Michał Kanarkiewicz: speaker, strategic thinking trainer, consultant and chess master

Learn the ins and outs of strategic thinking through the game of chess

Michał Kanarkiewicz is a business consultant and speaker who translates the thinking of chess masters into the business world. He helps leaders and teams of major organizations think and plan more effectively, so they achieve better results.

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Does your organization face these problems? All ambitious strategists have them

Challenges

Michał specializes in helping the largest companies with their common problems related to strategic thinking . With his support, you will create strategies and tactics that will synergistically lead you to your goals.

Difficulties in decision-making
Decisions are delayed or postponed until the last minute, or there is decision paralysis.
Fear of change
Any proposal to change the company or suggestion that things could be done differently is met with immediate resistance.
Lack of innovative thinking
The proposed activities and ideas still look the same or are only intended to copy the competition ahead of you.
Failure to implement the company's strategy in practice
Strategy exists only on paper and departments work according to their own rules - often against the organization's vision.
Continuous "firefighting"
Employees in the company don’t have time to think about long-term goals because they are always occupied with current tasks.
Short-sightedness in decision-making
Decisions are made under the influence of emotions and in response to the current market situation, without considering the longer time horizon.
Lack of delegation of tasks
Actions are taken personally by people who should be spending their time on more important tasks, which ends up overwhelming them.
No growth or a decline in sales
Previous strategies are no longer working, and over time, you notice a distinct lack of growth or decline in sales.
Professional burnout
Monotony, task overwhelm and lack of ambitious goals lead to low efficiency and employees' aversion to their duties.

Companies that, thanks to Michał, have learned the secrets of chess masters' strategies in business

Clients

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attendees on the first day of the Life Without Limits conference
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attendees of live speeches

Michał Kanarkiewicz

Bio

Michał Kanarkiewicz is a chess player, author of seven books, entrepreneur, business consultant and speaker who translates the thinking of chess masters into the business world. He helps leaders and teams of major companies think and plan more effectively, so they achieve better results.

He has worked for brands such as: Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, PZU, KGHM, ING Bank Śląski, Volvo, EY, PwC, Siemens, L’Oréal, Heineken, UBS, Alior Bank, Bank Pekao, Bank Millennium, mBank, Santander Bank, Warta, Luxmed, Dell Technologies, Eurovia, and Lufthansa.

An experienced inspirational speaker with more than 400 speeches in Polish and English, attended by more than 100,000 people. He specializes in Power Speech lectures aimed at helping company employees break through their barriers. Distinguishing features in his speeches are analogies to the royal game, high energy and research-based, as well as a chess simul, a session of simultaneous play on multiple, such as 10, chess boards.

Consultant and business trainer teaching strategic thinking, time management, motivation, decision-making and problem solving. More than 30,000 people have participated in his training courses. He bases his own training programs on the experience of running his own company and those of the largest companies in Poland and around the world.

Entrepreneur, has been running Kanarkiewicz Strategy Consulting and a chess school for 10 years. In the past, he was also the founder and owner of a book publishing house and a social media agency.

Chess teacher helping adults and children develop. He is the creator of “VIP Chess” – lessons aimed at the most demanding. Famous athletes, artists, media people and executives of multinational corporations learn with him.

Chess master, who tied in chess simuls: in 2020 with the 12th chess world champion Anatoly Karpov, and in 2023, with a team of super champions led by Magnus Carlsen – the strongest chess player of all time.

Author of seven books, two original TV programs – “ABCs of Chess” and “The Royal Game”, more than 200 expert statements in the media and more than 100 expert articles in the press. Often invited to television as an expert on strategy, strategic thinking and the value of chess.

Popularizer of chess, who brings the royal game closer to people by organizing various business events and activities – such as Chessoshere VIP Legia Warsaw, Chess Celebrity Championships; and social activities – such as donating author’s chess teaching books to orphanages. His social media is followed by nearly half a million people:

TikTok: 343,000+ followers
Instagram: 71,000+ followers
YouTube: 74,000+ subscribers
LinkedIn: 17,000+ followers

His mission is to get 10 million Poles playing chess.

His values are:

Freedom. Being free from constraints while pursuing the vision of 10 million Polish women and men playing chess.
Growth. Living according to the growth mindset concept of becoming a better version of oneself every day.
Effectiveness. Achieving goals while getting above-average results in the process.
Entrepreneurship. Looking for solutions to customer problems and helping to implement the most effective solution.
Consistency. Living in harmony with oneself and being true to one’s values and taking care to implement them in reality.

In search of inspiration for further development, he travels the world. In his free time, he reads books, runs and plays soccer and basketball.

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Learn proven ways to have an effective strategy in your organization

Offer

Michał develops companies and his clients with well-timed actions. His speciality is translating strategies used by chess masters into business realities.

9.58/10

average Power Speech rating

9.41/10

average rating for training

Power Speech
A Power Speech is a speech that inspires your employees, raises their energy levels, and gives them practical tips that they can apply in their professional daily lives.
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Training
Strategic thinking training will give your employees the competencies they need to effectively set goals, plan and make business decisions.
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Cooperation step-by-step

The road to your dream goals begins with the first contact and conversation about your needs. Don't wait, contact us now.

Contact
Get in touch in the way that suits you best and schedule initial meeting.
Needs assessment and personalized offer
After the needs assessment you will receive a personalized offer.
Getting the details right
You will verify if the offer meets your needs, and if not fully, you will receive an updated version.
Implementation
Michał will move on to action and project implementation. Everything will be done with expertise and a goal-oriented approach.
Summary
After the project is completed, there will be a summary discussion about its course, conclusions, and recommendations for the future.
Follow-up
If needed, a few weeks after the project summary, a follow-up meeting will take place to discuss and verify the effects of the collaboration and any further needs.

Michał's effectiveness is spoken of by the clients themselves

Testimonials

Effectiveness is the most important aspect of business activities. To evaluate it, client feedback after the project is essential. You can find their collection below.

Our expectations were fully realized, so we are pleased to recommend Michał to be a talented and trustworthy speaker
The chess-business-themed speech was professionally prepared, polished, thoughtful and tailored to the needs of our conference. Mr. Kanarkiewicz showed in an inspiring way the translation of the rules of chess into effectiveness in business and the improvement of strategic thinking skills.
Jacek Kolasiński
Marketing Communication Departament, Bank Millennium
Michał’s presentation was very inspiring and met with great interest
Michał’s presentation was a great inspiration for further work on strategy. On the one hand, it made it possible to organize some theoretical concepts, on the other hand, it unleashed the creativity and enthusiasm of the meeting's participants, and some phrases, such as "firefighting strategy", entered the company's jargon and are still used today.
Lidia Świderska
HR Director, L’Oréal
With vast experience and a keen business sense, Michał can identify and solve tactical problems that may block the achievement of strategic goals
His commitment and personalized approach to our original event themed around "The Queen's Gambit" was a masterstroke. Michał not only perfectly tailored his presentation to meet the participants' expectations but also, with his openness, sense of humor, and professionalism, ensured our collaboration was a shared success.
Małgorzata Figiel-Koźlak
Deputy Director of the Department of Employee Performance Efficiency, KGHM
Collaboration with Michał could not have resulted in anything but mutual success - it was a masterstroke!
Michał combines his passion for chess and out-of-the-box thinking about business, which creates a unique personality. With great care, he analyzed our needs and personalized his speech in such a way as to best reach the participants of the meeting. He personally gained my trust personally with his openness and approachability :) At all stages of our cooperation, Michał presented extensive knowledge, an excellent sense of humor and professionalism.
Małgorzata Nowakowska
HR Deputy Director, VINCI Construction Poland
The speech was conducted with due diligence
The thorough preparation of the trainer, his professionalism, energy and communication skills were appreciated by every participant of the meeting. Noteworthy were his interpersonal skills, commitment and partnership approach to conducting the speech.
Michał Miczajka
Director of Credit Platforms Department, ING Bank Śląski
I recommend Michał Kanarkiewicz’s company as a professional provider of strategic thinking training courses
The workshop was conducted by Mr. Michał Kanarkiewicz interestingly and engagingly for the participants. In addition to theory and exercises, their application in practice was also discussed. The training was professional, and tailored to the specifics and needs of the participants, thus completely fulfilling our goals and expectations.
Michał Zwyrtek
Director, PWC
Our expectations were fully met and we are pleased to recommend Michał Kanarkiewicz as a trustworthy professional
Michał is characterized by a great deal of substantive knowledge of the subject he presented. The workshop he led was attractive to participants, and the content he presented was consistent and understandable to everyone.
Jan Kasprzycki-Rosikoń
Crowdfunding Team Leader, EY

Dariusz Piotrowski

VP Sales, General Manager Poland at Dell Technologies

Michał Kanarkiewicz thank you for being with us! Logical thinking, integrity, strategy, knowledge and experience combined with ultra-modern technologies and AI is a fascinating mix. See you again :-)

Robert Domagala

Infrastructure Solution Group Technology Consulting Manager at Dell Technologies Poland

Michał the number of questions and people participating in the problem-solving and simul activities are the best evidence that we didn't have enough time 😎

For me, it was incredibly inspiring to connect chess strategies with business and life.

And the most interesting question was about foul play at chess tournaments. I was surprised to discover that there are so many cases.

Thank you for being with us 👍

Bartosz Skwarczek

Hey, Michał thank you so much for this inspiring meeting 😁 It was great to not only meet but also to talk about strategy and chess, which I have loved since elementary school;) Congratulations on your approach and “smiling personality”, as well as your goal to educate Polish men and women about this unique game. We are keeping our fingers crossed for you! 🚀

Joao Bras Jorge

CEO bank millennium

Was a great presentation, congratulations!

Ilona Perużyńska-Zych

HR Director I Accredited Mentor EMCC Global I Accredited Mentoring Program Manager EMCC Global I Coach ICC I

Michał Kanarkiewicz it was a pleasure to have you in our community. A very inspiring speech!

‘Start with a clear vision of the end’… my visionary self is satisfied! 😊 See you! 😊🙏

Paulina Mocka

International Presentation and Conference Producer 🌠

It was great to see you again at the conference, Michał! Your presentation on scenario planning has inspired us to incorporate it into our daily operations 👌 💎

Nicolas DEPRET

President at Vinci Construction Polska WARBUD & EUROVIA Polska

Thank you Michał Kanarkiewicz for this inspiring presentation, the great opportunity given to our team to play a Chess game with You ♟️… and of course for your patience and availability during this long signing cession of your book 🙏😁!

Closing our convention this afternoon with our traditional feed-back cession, this moment with You and your presentation were mentioned several times as an inspiring take-away! 👍

A great moment for all of us!🙏

Sylwia Miszke

Strategic HR Leader & Executive Team Coach | Building High-Performing Teams | Talent Management & Change Expert

Michał, part about the mistakes of speakers is spot on. As for your speeches, they are sincere, modest, reflective, authentic, and greatly appreciated.

Maciej Łoboz

💼 Director of Life Sales ☂️Mentor 📣Propagator of insurance knowledge 📱Blogger

Michałgreat presentation❗️ There were many inspirational takeaways 💪💙

Michał is an experienced expert who eagerly shares his knowledge and experiences

Expert

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expert opinions in the media
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expert articles in the press

Sport Channel: The Royal Game
TV
Time for chess! Michał Kanarkiewicz invites you to moments filled with emotion.
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Infor
Press
Three managerial strategies for Generation Z that will help you motivate your team and achieve your goals.
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Bankier.pl
Press
How to increase the effectiveness of the team, inspire co-workers to go further, and plan and organize their work even better while developing soft skills.
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Spider's Web
Press
Faced with the expectations of Gen Z, how should the leader motivate the team to achieve their goals?
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Podcast: Thinking Objectively about Business
Podcast
Think of chess as a tool to anticipate your competitors' moves. The only sure thing about strategy is that it will change as you go along.
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Puls Biznesu (Business Pulse)
Press
Chess strategies can be applied to business. Business is a game without end. You don't have to beat competitors, you can cooperate with them.
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Forbes
Press
A conversation about strategic thinking, chess techniques useful in business, and the new Generation Z bosses and entrepreneurs.
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The royal game is not only Michał’s passion but his profession

Chess master

Michał is a chess master whose greatest successes include draws in simultaneous chess events:

in 2020 with the 12th world chess champion Anatoly Karpov;
in 2023 with a team of super champions led by Magnus Carlsen – the strongest chess player of all time.

Click and watch a video of Michał's game with Magnus Carlsen

Michał conducts research, among others, in cooperation with the company of world champion Magnus Carlsen

Research

The NEUROHM company, with the support of Michal Kanarkiewicz and the Play Magnus Group, conducted a chess survey aimed at promoting the royal game and expanding knowledge about players, i.e. the group of people who play chess – both professionally and amateur. The survey was conducted on a sample of 2,057 people who were asked about, among other things: