Two Worlds. One Framework.
Derek Vitatoe has lived in two elite performance environments: the Division 1 athletic arena and the Fortune 500 boardroom. As a D1 All-American athlete and team captain, he learned early that the gap between good and great is almost never physical — it's mental.
That insight followed him into a 25-year career as a senior HR executive at Ralph Lauren, Johnson & Johnson, CVS Health, and The Coca-Cola Company. Across thousands of talent conversations, performance reviews, and leadership development programs, he kept seeing the same pattern: talented leaders hitting invisible ceilings — not because they lacked skill, but because they were operating from beliefs that were quietly working against them.
After earning his certification as an IPEC High Performance & Energy Leadership Coach and COR.E Energy Dynamics Specialist, Derek built the MVP (Manifest Vital Performance) framework — a belief-to-performance system that bridges elite sports psychology with executive leadership development.
Today, Derek works with executives, managers, entrepreneurs, and corporate teams who are ready to stop performing at a fraction of their capacity — and start leading from their full potential.
"Leaders don't have a performance problem. They have a belief problem. Change the belief — change the result."
— Derek Vitatoe, The HR Jock
The Mindset That Never Left the Field
D1 athletes don't just train their bodies — they train their minds to perform under pressure, recover from failure, and push past self-imposed limits. Derek never stopped being that athlete. He just changed the arena.
Every coaching session, every team immersive, every workshop is built on the same principles that separate elite athletes from everyone else: belief, energy, and relentless commitment to the next level.
From Athlete to Executive Coach
D1 All-American Athlete
Competed at the Division 1 level, earning All-American honors and serving as team captain — learning the mental and physical disciplines that define elite performance.
Fortune 500 HR Executive
Began a 25-year career in senior HR leadership at Ralph Lauren, Johnson & Johnson, CVS Health, and The Coca-Cola Company — leading talent strategy, culture transformation, and executive development.
Certified IPEC Coach
Earned certification as an IPEC High Performance & Energy Leadership Coach and COR.E Energy Dynamics Specialist — combining sports psychology with executive coaching methodology.
MVP Framework Born
After coaching hundreds of leaders, Derek identified the common thread: performance plateaus are rooted in belief, not skill. The Manifest Vital Performance framework was developed to address this root cause.
Full-Time Coaching Practice
Derek launched his full-time coaching practice, offering 1:1 coaching, team immersives, and corporate workshops — bringing the MVP framework to leaders and organizations ready for their next level.
Built for This Work
Certified IPEC High Performance Coach
Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching — one of the most rigorous coach certification programs in the world.
COR.E Energy Dynamics Specialist
Specialized certification in energy leadership — understanding how energy states drive decision-making and performance.
25+ Years Fortune 500 HR Leadership
Senior HR executive experience across four Fortune 500 companies, leading talent, culture, and executive development at scale.
D1 All-American Athlete & Team Captain
Competed at the highest collegiate level, earning All-American recognition and developing the mental toughness that defines elite performers.
MVP Executive Leadership Playbook
Author of the MVP Executive Leadership Playbook — a comprehensive framework for belief-driven, high-performance leadership.
Energy Leadership Index (ELI) Assessor
Certified to administer the ELI assessment — a powerful diagnostic tool that reveals how leaders show up under pressure.
Ready to Make the Shift?
Book a complimentary 30-minute Discovery Call with Derek. No pitch, no pressure — just a real conversation about where you are and where you want to go.