Markus Badde, CEO and co-founder of ICEF, celebrates 20 years at the top of the company he established with his father, Karl Badde, 33 years ago. The Koala congratulates the highly respected international education innovator for this achievement.
In a LinkedIn post, Badde says, “Mid-July holds significant memories for me. Twenty years ago, on 14 July 2004, I assumed the leadership of ICEF after nearly a decade with a Silicon Valley corporation. Additionally, 33 years ago, on 15 July 1991, I co-founded ICEF in Bonn with my late father, Karl Badde. Time truly flies when you’re having fun!”
Right he is.
Karl Badde started out in the early 1960s, running a chain of English language schools across the Middle East called Polyglot. In the 1970’s he expanded locations to include Bonn (Germany) and London (UK), providing Arabic language training for diplomats and executives.
By the early 1980’s Karl and Markus had set up an education agency in Bonn and Paris, sending German and French students to the UK and Malta to learn English. They then moved into publishing, producing the “Where and How” series of guides to language travel, distance learning, and the translation industry. In 1991, the father-son combination began organising the Expolingua series of language fairs across Europe, as well as other exhibitions and conferences, forming ICEF, as it is known today.
In 2004, Markus commenced leading the company and increased the number and type of events held, further developing the notion of networking among international education practitioners around the globe. Three years later, the well-known ICEF Monitor was also born.
Fast-forward to today, and ICEF is one of the leading global brands in international education. It has maintained its core of global networking events and fact-based journalism, while also expanding into professional development and accreditation, making an immense impact.
Congratulations on your milestone Markus, as you say “Time truly flies when you’re having fun!”
The Koala thinks there is a lot more fun to be had.
