Graduate Career Coaching · Cross-Cultural Leadership

Leonidas
Joannou

Graduate Coach · Leadership Advisor · Facilitator

I help graduates land careers in London's most competitive industries — and help leaders navigate the complexity of working across cultures. Based in London. Working globally.

Leonidas Joannou
142Graduates coached
5Years leading internationally
4Languages spoken
3Continents of experience

Main Service — Graduate Career Coaching

For graduates who want the career they deserve

London's most competitive graduate roles are not won on qualifications alone. They are won by people who know how to tell their story, write a cover letter that gets read, and walk into an interview with genuine confidence. I help graduates do exactly that — with 142 success stories and counting.

0 Success Stories Graduates placed in consulting, communications, advisory, and international business roles across London
  • Placements at Big 4, boutique consultancies, and global communications firms
  • Roles secured in consulting, PR, public affairs, China advisory, and international business
  • CV rewrites that get past automated screening systems
  • Cover letters that hiring managers actually finish reading
  • Graduates from UCL, LSE, Warwick, King's, SOAS, and beyond
  • Specialist coaching for international and China-facing careers
Book a free discovery call

CV & Cover Letter Review

A full rewrite of your CV and a bespoke cover letter for each application — framed to make your experience land with the specific firm you're targeting. No templates. No generic advice.

Application Strategy

Most graduates apply to 40 firms and hear nothing. I help you identify the roles where your profile genuinely fits, develop a targeted outreach strategy, and position yourself as a compelling candidate before you apply.

Interview Preparation

Structured mock interviews, competency and case coaching, and honest feedback that turns a nervous candidate into a confident one. I work on both what you say and how you say it.

International & China Careers

Specialist coaching for graduates targeting China advisory, international consulting, cross-cultural communications, or roles at firms with Asia Pacific or Latin American operations.


Leadership Services

Cross-cultural leadership coaching & advisory

01

1:1 Coaching Retainer

Monthly coaching for executives, directors, and leaders navigating cross-cultural complexity — China, Latin America, and the UK.

  • Two sessions per month
  • Async support between sessions
  • Bespoke frameworks for your context
  • China market navigation
From £1,200 per month
02

Team Facilitation

High-level facilitation for leadership teams, boards, and organisations navigating cross-cultural dynamics, strategic decisions, or complex stakeholder conversations.

  • Half and full-day formats
  • Pre-session stakeholder interviews
  • Bilingual facilitation available
  • China-UK and LatAm-UK contexts
From £2,500 per day
03

Advisory & Moderation

Ongoing advisory for organisations, think tanks, and events platforms requiring cross-cultural expertise, panel moderation, or China/LatAm market insight.

  • Monthly retainer structure
  • Panel and event moderation
  • Strategic communications advisory
  • Cross-cultural due diligence
From £1,500 per month

Built from real experience, not theory

"The most important thing about cross-cultural leadership is what nobody tells you before you arrive."

I spent two years as a director of three international schools in Shenzhen — managing cross-cultural teams, navigating relationships with Chinese government bodies and investors, and leading institutional transformation inside one of the world's most complex operating environments.

Before that, I was Head of Year 11 and Whole School Literacy Lead at a London secondary school, where I led a team, designed whole-institution strategy, and delivered measurable change across a diverse urban community.

I'm a philosophy graduate of the University of Warwick. I speak English, Spanish, Greek, and conversational Mandarin. I work with leaders navigating the China-West dynamic and Latin American markets — and with graduates who want to build serious careers in London's most competitive industries.

Shenzhen Latin America London Executive coaching Cross-cultural facilitation Graduate careers Mandarin · Spanish · Greek

Approach

How I work

01

Earned, not studied

Everything I bring comes from direct experience — running organisations in Shenzhen, leading teams across cultures, navigating institutional complexity in real time. I don't teach frameworks I've read about. I work from situations I've been in.

02

Specific, not generic

Every engagement is built around your specific situation, your specific audience, and your specific objectives. There are no off-the-shelf programmes here. The work is always particular.

03

Honest, not comfortable

Good coaching is honest. I'll tell you what I see, including the things that are harder to hear. The goal is not to validate — it's to help you get measurably better at what you're trying to do.

04

Outcomes first

I measure success by what changes — the interview you get, the partnership that lands, the team that works differently together. The conversation is the method. The result is the point.


In their words
"Leonidas doesn't just understand China — he understands what it actually takes to build trust with Chinese partners. That combination is genuinely rare."

Sun Xuhua — CEO, Xuhua Electronics

Contact

Start a conversation

Every engagement starts with a 30-minute exploratory call — no commitment, no pitch. Just a conversation to understand what you're navigating and whether I'm the right person to help.

Book an exploratory call

Based in

London, UK

Response time

Within 24 hours