IBM Champion Heidi Schmidt

Meet Heidi Schmidt, CEO of PKS Software GmbH and an IBM Champion for six years. Heidi is passionate about IBM i and IBM Z, platforms she admires for their sustainability and the way they’ve powered the world’s most critical applications for decades. For her, these systems represent not only technical excellence but also stability and trust, values she carries into her own leadership style.

When it comes to advocacy, Heidi feels most connected to the community through user group events, reference stories, and speaking engagements. She is an active voice at local IBM i and Z events across DACH, and recently took part in the “Train the Boss” event in Munich, the COMMON Europe Conference in Gothenburg, and the INSIGHTS event in Cologne. She especially enjoyed meeting passionate speakers, learning from inspiring customer presentations, and being part of the “Women in CEC” corner at COMMON Europe. One of her proudest accomplishments is leading PKS as co-CEO, where under her leadership, the company has become four times more profitable than it was with the previous all-male management team. For Heidi, this achievement reflects her belief that diverse teams working together with mutual respect can accomplish extraordinary results.

Outside of tech, Heidi imagines herself doing something similar to what she already loves, whether it’s renovating houses, coaching teams, or helping individuals grow into winning teams. It all connects back to her life motto of building, modernizing, and unlocking hidden potential. To future Champions, Heidi offers this advice: “Be passionate and curious, and stick with it.”

Lightning round:

• What would be your superpower and why?

Ayurvedic leaving & eating as well as running because it makes me all feel happy and healthy.

• Ice cream or cake?

Neither. I prefer dates with almond butter or vegan chocolate.

• Cats or dogs?

Neither. I prefer animals in the wild, especially birds, fish, and insects.

• Summer or winter?

Winter.

• Morning or evening?

Morning.

• eBook or paper book?

eBook.

• TV shows or movies?

Neither. I hardly ever watch TV.

• A night out or a night in?

Night in.

• Cannonball into the pool or dip a toe in first?

Cannonball into the pool.

• Go-to karaoke song?

I don´t have one.

• Drive or fly?

Drive.

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