About the Author

Michaela Drost is an experienced business development professional with a diverse range of skills in areas such as program leadership, digital transformation (AI), and communication management. With a track record of success in various roles across different companies in Germany and France, Michaela has developed a deep understanding of business operations and has honed her expertise in driving organizational growth through innovation and customer-centric approaches.

Her current role as a Business Development Manager for Catena-X Case Studies at T-Systems requires her to identify and qualify customers who want to test Catena-X use cases. In this capacity, Michaela is responsible for partner management, customer experience management, and internationalizing the Catena-X network towards France. She plays a key role in collecting feedback from partners and relaying it to T-Systems' tech teams for the continuous improvement of the technical solutions.

Prior to this, Michaela served as a Technical Sales Consultant for Data Spaces at T-Systems, where she led the go-to-market approach of the Data Intelligence Hub. She set up and led the marketing team, defined the product value, and established a common go-to-market approach with the Google Power House team. In addition, Michaela provided sales support to the Catena-X and Gaia-X teams and maintained direct customer touchpoints.

Before joining T-Systems, Michaela worked at Deutsche Telekom Services Europe SE as a Program Lead in Artificial Intelligence and an AI Training Expert, with a direct reporting line to the CEO. During her tenure, she set up and scaled an international team of business experts, designed and steered training programs in AI, and promoted the AI Incubator groupwide in events and podcasts. She also implemented agile and innovation methods in DTSE's digital transformation initiatives.

Michaela's extensive experience also includes a stint at BuyIn SAS, a procurement joint venture of Orange and Deutsche Telekom, where she served as Chief of Staff to the CEO.

Michaela completed her Global MBA from IE Business School in Madrid, where she was ranked in the top 10 of her class and achieved outstanding results in innovation, strategy, and technology. Michaela also earned a BA and a Master of Education in English and French from Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität in Münster, Germany. In addition, she holds several certificates, including a Professional Product Owner certification from Scrum.org and a Scholarship from IE Business School. She still loves to teach and passes on her knowledge in French/German tech mentorship programs and in Women in AI.