Born in Unterhaching near Munich in 1953, Anselm Bilgri entered the Benedictine Abbey of St. Boniface in Munich and Andechs in 1975. He studied philosophy and theology in Munich, Rome and Passau and was ordained a priest by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in 1980.

From 1986 to 2004, he was cellarer (business manager) of St. Boniface Abbey in Munich and Andechs. In 1992, he founded the ‘Orff in Andechs’ festival.

After leaving the monastery and the Benedictine order, he was a partner in the consulting firm ‘Anselm Bilgri – Centre for Corporate Culture (A-ZU)’ in Munich, which he co-founded, from July 2004 to July 2008. In July 2008, A-ZU decided on a two-brand strategy: the consulting business is continued by stadler/schott/ – Beratung für Unternehmenskultur (Consulting for Corporate Culture) as an independent company, while Anselm Bilgri gains more freedom for his lectures and publications. Today, he is primarily active as a lecturer, coach, instructor and author.

In March 2013, he founded the ‘Akademie der Muße’ (Academy of Leisure) with two partners to help people slow down their lives. His focus is on building bridges between philosophy and religion on the one hand and business and society on the other. Anselm Bilgri explores the concept of leadership in the Rule of St. Benedict and – true to the motto ora et labora – the right balance between life and work. He also addresses these topics as a lecturer at Munich University of Applied Sciences and in numerous publications.