In this episode of On The Line, Alice speaks to Natalia Ramsden, founder of SOFOS Associates, business psychologist and cognitive performance expert. Natalia’s work sits at the intersection of neuroscience, leadership and organisational performance. She and her team help senior leaders and investment teams understand how their brains function under pressure, how they make decisions, and how they can build greater focus, resilience and clarity.
Using tools such as brain mapping, biomarker analysis and psychological assessment, SOFOS creates development programmes that are grounded in data and tailored to each individual. A growing number of private equity firms are bringing Natalia in to give their leaders a genuine cognitive edge and to support healthier, more sustainable high performance.
In this episode, we cover:
- From leadership consulting to brain optimisation
How Natalia moved from classic leadership assessment into building SOFOS, and why she wanted to bring medical, health and neuroscience disciplines into executive development. - What a “brain lab” looks like in practice
How SOFOS runs its programmes, including brain mapping (EEG), blood work, hormone and neurotransmitter analysis, sleep and heart rate data, and how all of this is pulled together into a personalised development plan. - From supplements to brainwave training
The mix of interventions used, from diet, supplements and nootropics through to brainwave training, hyperbaric oxygen and light therapies, and how these are integrated into a very time-poor executive’s life. - Why private equity leaders are a natural fit
The competitive, high-intelligence profile of PE professionals, why they are willing to share data in exchange for an edge, and how privacy is managed so individuals own their personal data while firms get high level themes. - Cognitive efficiency as a competitive advantage
The difference between rereading a board pack three times versus assimilating it quickly, and how improvements in learning speed, decision-making and mental stamina translate into real commercial advantage. - What the data is telling us about today’s executives
Common patterns that show up in brain maps: poor sleep, overactive frontal lobes, being constantly “wired”, flattened stress variability and shrinking attention spans in a world of notifications, shorts and scrolls. - The role of rest, recovery and time
How chronic cortisol, lack of proper recovery and our relationship with time are reshaping executive brains, and why rest and deliberate downtime now sit at the centre of sustainable performance. - How the programmes actually run
What an engagement looks like day to day: intensive upfront data collection, one-to-one brainwave training and coaching, and lifestyle tweaks around diet, exercise and daily routines that protect sleep and focus. - Beyond performance: impact on life outside work
The wider benefits clients report, from having energy left at the end of the week for family life, through to feeling mentally sharper, more emotionally regulated and more present. - The future: brain gyms in PE firms
Natalia’s view on where this is heading: HR and L&D functions designing learning curricula around cognitive function, and offices where the physical gym sits next to a brain training set-up. - Why this matters for private capital firms and LPs
How optimising the brains behind investment decisions can give firms a new edge, and how it can support their role as fiduciaries by safeguarding and enhancing decision quality over the long term.
