About Suada

I've led teams on three continents. Arcana is where I write about what I learned.

I'm Suada Cerkezi — PhD in Socio-Culture, certified career coach, journalist, and Managing Director. I was born in Tirana, Albania, raised in Kosovo, and I now call Ottawa, Canada home.

My path to leadership wasn't linear, and it certainly wasn't conventional. It ran through a master's degree in mass communication, five years reporting for print and broadcast media across North Macedonia, a decade of leading NGO communications during political upheaval, years of coaching women back into their professional power — and now the front lines of building a clean-tech startup.

I write Arcana because I've seen too many brilliant people shrink in leadership — not because they weren't capable, but because nobody gave them the honest language for what they were experiencing. That's what I'm trying to give you here.

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Suada Cerkezi — Leadership Coach and PhD
Credentials

What I bring to the work

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PhD in Socio-Culture

University of Tetovo, North Macedonia, 2024. Dissertation focused on social structures and community dynamics. The academic foundation beneath everything I teach about leadership and human behavior.

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Master's in Mass Communication

AAB College, Pristina, Kosovo, 2010. Followed by five years as a freelance journalist in North Macedonia — learning to read rooms, find the story, and communicate under pressure.

🤝

Certified Career Coach

IAP College, 2024. Combined with 5+ years of voluntary career coaching for women and families in Kosovo through Happy Mother and Kids. Theory and practice, both.

🏢

Managing Director, Aurelign Materials

Since 2026. Leading operations, vendor relations, supply chain, and facility development for a Canadian clean-tech startup. Current, practical, and real.

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Knowledge & Communication Manager

Global Social Cohesion Community Inc., Pristina, Kosovo (2006–2011). Led a 15-person team, managed communications for multicultural partnership programs, and coordinated humanitarian initiatives.

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Bilingual: English + Albanian

With deep roots in Balkans culture and full fluency in Canadian professional contexts. This cross-cultural range isn't academic — it shapes how I understand leadership and communication at their core.

The Journey

From Tirana to Ottawa — a non-linear path.

2006 – 2011

Knowledge & Communication Manager

Led team communications, coordinated humanitarian programs, and built data systems for 180+ clients at Global Social Cohesion Community Inc., Kosovo.

2008 – 2010

BSc + MSc in Mass Communication

AAB College, Pristina. Graduated with a Master's in Mass Communication and Journalism — the beginning of a career built on how ideas move between people.

2014 – 2019

Volunteer Career Coach

Delivered life skills coaching and career development workshops for women and families at Happy Mother and Kids, Pristina. 5 years, hundreds of women.

2015 – 2019

Freelance Journalist

Produced content for print and broadcast media across North Macedonia. Learned to find the story in a room, translate complexity, and communicate under deadline pressure.

2021

Arrived in Canada

Ottawa, Ontario. A new country, new professional context, and a new chapter — building leadership on different soil.

2024

PhD + Coaching Certification

Completed doctoral research on social structures and community dynamics at University of Tetovo. Also certified as a career coach through IAP College.

2026

Managing Director + Arcana

Leading operations at Aurelign Materials — and launching Arcana to share 10+ years of leadership thinking with people who lead.

Suada Cerkezi in conversation

"I write Arcana because I've seen too many brilliant people shrink in leadership — not because they weren't capable, but because nobody gave them the honest language for what they were experiencing."

— Suada Cerkezi