Ilona Boniwell works at the intersection of psychological science and leadership development , helping individuals, teams, and organisations translate research on resilience, well-being, and positive leadership into concrete, lasting change.
At HEC Paris, where she has taught since 2015, joining as faculty from 2025, she serves as Academic Director of the Global Executive Coaching programmes and delivers custom programmes across the Gulf region and France. Her pedagogy combines rigorous evidence with experiential learning and gamification, designed to make behavioural insights immediately applicable.
She has trained tens of thousands of professionals across more than 25 countries, working with organisations including L'Oréal, Microsoft, BNP Paribas, Unilever, and Saint-Gobain, as well as the governments of the UAE and Bhutan. She is also CEO of Positran, a consultancy dedicated to evidence-based organisational transformation.
Ilona has authored or edited 12 books - among them Positive Psychology Coaching in the Workplace (Springer, 2021) and the Routledge International Handbook of Positive Health Sciences (2025) - and has delivered over 300 keynotes, including a TEDx talk. Her Google Scholar h-index stands at 38. She founded the European Network of Positive Psychology and serves on the Board of the International Positive Psychology Association.
Strategy & Leadership
Tech & AI