico.
Robert Steffen
Expert in communication, positioning and personal brand development.
Expertise that moves. Attitude that convinces.
Book Deniz Aytekin as a keynote speaker
Experience inspiring impulses from Deniz Aytekin – scientifically grounded, authentic and practical – with entrepreneurial experience and striking analogies from the world of professional football.
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