We’re on a mission to build Silicon Valley in Central Europe. ELC 2025 proved we’re not just dreaming.
ELC 2025 broke me. In the best way.
- Four days to recover.
- Three kilos gone.
- Shaky hands at the opening talk.
- Mixing up speaker names mid-conference.
- Nearly crying at the closing.
And I’d do it all again. Because this wasn’t just another tech event. It was our turning point in Prague.
We founded ELC (Engineering Leaders Community) to close the leadership gap in Central Europe’s tech scene.
Long before the 2025 conference, something was already building: A shared frustration. A missing space for engineering leaders to share war stories, connect, grow, and push the region forward.
We moved fast, learned from every meetup, and focused on real problems. Now, with organic growth and strong momentum, ELC feels like a startup reshaping engineering leadership across the region.
It all led to this: A sold-out room. 300+ leaders. Actionable insights. Lasting change.
Designed for action
Every session focused on real problems and gave leaders tools they could use from day 1.
Here’s what attendees walked away with:
🚀 Personal growth & leadership
- Scale your influence far beyond your team — across departments, functions, and the org.
- Lead beyond code. Think like a strategist, not just a senior dev.
- Build your leadership legacy. Start mentoring with a simple, repeatable framework.
- Boost your market value. Learn how to negotiate, grow, and lead with leverage.
- Stay healthy while scaling. Spot burnout early and build systems that protect energy.
👥 Team building & culture
- Hire smarter. Avoid costly mistakes and build real team resilience.
- Make faster decisions. Align product and engineering so momentum doesn’t stall.
- Untrap your product teams. Get out of the motion and into the outcome.
- Innovate through trust and transparency, not micromanagement.
⚠️ Crisis, risk & resilience
- Turn failures into fuel. Learn from real incidents and bounce back faster.
- Avoid million-dollar mistakes. Hear what actually went wrong at scale — and how to prevent it.
- Lead through chaos. Stay focused in hyper-growth environments without burning out.
🤖 Tech strategy & innovation
- Understand what the next generation of tech leadership requires — both in mindset and skills.
- Align engineering work with business goals so your wins actually move the company forward.
- Go beyond the AI hype. Embed tools that drive real value.
- Use IDPs to streamline software delivery and track team impact.
- Build infrastructure that doesn’t crack under pressure — and grows with your business.
Every speaker shared an actionable takeaway. No exceptions.
This wasn’t theory. These were battle-tested insights from people who’ve built rockets, scaled platforms, launched startups, and rebuilt teams from the ground up.
We also ran hands-on workshops, 1-on-1 mentoring, and an experience zone built for reflection and conversation.
Speakers and mentors joined us from SpaceX, Netflix, Pure Storage, Ataccama, Applifting, Dynatrace, Rossum, Jablotron Cloud, Better Stack, incident.io, Make, Rohlik Group, and more.
Why ELC hit home
Hundreds of hours spent mentoring engineering leaders taught me exactly what they need. I know their challenges and ambitions inside out.
This insight shaped every session, workshop, and talk, and it came through in the feedback.
- 300+ engineering leaders showed up and stayed late.
- We sold out without handing out free tickets.
- Our speakers scored a solid 4.76 out of 5.
And this wasn’t just Central Europe. Leaders joined from London, Western Europe, Australia, and the Middle East. We’re proud to see ELC becoming a global hub.
What people said
Still wondering what it felt like to be there? Let the attendees speak for themselves:
“Best leadership conference I’ve been to in years.”
“Finally, something serious and relevant for engineering leaders in Central Europe.”
“Great talks, workshops, and most importantly, meaningful conversations.”
“Practical. Honest. Impactful. Exactly what tech leadership needs more of.”
“I didn’t just get inspired. I got real tools and frameworks I can use tomorrow.”
These voices matter to us. We heard them, and we’re gearing up to make ELC 2026 even better.
We’re building Silicon Valley in Central Europe
This wasn’t just a conference. This was the beginning of something much bigger.
You don’t need to move to San Francisco to build something world-class.
We’ve got the people. The standards. The values. And now we’ve got the ecosystem to match.
Here’s what’s next for 2026:
- Attendees: 300 → 400.
- Workshops: 4 → 8.
- Mentors: 5 → 10.
- Partners: Growing to 8+ committed companies.
The momentum is real. Here’s what we’re seeing across tech, startups, and leadership in Central Europe: 2025 Solopreneur Strategy →
🎙 Behind the scenes: what we learned
As organizers, we saw the feedback roll in and took note of what landed:
“The entire event was built to deliver value, not noise . Every talk, every panel, every touchpoint.”
“You treated the stage as a platform for voices that matter, not egos that sell.”
“We removed the typical ‘sponsor clutter’ and replaced it with experiences people remembered.”
These takeaways confirmed we’re onto something meaningful: a conference built by leaders, for leaders, designed to move the needle in Central Europe’s tech leadership.
Want in?
If you’re a tech leader ready to stop playing small and start shaping the future of Central European leadership:
👉 Mentor with us.
👉 Partner with us.
👉 Grab a ticket (coming soon).
Let’s build something that lasts. We’ve started it. Now let’s scale it.
Want more? Explore practical leadership frameworks and tech strategy deep dives over at my blog.
Kudos to our rockstar team
Huge thanks to the dream team who made it happen:
- Anna Kožuch leading the charge.
- Mirka Hofmanová keeping strategy and logistics tight.
- Tomas Kos powering websites, editing, graphics, and videos.
Big shoutout to our ambassadors Jan Vrtiška, Ivo Klimša, and Soheyla Mirshahi, who led their own workshops to help others grow.
And one final thank-you to our incredible partners: Eurowag, Bohemia Interactive, Apify, Trinity Bank, Sázíme Česko, Sparring Partners, and CANS. Your support helped turn ELC into something truly special.
About Marian Kamenistak
Marian provides coaching and mentoring to engineering managers and leaders at all levels, helping organizations succeed in building great products.
He also founded the Engineering Leaders Community, which hosts nine meetups a year for Engineering Leaders, Managers, Tribe Leads, VPs of Engineering, and CTOs across Central Europe.
Read more about Marian’s mission.
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