Dan Coen

“Real problems, real stakes, chances to make an immediate difference”—that’s what drew Dan Coen to AlixPartners not once but twice.  

Dan began his consulting career at Kroll in 2003, then left the firm to gain experience in corporate finance and retail ventures. He returned in 2008, when the group was known as Zolfo Cooper, and remained through its transition to AlixPartners. Over the next sixteen years, Dan rose to Partner & Managing Director before departing in August 2024 to become a global leader at a firm with over 10,000 employees in 90 countries. 

Dan highlights how AlixPartners challenged him immediately to adapt and deliver: “At AlixPartners, you’re sort of put in the middle of the fire and you learn quickly that clients are looking for outcomes.” Over the years, he found just as much value in the collaboration behind the scenes: “You’ve got this amazing nucleus of people that are like-minded, are human—which is really important—pragmatic, collaborative, relentless, but who also combine that sense of urgency and action orientation with humanity. I feel like that combination is quite rare.” 

Throughout his time at AlixPartners, Dan learned three core principles. First, “simplify the complex,” which, he explains, boils down to: “No matter the size of the challenge, reduce it to actionable steps.”  Second, he developed the muscle of “moving with speed, acting with urgency,” noting that “in today's fast-paced world,” momentum often beats perfection. Most importantly, he has embraced empathy as a core leadership value, believing deeply that “you can’t restructure or transform a business without recognizing the human side.” He carries these principles—clarity, urgency, and empathy—into every leadership role, both in the office and out of it. (Empathy, he notes with a smile, has been particularly invaluable when it comes to parenting his two teenage daughters.) 

In 2021, Dan faced an incredible challenge that would become a defining moment in his life: He was diagnosed with a brain tumor and underwent major surgery. “It was an emotional rollercoaster—massively overwhelming at first,” he recalls.  The year-long ordeal brought myriad challenges, but he says it was also a time when AlixPartners’ true character was revealed. “The company genuinely felt like an extension of my family,” he says. He remembers everything from daily check-ins from multiple people and surprise gifts through the post to an endless supply of ‘Tell me what I can do to help you’ messages. He calls that experience “very, very, very, very impactful.” 

The support Dan received during his recovery went well beyond the interpersonal. “That level of support—whether that was colleagues checking in or partners making sure I had time and space to prioritize recovery—reinforced that AlixPartners isn’t just about high performance, it’s about genuine care and empathy.” The practical benefits mattered, too. “It’s clear that when the HR team or the people team get together and think about these things, they truly think about the impact on the individual,” he says. “It really felt like, let’s get you what you need to get better, and then we’ll think about the work side of it next. It genuinely was a massive part of the recovery journey.” 

Dan points to AlixPartners’ leadership as a driver for this culture, quoting, “Simon Freakley has always said, whether to me or publicly, ‘Take care of the people and the numbers will take care of themselves.’” 

This experience fundamentally changed Dan’s outlook, both personally and professionally. “It really forced me to think about what balance really is in life,” he shares. “I was guilty of equating success with things like endless availability. And afterwards, I really learned to value time and energy as finite resources. I live by that today. We have a finite amount of time, and we have a finite amount of energy. You’ve got to protect your time and make sure that your energy is focused in the right areas.” 

The shift wasn’t just internal. “I definitely put stricter boundaries in place. I say ‘no’ way more than I used to.” In his approach to leadership as well, Dan is guided by this principle: “Say no to the stuff that is not going to perpetuate the things that you need to perpetuate and yes to the stuff that is going to bring you deep joy and purpose.”  

He also places a high value on seeing and adapting to differences and working styles across a global team. In his work today working across countries and cultures, Dan emphasizes that effective leadership requires listening with empathy and being flexible: “Work life balance” means different things to different people, and he believes in helping people work in ways that best suit their skills, energies, and priorities. 

Beyond his professional achievements, Dan is deeply committed to giving back, especially through organizations like The King’s Trust, a charity that supports young, underprivileged people in entering the workplace. “Charity has always played a massive role in everything that I do, mainly because it all boils down to chance,” he explains. “I feel incredibly privileged in my life, and I wouldn’t have got where I’ve got to today without a number of people on my journey giving me a chance. I feel I can give that back.” He believes strongly in the power of giving people chances. “Inevitably, if you can nurture that young individual, they will flourish,” he says—“and the positive impacts ripple across communities.”

Dan continues to support his fellow AlixPartners alumni: “I always used to do a lot of formal and informal mentoring within the firm and that has carried on.” And, he remains closely connected to the AlixPartners community, saying he has so many “amazing memories” forged from his experience there—an experience he sees as being a direct result of the company’s DNA. “The camaraderie and the togetherness seem to be built very quickly regardless of how little people know each other within project teams—I feel like that is something that has been really nurtured over the years.”