Women’s Day 2025 – Meet Merav Yanai
Merav Yanai: Never Give Up When Told No
Merav Yanai, CEO of the management-focused startup Leap, believes that only those who take risks reach the furthest. Through the platform she’s built, she aims to revolutionize the world of management using artificial intelligence.
From HR to Innovative Startup
For 16 years, Merav worked as an organizational consultant and owner of an organizational consulting firm, and then, another 16 years as HR Vice President and COO. The transition from human resources to operational management in a multidisciplinary company presented her with a significant challenge: “How do you make this transition despite not being an operations professional and still succeed? The answer involves combining the strengths of many good people working in a unified network of interests to create a winning team!”
One issue troubled Merav throughout her 30 years in the organizational arena – how to train first and second-tier managers. These levels, despite their influence on organizational performance and employee retention, rarely receive the tools available to senior managers and talented individuals.
The Revolution Begins with ChatGPT
The real breakthrough came when Gen AI became mainstream, offering a new opportunity to train managers through a mentor. A mentor who not only provides answers but teaches the intricacies of management through daily experiences. This led Merav to establish a startup that integrates daily management tasks with learning processes – a problem she had been trying to solve throughout her career.
The new technology brings fundamental organizational changes that affect the manager’s role. Management takes on a new face: managers need to convert traditional managerial activities into a role focused on solving complex problems, building relationships, creating collaborations, and making connections. Merav has even written a book on the subject – “Dialogic Management in a Changing World.”
Survival in the New World
As a startup CEO, Merav’s role is to maintain the vision, track rapid market developments, and instil this vision in global organizations. “Today it’s clearer than ever that organizations that don’t act quickly and adopt completely new management tools and skills won’t survive in the new world.”
Leap: A Platform for Continuous Management Learning
At Leap, they researched hundreds of management cases and built a structured methodology that teaches managers and improves their skills during their work. The platform uses extensive data processing, partly unique content created by the company and partly organizational and managerial information unique to each manager and organization. At Leap, the emphasis is on diagnosis, identification, and on-the-job learning rather than through one-time events and tools.
Values for Success
A startup is an emotional roller coaster. Merav shares how she copes: “My partner and I love climbing high mountains. During the ascent, we discover that after one peak comes another, and that the journey is much more important than the highest peak. When we reach the summit, the feeling isn’t ‘we’ve reached the most important thing’ but rather that we’ve achieved something thanks to the journey. Together.”
Her motto, inspired by Einstein: “Only those who take risks and go far discover how far they can go,” plus passion – following one’s passion is where all the conditions for enjoying the journey exist.
Tips for Women Entrepreneurs
- Don’t give up on your passion
- Don’t surrender to “no”
- Believe it’s possible
- Know how to demand more for yourself than what seems “right”
- Don’t succumb to underestimation
To bring more women into the field, Merav believes in highlighting women’s successes and finding those who make their success a common resource and want to help others. A community of women can help, but “sometimes we are our own barriers.” Therefore, it’s important to support, push forward, and build mechanisms that allow women space to stand out: “We are excellent managers!”
Meet Robin – Leap’s Mentor
Robin, Leap’s mentor, is set to be officially launched in about a month. Leap invites organizations interested in integrating AI into daily management work and leading fundamental change in leadership building approaches to register. A waiting list is currently being built – first come, first served!
Merav’s LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/merav-yanai/
Leap’s LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/myleapai/?viewAsMember=true
Leap’s web – http://www.myleap.ai/
Merav’s book – https://shorturl.at/lJKOV
Leap’s event – http://bit.ly/4btXn2K
