My Journey

My personal and professional journey toward creating impact through dialogue and collaboration runs as a defining thread through my work and writing. It is built upon thousands of hours of process facilitation and consulting for leaders within organizations and communities, alongside deep engagement across the corporate, public, defense, and social sectors. These insights were forged through practical experience as an entrepreneur, CEO, and partner. Over the years, this work has expanded internationally, and today it also extends to supporting the transformation processes needed within and between Jewish and Israeli communities and organizations worldwide.

The Rabin Assassination as a Turning Point

The assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin marked a profound turning point in my consciousness. In its wake, I founded the Gevim Group in 1996, the first organization in Israel dedicated to establishing mediation, consensus-building, and negotiation as a professional, community, and organizational language. From that foundation, my path expanded to working with management teams, communities, and highly complex systems - driven by a continuous effort to transform conflict into a shared space of listening, accountability, and collective action.

Multiculturalism as a Natural Habitat

When people speak of multiculturalism and inclusion, I sometimes find it difficult to fully relate to the complexity they describe; perhaps because for me, it has always been a natural habitat. From a childhood in Jerusalem with its tapestry of diverse voices, to working alongside the Bedouins in an archaeological expedition in Sinai, traveling the globe, and engaging with every facet of Israeli society - multiculturalism, inclusion, and tolerance were never theoretical concepts to be mastered, but rather the very air I breathe.

Spaces of Inspiration

Beyond my professional life, and deeply interwoven with it, my transformational journey is fueled by diverse spaces of inspiration: Kung Fu training, Vipassana meditation, sea kayaking, off-road driving, dancing to techno music, and direct encounters with different cultures around the world. These realms deepen my inner reflection, my understanding of human interaction, and my sense of humility in the face of the complexity and beauty of this world.

All of these experiences continuously draw me back to the same purpose: helping leaders, organizations, and communities shift from an Ego-System to an Eco-System - through trust, accountability, and collaboration.

Omri Gefen

Personal & Professional Biography - At a Glance

Raised in Jerusalem, a city that profoundly shaped his perspective on complexity, diversity, active listening, and bridging identities and cultures.
In his youth, served on the archaeological survey team in Sinai and guided youth groups in the "Machanot HaOlim" movement.
Served nearly five years in the IDF in command and instructional roles, later embarking on extensive journeys across South America and Africa.
Studied Middle Eastern Studies, Political Science, and Educational Administration at Tel Aviv University, while concurrently engaging in democratic education, carpentry, Vipassana, Kung Fu, and somatic therapy.
Began his path in mediation in the early 1990s. Following the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, he founded the Gevim Group in 1996, the first organization in Israel dedicated to establishing mediation, consensus-building, and negotiation as a professional, community, and organizational language.
Served for two decades as CEO of the Gevim Group, and subsequently as co-founding partner of the Gome-Gevim Group until 2026.
For over three decades, has led strategic processes with management teams, leaders, organizations, and communities in the domains of collaboration, trust, negotiation, mediation, consensus-building, and organizational interfaces.
Leads the negotiation program at Lahav Executive Education, Tel Aviv University, and previously served on the faculty at Ben-Gurion University and Reichman University.
Author of the book "The Power of Collaboration - From Ego-System to Eco-System," published in Hebrew in 2020 and in English in 2025.

The Full Story

Growing up in Jerusalem, one of the most complex cities in the world, exerted a profound influence on my worldview. Walking with curiosity through the alleys of the Muslim Quarter, engaging in deep conversations with priests and Torah scholars, and living in a space where holiness, conflict, and everyday routines coexist taught me what it truly means to encounter diverse cultures and differences.

My high school educator, Roni Ellenblum, instilled in me an enduring curiosity for cultures and expansive open spaces. He understood that genuine learning rarely happens within the confines of a classroom. My teenage years were an intense blend of the simplicity found in the blue shirts of the youth movement, the fascination with birds of prey sparked by Yossi Leshem at Mount Gilo, and the profound stillness of the Sinai Peninsula, where Avner Goren welcomed me as a youth onto the regional archaeological team.

It was in the high mountains of Sinai that I truly learned how to listen. When darkness blankets the desert, the Bedouins gather around the campfire. The conversation is quiet, measured, and unhurried. There is time for everyone. The desert night opens up an innate arena for deep listening.