Thyago Ohana

WHAT DO I DO?
For roughly 15 years, I lead people and organizations to transform ideas into unforgettable impact by navigating the toughest part of innovation: unlearning the old and understanding the new.

WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU?
I have a deep understanding of innovation across its full spectrum — from staying close to the core business to drive impact and efficiency, to leading transformational initiatives that uncover new sources of value beyond the core. Fluent in both business and IT, I connect people, technology, and strategy to deliver measurable impact and lasting change.

WHY ME?
I believe people are at the heart of every transformation. I lead with optimism, energy, and inclusiveness, blending vision, strategy, and empathy to simplify complexity, connect the dots between ideas and execution, and create safe spaces where people feel empowered and inspired to reach their full potential.

How I Create Impact

I deliver transformation at scale

I help organizations bridge today’s needs with tomorrow’s opportunities, aligning teams and strategies to create sustainable impact and scale their capabilities for future growth.

I speak corporate and start-up

I accelerate corporate innovation by connecting people, fostering trust, and driving mechanisms that enable both internal and external-focused innovation.

I lead change with vision and heart

I believe meaningful change starts with people. I empower teams to navigate complexity through structured problem-solving and a human-centered mindset.

I speak business and informatics

Fluent in both business strategy and IT execution, I bridge the gap between technical complexity and organizational goals, turning complex ideas into actionable solutions.

Resume

15 Years of Experience

Full-time Experience

2022-Present
UCB Biopharma

Digital Strategy and Capabilities Lead (EU), Director

  • Led digital customer experience transformation for the immunology unit, moving the organization towards a more integrated omnichannel go-to-market model for pre-launch, launch, and late lifecycle assets. This work earned UCB’s European immunology products top stakeholder experience rankings (#1 in DT Consulting’s CX report and high marks in PrecisionAQ’s Navigator reports).
  • Built and developed a high-performing team of digital channel and solution owners, enabling operational excellence across dermatology and rheumatology franchises.
  • Designed and launched an agile squad model for digital operations, fostering cross-functional collaboration and accelerating delivery of omnichannel initiatives.
  • Shaped processes, tools, and ways of working to enhance customer engagement, aligning with the immunology EU organization’s digital and strategic objectives.
  • Steered the strategic evolution of UCB’s digital health corporate incubator, leveraging its foundation to drive patient-centered innovations and strengthen local health ecosystem engagement.

2020-2022
UCB Biopharma

Digital Transformation Strategist (Global), Director

  • Designed and executed a strategic roadmap for transformational digital health initiatives in immunology and neurology, aligning corporate strategy with innovation objectives.
  • Established a digital health innovation hub, including an early-stage corporate incubator, to accelerate adoption of novel solutions across therapeutic areas.
  • Built a high-engagement community from scratch, reaching 1,000+ employees, fostering collaboration and knowledge-sharing in digital healthcare transformation.
  • Co-led the integration of digital health innovation milestones into corporate launch roadmaps and brand plans, aligning with business objectives and patient needs.
  • Co-developed UCB’s digital maturity assessment framework with the patient experience working group, enhancing affiliate readiness for digital transformation.
  • Acted as a strategic partner to global business units and brand teams, optimizing digital initiatives to maximize asset value and expand beyond traditional business models.
  • Strengthened external engagement, representing UCB in healthcare innovation networks to identify partnership opportunities and drive adoption of emerging technologies.

2019-2020
Boehringer Ingelheim

Digital Tranformation Manager (CEE/RU/IL)

  • Led omnichannel customer journey planning for rare diseases and oncology across 18 markets, aligning brand strategies with tactical execution.
  • Regionalized the execution of disease-awareness social media campaigns, reducing the workload for affiliate business units and enhancing targeting, consistency, and engagement across 18 markets.
  • Transformed face-to-face workshops into digital medical education programs, increasing reach by 200% while cutting costs by 95%.
  • Co-founded the Agile Working Group, promoting rapid experimentation and innovation to drive more agile ways of working.
  • Developed an internal podcast to facilitate knowledge exchange and share best practices in digital transformation, strengthening team capabilities across the region.
  • Deployed a Digital Asset Management platform integrated with Veeva CRM, streamlining content governance and enhancing scalability across the organization.
  • Launched digital upskilling initiatives, including the Digital Growth and Reverse Mentoring programs, empowering teams to adopt advanced tools and practices.
  • Semifinalist at the Global Innovation Challenge, with the project funded and recognized by the Board of Directors for exceptional personal commitment.

2018-2019
Boehringer Ingelheim

Digital Content Manager (CEE/RU/IL)

  • Led digital content strategies for rare diseases and oncology, enhancing engagement and alignment with regional and global campaigns.
  • Optimized localization processes as the regional lead for global content collaboration, improving content performance and scalability across 18 markets.
  • Delivered impactful digital assets for medico-marketing campaigns, ensuring compliance with industry standards and brand objectives.
  • Boosted digital maturity through targeted upskilling initiatives, empowering local teams with advanced digital tools and practices.
  • Increased engagement at events and congresses by integrating digital touchpoints, amplifying the impact of face-to-face interactions.

2017-2018
E-2 Communications GmbH

Online Marketing Manager (LATAM)

  • Launched the first native media portfolio for digital sports gaming in LATAM, integrating digital, performance, social media, and app-exclusive channels.
  • Drove advertiser conversions by optimizing publisher portfolios and providing UX localization consulting, boosting engagement and campaign ROI.
  • Delivered high-impact digital campaigns across PPC, SEO, and programmatic channels, consistently exceeding performance targets.
  • Implemented Tableau dashboards, accelerating data-driven decisions and improving cross-functional collaboration.
  • Supported European firms’ LATAM market entry with strategic digital media planning and execution, driving successful campaigns.

2010-2017
Embassy of India

Marketing Officer

  • Promoted innovation and technology exchange by fostering B2B, B2G, and academic partnerships, including matching Austrian water-cleaning technologies with unmet market needs in India.
  • Drove bilateral trade and FDI growth, achieving a 45% increase in trade (to €1.6 billion) and a 76% rise in FDI (€193 million in investments from Austria to India) through targeted promotion activities.
  • Developed and executed digital nation branding strategies, launching two web portals, online magazines, a marketing automation system, and social media channels to enhance India’s digital presence.
  • Organized high-profile trade events and delegations, including hosting B2B meetings, coordinating delegations of up to 100 participants, and managing the Indian Presidential visit to Austria, which resulted in two MoUs in science, innovation, and technology, as well as the successful rollout of the “Make in India” campaign in Austria.

2009-2010
e-Merch GmbH

Online Marketing Assistant

  • Key contributor to the launch of Salesforce CRM, integrating it into the marketing automation/IT ecosystem, a result which secured my promotion from intern to a fixed-term contract.
  • Deployed a new email marketing platform, streamlining automation processes and enhancing marketing efficiency.
  • Co-developed the company’s first integrated online marketing and brand plans, driving expansion beyond the DACH region.
  • Established cross-unit content management and collaboration processes, improving alignment and productivity across teams.
  • Supervised online campaign implementation and reporting, ensuring consistent delivery and actionable insights.

Part-time Experience

2008-Current
Various Companies

Digital Strategy Consultant

PROJECT-BASED / HONORARY

  • Strategist with strong focus in innovation-driven entrepreneurship in healthcare and social challenges.
  • Ecosystem engagement expert experienced in designing, mentoring for and participating in hackathons, incubators, accelerators, etc. wearing both the startup as well as corporate hats.
  • Digital Marketing consultant focused on digital customer acquisition strategies and tactics including but not exclusive to social media, search- and content marketing, PPC, email marketing and automation as well as user experience design.
  • Social media specialist, web developer, copywriter and graphic artist.

Education

2024
MIT Sloan Executive Education

Executive Certificate in Strategy and Innovation

See Digital Certificate

2024
MIT Sloan Executive Education

Business Process Design for Strategic Management

Focus: Practical skills in Dynamic Work Design for continuous improvement through automation and business process remodeling.

See Digital Certificate (Pending)

2023
MIT Sloan Executive Education

Algorithmic Business Thinking

Focus: (1) The human-centered capabilities essential to digital transformation—and how to leverage machines to augment those capabilities and (2) Applying key principles of computer science to a broad range of complex business problems.

See Digital Certificate

2021-2022
Yale School of Public Health

Health Informatics Certificate Program

Focus: (1) Health Informatics on Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR), (2) Building a Precision Medicine Infrastructure, (3) Clinical Database and Ontology and (4) Clinical Natural language processing (NLP) and Data Mining

See Digital Certificate

2022
Harvard Medical School

Immunology Pro - Novel Therapies

I earned a Certificate of Achievement in the HMX Immunology Pro course on Novel Therapies for Chronic Inflammation, Autoimmunity, and Allergy, an online program from Harvard Medical School

See Digital Certificate

2022
Harvard Medical School

Immunology Fundamentals

I earned a Certificate of Achievement in the HMX Immunology Fundamentals course, a 10-week online program from Harvard Medical School

See Digital Certificate

2021
MIT Sloan Executive Education

Corporate Innovation: Strategies for Leveraging Ecosystems

Focus: Ecosystem Strategies for Corporate Innovation (Hackathons, Incubators, Accelerators...)

See Digital Certificate

2021
MIT Sloan Executive Education

Platform Strategy

Focus: multi-sided platform (MSP) design, participation and operation.

See Digital Certificate

2021
HarvardX

Innovating in Healthcare

Focus: Financial Accounting and Business Planning for Innovation in Healthcare

See Digital Certificate

2020-2021
Cambridge Judge Business School

Digital Disruption: Digital Transformation Strategies

An executive education program providing research-based insights on disruptive innovations and what it takes to build and manage successful business models in this complex era.

See Digital Certificate

2019-2020
Quantic School of Business and Technology

Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA)

Specializations: Advanced Corporate Strategy, Startup Entrepreneurship and Strategic Thinking

See EMBA Diploma

2017-2019
University of Vienna

Media Informatics (Postgraduate Education)

Completed the "Digital Media Production" module (18 ECTS) towards a Master's Degree in Media Informatics as Postgraduate Education / Specialization.
Relevant Courses included Digital Media Production, Script Writing and Special Techniques for Digital Film.

2012-2015
FH Technikum Wien

Business Informatics

Bachelor of Science in Engineering, B.Sc.
Specialization: Mobile Computing
Thesis Research: Social Media Marketing

2006-2010
Lauder Business School

International Marketing and Management

Magister in Economics and Business Administration, Mag.(FH)
Thesis Research Focus: Customer Behavior
Note: The Magister degree is the Austrian equivalent of the international Master’s degree. For more about the Austrian Framework of Higher Education, please refer to the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education.

Personal

Spanish and Brazilian

Dual Citizenship

Brussels, Belgium

Current Residence

Single. No kids.

Family Status

Languages

Portuguese - Native

99%

English - C2

98%

Spanish - C1

90%

German - B2/C1

85%

French - B2

80%

Hebrew - A2

30%

Strengths

  • Innovation Strategy
  • Digital Marketing
  • Communications
  • Change Leadership
  • Digital Transformation
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Public Speaking
  • User Experience Design
  • Content Management
  • Web Technologies

Skills

  • Positive Thinker
  • Inspiring Leader
  • Community Builder
  • Active Listener
  • Team Player
  • Self-Motivated
  • Agile Doer
  • Outcome-oriented
  • Storyteller
  • Creative Thinker
  • Open-Minded
  • Graphic Designer
  • Social Skills
  • Organizational Skills
  • Creative Skills

A day in my life

Pie Chart showing the amount of time I spent daily with core activities

Volunteer Experience

  • Fundraiser and Program Manager, Kili Hope Children's Center, Pasua, Tanzania (since 2019)
  • Fundraising Campaign Marketer, European Center for Jewish Students (since 2016)
  • Global Ambassador, Duolingo (2018-2020)
  • Social Welfare Event Organizer, Free Hugs Vienna (2013-2019)
  • Fundraiser and Volunteer, Associação Castelos do Sal, Cape Verde (2018)
  • Web Specialist Volunteer, Espaço Cultural Conexão Gato Preto, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2013-2014)
  • Program Coordinator, Jewish Heritage Center, Vienna, Austria (2006-2007)

Other Relevant Education

For details and credentials on courses, licenses and certifications, visit my LinkedIn profile. Here's a list summary:

Scuba Diving Education

Somewhere between a hobby, a passion and a vision for the future, I have obtained the following scuba diving certifications so far:

  • PADI Divemaster
  • PADI Rescue Diver
  • PADI Emergency First Response
  • PADI Advanced Open Water Diver
  • PADI Enriched Air Diver Specialization
  • PADI Peak Performance Buoyancy Specialization
  • PADI Dry Suit Diver Specialization
  • PADI Drift Diver Specialization

Interests

Passions and Habbies

My interests and hobbies

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Social entrepreneurship

Thyago Ohana Divemaster

Scuba Diving

Thyago Ohana meditating by Mt. Fuji

Mindfulness

Thyago Ohana performing at Improv Show

Improv Theater

Thyago with his Chihuahua, Bitsy, in a park

Chihuahuas

Thyago Ohana hang gliding in Rio de Janeiro

Adventure

My never-ending learning journey: traveling

Social Work

Philanthropy and Social Entrepreneurship

Social Impact Travel

As a travel enthusiast, my exposure to contrasting realities around the world made me develop a strong sense of accountability for bringing about positive impact to less fortunate communities - especially in developing countries.

This is why in the last half a decade, I started to combine tourism with opportunities to interact and support some local communities, families and especially children.

After having run privately-funded efforts in Kenya, Ethiopia and Seychelles, I felt motivated to take one step further and run funding campaigns among family, friends and colleagues to support such initiatives.

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Fundraising Campaigns

Kilimanjaro, Tanzania - since 2019

In 2019, prior to a planned private trip to Tanzania, I identified a target need in the region and started a campaign aimed at raising funds to maintain the Kili Hope Children's center for orphans and vulnerable children for a whole year (2020). The campaign collected donations under this GoFundMe page and it surpassed its initial target.

The center's operations have been fully funded by this project from 2020 to 2023. In the meantime, the center attained non-governmental organization (NGO) status in Tanzania, which allowed it to gain support from other public and private sources. As of January 2024, residual funds in the project's account will continue to be provided monthly to the center to cover exclusively the salary of the school teacher and the monthly costs of purchasing grains.

Key achievements of the projects:

  • Increased the number of children cared for at the center from 50 to 95 (2019 vs 2020)
  • Reduced the school dropout to zero  (vs ~80% prior to project start)
  • Supported 188 children transition to the primary school system
  • Created 4 full-time jobs for locals
  • Covered the operating costs of the children's center for four consecutive years (2020-2023)
  • Delivered more than 5 tons of grains as food supply
  • Provided basic health insurance coverage to all enrolled children
  • Renovated the children's center infrastructure including façade and interior
  • Improved teaching methods by acquiring a whiteboard, handicrafts materials and a television
  • Installed trash cans in the center
  • Integrated dental hygiene in the center's daily routine
  • Introduced fruits to the center's regular meal plans
  • Upon forming the NGO, provided guidance on community engagement and networking to generate new sources of funds.

The project also supported the community to mitigate the impact of the 2020 pandemic with:

  • 1 ton of food and 500 soap bars to the community
  • Installation of multiple hand hygiene stations (water bucket + soap) around the village
  • Increasing awareness on proper hand hygiene provided to locals by the center's staff
  • Re-commissioning of old sewing machines for local face masks productions.

All funds collected and spent in the campaign have been documented and invoices are available for auditing.

  • Cause Children
  • Started in August 2019
  • Initial Target € 6,000
  • Total Raised € 40,587
  • Nr. of Donors 419
  • Invested in Food Supplies, Shelter, Healthcare and Education
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Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - 2023

In 2023, I held a charity campaign to support the reopening of the "Gato Preto" children's center.

The "Espaço Cultural Conexão Gato Preto" was born in 2013 under the leadership of the teacher and samba singer Simone Lyns, who mobilized friends around the world (incl. myself!) to officially open the NGO, a space dedicated to art and education for residents of Gato Preto, an area of extreme social vulnerability in Baixada Fluminense, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the economic crisis in Brazil forced the NGO to shut down its activities and close its doors in 2020.

Thanks to new effort in 2023 to mobilize people around the world (incl. myself again!), the center is underwent revitalization, and reopened its doors. The money I fundraised through this GoFundMe campaign page went towards:

  • a few structural repairs to the center following some severe water damages due to intensive rains.
  • a reopening ceremony featuring a historical children theater play about “Maria Leopoldina”, the Austrian princess who became the first empress of Brazil
  • the reopening of the center’s children library
  • a kick-off of a program to teach illiterate adults to read and write, pulling the adults along with their kids closer to the community center.

All funds collected and spent in the campaign have been documented and invoices are available for auditing.

  • Cause Children and community welfare
  • Started in January 2023
  • Duration 2 months
  • Initial Target € 1,000
  • Total Raised € 1,190
  • Nr. of Donors 15
  • Invested in Center renovation and reopening
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Sal Island, Cape Verde - 2018

In 2018, I held my first fundraising for charity campaign. 100% of the funds were invested in the welfare of a group of 68 children in the community of Santa Maria in the Island of Cape Verde.

I spent a week in Cape Verde, where I personally met the children who depend on the support of the group of volunteers "Castelos do Sal", and thanks to the donations collected, we managed to deliver 5 weeks of food supply for the children, a unique piece of clothing for each one of them as well as 50 children's books to build their library.

The campaign was held online. Details of the campaign including all updates and final report can be found in the GoFundMe campaign page. All funds collected and spent in the campaign have been documented and invoices are available for auditing.

  • Cause Children
  • Started in January 2018
  • Duration 3 months
  • Initial Target € 1,000
  • Total Raised € 2,750
  • Nr. of Donors 53
  • Invested in Food Supplies, Clothing and Books
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Free Hugs

My Passion for Smiles

How I became a free hugger

It all started on an ordinary day while I was walking down the streets of Paris. A couple was stading my way holding up a sign saying ‘FREE HUGS’. I walked towards them. Both hugged me and in silence, we all smiled. As I left them behind after getting my ‘free hug’, I felt it! The smile that accompanied me for the rest of that day inspired me to start researching about the Free Hugs Campaign.

Back at home, I invited some friends to join me for my first free hugs spree in the Austrian capital, and this is how the group Free Hugs Vienna was born in the summer of 2013. Since then, hundreds of other supporters have joined me in bringing smiles to the faces of thousands of people whose path we have crossed with open arms.

The Free Hugs Vienna group remained active until early 2020. Given my move from Vienna to Brussels, I remain hopeful the group will find a new lead in post-pandemic times.

Next you will find a selection of articles and interviews from my journey as a Free Hugger.

"Free Hugs and I" in the Media

Free Hugs Vienna on Facebook

Contact

Get in Touch

Got something to say? Leave me a message!