Benn Lim
Ikigai Impact
Sydney, NSW, Australia
About
“When results hit a wall, I help CEOs find the cash and get their team behind the plan.”
I can read a balance sheet, and I can read a room. I’ve been a banker, a stay-at-home dad certified to teach parenting, and the COO and Chief Impact Officer of a global B Corp investment group. I work with CEOs and leadership teams of growing businesses, social enterprises and not-for-profits whose results have hit a wall: costs rising, margins squeezed, and a good team getting fed up. We find the cash first, then get the team behind a plan they believe in, so the CEO stops running on empty. My rule is simple: connect before we correct.
Based in Wollongong, working with clients in Sydney and the Illawarra. Happy to travel for workshops anywhere in Australia, including Brisbane, Canberra, Gold Coast, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Tasmania, and to coach online.
Professional Highlights
• Client results: helped a CEO lift profit margins from 5% to 25%, grow revenue 20%, double net profit and lift employee NPS from 50 to 70, with staff healthier and happier.
• Turnaround: guided a private credit fund through COVID to a 20% net IRR, and led a listed company through a delisting that kept investors on side.
• Cost discipline: cut operating costs 29% over two years, holding a 20% net reduction over three, without losing momentum.
• Execution rhythms: built quarterly OKRs, KPI tracking and meeting rhythms across multiple businesses.
• People and culture: brought in the ghSMART WHO hiring method, leadership programs and long-term incentive plans.
• B Corp and impact: led B Corp certification across multiple companies, lifting the group’s score from 84.2 to 138.8.
• Capital raising: led funding rounds and cross-border deals in volatile markets, including support for international listings.
• Brand and stakeholders: led a brand refresh that lifted digital engagement 270%.
• Boards: Non-Executive Director and adviser in education, fintech, sustainability and the circular economy.
• Wealth management: nearly a decade at UBS Wealth Management, advising on about $150M in client funds.
• Recognition: Investment Firm Executive of the Year, APAC, CEO Monthly, 2022.
Personal Highlights
• Trained in how people really connect: the only male Parenting-by-Connection instructor in Australia (Hand in Hand Parenting), and trained in Hakomi H.E.A.R.T. relationship training. I use both with leadership teams.
• Dad and community: proud father of two boys (plus a fur baby). I introduced The Fathering Project to St Joseph’s Bulli, where I volunteer and run monthly father-child events. I was also on the committee of Healthier Illawarra Men, supporting men’s mental health and connection.
• Published Contributor on Inclusive Leadership: wrote a chapter in From Bias to Equality, an Amazon best-seller on gender-balanced leadership.
• Regenerative thinking: trained in biomimicry and circular economy strategy through Cambridge Judge and Biomimicry 3.8.
• Health at home: married to an integrative and functional medicine doctor, a daily reminder that sleep, health and balance come before growth.
Coaching Regions
Asia
Australia
New Zealand
Industry of Expertise
Accounting/Finance
Banking/Real Estate
Building/Construction
Coaching/Business Consulting
Computer/IT/Software Development
Education/Training
Human Resources/Training/Development
Legal Services
Manufacturing/Production/Operations
Marketing
Medical/Health
“By the end of 2024 our turnaround efforts weren’t working. From February, Benn helped reshape our strategy. Profit margins grew from 5% to 25%, employee NPS jumped from 50 to 70, and I no longer feel burned out.”
- Ed Farrell, CEO, Mercury ISS
“Benn makes complex strategic concepts clear and actionable, helping our leadership team focus on the daily habits and execution required to achieve our goals. His emphasis on financial sustainability, reminding us that cash flow is the oxygen of a thriving NFP, has sharpened our focus and aligned our team around delivering a surplus to support more families.”
- Jill Reich, CEO, Learning Links
“What Benn brings is a genuine coaching mindset. He treats a team the way a great coach treats their players, focused on getting the best out of everyone and lifting the whole group to high performing. It’s more than management, it’s the thing that actually makes a team fire.”
- Simone Montgomery, COO, Learning Links
“He came in at a critical point for us through a period of major industry change, a challenging NDIS funding environment, several new Directors on our Board and the need for innovative outlook. Benn kept a sharp focus on deliverables while making sure every decision stayed true to our values and purpose.”
- Karen Burdett, CEO, Greenacres Disability Services
“I’d recommend him to any purpose-driven organization facing big changes in its sector and needing to rethink where it’s heading.”
- Kate Rickersey, Managing Director, Land Equity International