Karina Leyser
“Since I can remember, with my Blackboard and dolls, Education is my passion. Learning and teaching, this dyad changes the world, and who does not want a better world?
It was the desire for a better world that led me into Business Administration, as Leadership can be a strong catalyst for change.
In the corporate sector, I’ve been in contact with different industries, countries, cultures and learned so much, not only about processes and projects, but specially about people.
But something was missing…I needed to be reconnected with my purpose, Education, and this reconnection gave me the strength to start a different career path, closer to Learning and Development.
Outside the work environment, I dedicate part of my time into different volunteering projects, specially related to Gender Equality (men and women need to work together)
On a personal side, I am the youngest daughter of three, with tons of nieces and nephews to play with. Citizen of the world, I’m always planning my next trip.
Fond of art, wine, books, nerd culture and lazy time (not particularly in this order).




SELECTED CLIENTS
professional expertise
Karina is a teacher and trainer with over 10 years of corporate experience, with proficiency in Project | Process Management and Strategic Planning. Karina is experienced in multi-cultural environments, specifically Latin America.
Black Belt in Lean Six Sigma and specialized in Finance, Karina has designed and delivered training across multiple countries, such as Brazil (where she is from), India, UAE, USA, Spain, Uruguay, Chile and México, where she lived for three years. Karina is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish and English.
portfolio
- Designed and delivered Productivity, Entrepreneurship, Negotiation, Procurement Management related courses, on and offline, in companies, non-profits and universities
- Designed and delivered innumerous Talks related to Leadership, Intrapreneurship, Change Management, Personal Branding and others, face to face and virtually.
- Facilitated Lean In Circle based programme in Brazil, for female empowerment.
- Co-founded Gear Up Women programme in Brazil, for female empowerment.
- Led the review and approval of Balanced Score Card of Purchasing Function in a large national bank in Brazil.
- Planned and executed Project Management Office activities related to Divesture and Integration of Procurement functions between Banks.
- Developed and executed Procurement process standardization across the America region, including training and change management.
- Led Regional Business Process Centralization for Procurement Role in a multinational bank as the Project Manager.
Previous Experience
Karina started her professional career as a consultant for medium/large family companies, supporting Corporate Governance activities. Soon after, Karina entered as a trainee in HSBC, where she continued to work in Corporate Governance activities involving Customer Experience and tracking of several technological programmes. She was then invited to move to Mexico City to be in charge of the Procurement Operations team, being responsible for all Procurement system’s in Latin America. As her role evolved, she got responsibility of several continuous improvement projects. Back to Brazil after three years, now as Global Procurement Development senior manager, she planned and delivered several global projects, including the ones related to HSBC divesture strategy in Brazil. In Bradesco, she was responsible for the review of the entire strategy of the Purchasing function. That was the point when Karina decided for a career change, pursuing her passion for Education, where she acts as an associated teacher and trainer with different partners.
prefessional qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration
- Post-Graduate Certificate in Accounting | Controllership
- Certified Black Belt in Lean Six Sigma by IASSC
- Master of Science in Business Administration
(completion scheduled for Jun20)