Margaret Thatcher, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990, became increasingly stubborn and inflexible at the end of her prime time and treated her ministers like stupid schoolboys. She could ultimately only be overthrown by a concerted action of her own party.

Charles de Gaulle, President of France from 1959 to 1969, was completely overtaken by the social and societal attitudes and actions of the '68ers, could not deal with them at all as "elected king" and resigned in 1969.

Prime Minister Winston Churchill already drove his cabinet colleagues mad during World War II with his endless meetings, but compensated for this with his great determination, his motivating public speeches and his skilful handling of US President Roosevelt.

Towards the end of his second premiership in the 1950s (1951-1955), he was only a shadow of his former self, indecisive, hesitant, and in the end actually burnt out, but held on to his role far beyond what was reasonable.

Not being able to let go, not being able to let anyone in

But also in the economy one observes them again and again, the patriarchs, who cannot let go, who cannot allow a successor, who do not want to or cannot make friends with the new requirements, the new time in which they live.

What causes such behavior is a question for psychologists, but in any case, in our practice we have to realize that in many cases such behavior causes enormous damage.

Important decisions are not made. Suitable successor candidates are frustrated and displaced. The past is held on too long, while the skins of the future are swimming away.

Just to be on the safe side, and to make things really complicated, there are of course examples where it was right for the patriarch not to have given up the rudder. But unfortunately there are also numerous examples where great damage has been done.

For medium-sized companies, the "patriarch trap" can in many cases lead to the company falling into the hands of the proverbial locusts after the patriarch's time, i.e. exactly what the patriarch always wanted to prevent happens.

A good transition to the next generation takes about ten years, in some cases longer.
If you are a patriarch yourself, you should be aware that a good transition to the next generation takes about ten years, in some cases longer.

Therefore, start working on your succession in time so that you can decide when to "fire" yourself and leave with decency and a well-ordered court.

And these ten years are not only about your succession, but also about preparing what they will do in the years to come, after their departure.

Because as a personality who is used to design, you will need a new framework for this in order to continue to design.

 
The most important facts in brief
Don't wait until you are the proverbial rotten apple yourself, but take the preparation of your departure into your own hands just as resolutely as you have built up your business.

The Athenians recognized early on that democracy is a fragile system and can only be maintained through various "checks and balances".

One of these "balances" was ostracism, the ostracism of the ostracism court, named after the shards of clay used in the related vote.

The Athenians recognized the enormous explosive power of the anti-social behavior of leading citizens.

So this was not about the "mean variant" of antisocial behavior, i.e. the behavior of the people whom one tries to control through criminal law.

Acting without consideration for the common good
The Athenians were concerned with the, so to speak, highly bred variant of antisocial behavior, i.e. citizens who, for example, acted on the basis of real or imagined superiority over others, a tendency to intrigue, and generally with a pronounced personal ambition, without regard for the common good.

The Athenians recognized that the social damage that could be caused by such people was enormous.

On the one hand, the intrigues and machinations of these people generated strife and discord, thus destabilizing Athenian democracy.
On the other hand, these people aroused the envy of the Athenian "normal citizen" who felt inferior to these "extraordinary" citizens. This also had a highly destabilizing effect on social cohesion.

The Athenians' solution to this problem was ostracism.
Once a year, the Athenians would meet and vote on which person should be banned for ten years.
This person was allowed to keep his or her property and was not completely disenfranchised, but had to leave Athens for ten years.
Ostracism typically met successful and powerful men of Athens.

When good words are meaningless
The Athenians did not try to persuade this person to behave more rationally through negotiations, compromises or good words, but chose the pragmatic solution of separating themselves from these people.

Here lies an important insight for managers: it is very difficult, usually hopeless, to really integrate into this system people who are not willing to adapt to the give and take and the necessary compromises that participation in a larger social entity entails.
It is also usually very difficult, if not hopeless, to convince people who continuously place their personal goals above the common good of the sense of a different approach.

We are talking here, for example, about the partner of a large law firm who is only interested in developing his own area of expertise, who wants to monopolize all clients, resources and talented employees, and who does not want to share them with anyone.
This partner will always create massive problems and disruption in the partnership of the big law firm and should eventually start his own law firm.

It is quite a different thing to be the unrestricted boss of your own firm than being in a partnership, being part of a group of several equal bosses with whom you have to coordinate.
This insight is to be understood in an absolutely critical way, especially for partnerships, for example of lawyers or other consulting professions.

Numerous partnerships have failed due to the egoism of individuals
Numerous partnerships of this kind have already failed due to the selfish behavior of individuals, to which no timely and appropriate reaction was made.
A CEO has to make similar considerations and draw the appropriate conclusions when he or she recognizes that his or her top management team includes, for example, an excellent individual performer who is not able or willing to be more than that, i.e. who does not make an optimal contribution so that the entire team can win.

The most important facts in brief
Don't wait for the proverbial rotten apple to spoil the whole basket, but separate yourself consistently and in good time from employees who may be strong individual players, but who are not prepared to pass the ball further so that others can score goals and the team wins the championship. 

Here are a few key points to keep in mind: Preparation Phase - Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance (PPPPP)

Already in the preparation phase, i.e. before a concrete purchase object is available, the targeted synergies can be checked for plausibility. The key questions are here:

• Have such synergies (and also to this extent) already been realized by this company in the past in acquisitions?
• Have synergies to this extent already been realized by any company in a similar transaction?
• Here it is crucial to use external and independent benchmarks in order to prevent a transaction from being set in motion by overly optimistic assumptions about synergies.

Eliminate deal fever in time
Experience shows that only in this preparatory phase is there a chance to stop a fundamentally flawed acquisition strategy.

Once a transaction is underway and top management is eagerly awaiting a glorious deal, it is almost hopeless to stop the train.

Transaction phase - check who is committed
During the Due Diligence phase, i.e. the review of hard and soft facts of a specific acquisition object/merger partner, not only is important information gathered for the preparation of the integration plan and for the rapid implementation of the PMI, but ideally the first relationships between the top managers of the two companies are already established or deepened during this phase.

It is crucial that those responsible for the subsequent integration do not stand on the sidelines, but play an active role in the due diligence process.

Gain time with the "Clean Team
An important time saving in the preparation and planning of the integration can be achieved by setting up an independent and confidential analysis team ("Clean Team"), which has access to confidential information of both sides even before the transaction comes into effect (closing), during the negotiations, and on this basis prepares initial analyses and recommendations for the approach to the integration, in particular for the exploitation of synergies.

Of course, all parties involved must agree on this approach. Confidentiality is supported by the selection of the right members of this team, mostly former top managers from the industry and independent consultants, and strict legal control and guidance. The results of the work of this analysis team are only passed on to the actual integration team when the transaction comes into effect.

The closing is only the end of the opening chapter
A critical mistake is to believe that with the signing of the contract (Signing), or at the latest with the coming into effect of the transaction (Closing), the strenuous and exciting part is over and can now return to the agenda. Now the difficult part ("blood, sweat, toil and tears") is just beginning.

Without top management it is not possible
Unfortunately, many top managers say goodbye to responsibility at this point and leave the supposed "detailed work" to an integration team that is understaffed in terms of personnel and power and often only brought on board at the last moment.

Post-merger integration - rapid implementation is crucial
The transaction is in place, the synergies have been identified and the plan to leverage them is in place.

The challenge now is to act decisively and to have maximum control over the integration process to ensure that the agreed integration measures are implemented optimally in all key areas.

The right balance between PMI and daily business
The central challenge is to continue to run the day-to-day business of the two companies successfully while at the same time successfully shouldering the additional workload of integration.

A critical mistake made in the implementation of the integration is to get lost in the complexity and details of the challenge and to lose sight of the essentials and thus the possibility of a speedy integration.

Cornerstones must be in place within the first 6 months
Depending on the initial situation and general conditions, the most important integration tasks should be completed within three to a maximum of six months after closing.

This does not mean that after these three to six months no more tasks resulting from the transaction and integration are to be solved, only these tasks should then, based on the framework, guidelines and preliminary decisions of the first three to six months, increasingly take on the character of day-to-day business and no longer have the character of an exceptional situation.

Creating the foundations and cornerstones for success in the first three to six months is so important because the probability of success of the integration then decreases rapidly.

Risk of integration
Managers and employees suffer from integration fatigue and lose focus on integration, have to concentrate on new, usually critical market challenges and retreat or get completely lost in the integration project.

The success of an integration lives very much from its dynamics and the rapid achievement of results. This is why it is so important that decisions are made quickly and pragmatically, but at the same time there is no massive loss of quality.

If you can't stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen
This balancing act can only succeed if experienced integration managers are at work. It is also important to realize that there will be victories and defeats on the road to success. Integration and change are not linear processes, but are paved with vicissitudes and setbacks. Those who do not have the necessary staying power should leave it at that.

The most important facts in brief:
PPPPP - Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance.

In chapter 23 of his most famous book "The Prince" (Il Príncipe), he deals with the handling of advisors. His recommendations have lost nothing of their topicality and wisdom and can also serve as a guideline for today's managers.

Machiavelli begins by describing the basic problem, namely that the prince is mostly, almost exclusively, surrounded by selfish flatterers who do not give him honest advice, but only pursue their own interests. 

The only antidote to flattery is to make it clear that one has no problem hearing the truth. 

According to Machiavelli, however, this creates another problem, namely that respect for the prince is quickly undermined if everyone can tell him the truth unfiltered. 

The cautious prince will therefore choose a middle course, in which he selects few, suitable people as advisers and only gives these people permission to tell him the truth, but only if he asks for it. 

Machiavelli recommends that the prince freely asks the advisor about all things, hears what the advisor has to say, reflects on it, but ultimately decides for himself what he intends to do and then resolutely implements it.

The number of advisors should be limited to a few, competent, mature people who are committed to the welfare and success of the Reigning Prince.

The most important facts in brief

Wise and cautious princes surround themselves with a few competent advisors who are committed to their well-being and encourage them to give honest and uncolored recommendations and feedback. 

Many valuable conclusions can be drawn from Sun Tsu's considerations, for today's column we want to start with the basics.

It's about survival or downfall

In the introduction, Sun Tsu makes the meaning of the subject of war clear to us: it is simply a matter of survival or destruction.

Therefore it is absolutely necessary to deal with this topic seriously, to think about it and to analyze it.

Especially in the current situation, the biggest economic crisis of the past 100 years, many entrepreneurs and managers have bitterly realized that it is now becoming existential, and many of us are running for our proverbial "Leiberl".

Now it is important to think clearly and act clearly.

Five factors decisive for victory

Sun Tsu identifies five factors that are crucial for victory and therefore need to be carefully and relentlessly analyzed by yourself and your competitors.

The Tao
This is not a philosophical question, but rather the way in which the people and the army are governed, i.e. the measures and regulations that are taken by the leadership and, as we would say today, the corporate culture and loyalty of the employees that are created as a result.

Sun Tsu writes: "The Tao leads to the people being in full agreement with the ruler (superior) and being ready to die with him, to live with him and not to be afraid and worried.

The Heaven
For Sun Tsu, "sky" includes important environmental conditions, day and night, cold and heat, and the conditions of the day and the seasons.

The earth
For Sun Tsu, "earth" includes the environmental conditions of the terrain, especially whether it is far or near, difficult or easy, wide or narrow, dangerous or easily defended.

The General
According to Sun Tsu, his wisdom, credibility, goodness, courage and straightforwardness in thinking and acting are decisive for the assessment of the general.

The Laws
This is about the specific military organization and discipline, consisting of the military rules of organization, the quality and conduct of the officers (managers) and the handling of logistics, weapons, supplies and procedures (processes).



The most important facts in brief

To evaluate the five key factors for victory, Sun Tsu recommends evaluating and comparing yourself and your opponent by answering the following questions:

Which ruler has the better Tao? So which ruler has the better corporate culture and the more loyal employees?
Which general has the better skills?
With whom do the advantages of heaven and earth, i.e. the basic conditions, lie?
Whose rules and orders are implemented more thoroughly?
Whose "weapons and soldiers", i.e. work equipment and employees, are stronger?
Whose officers and troops, i.e. leaders and employees, are better educated and trained?
Whose reward and punishment system is clearer?
You have already noticed that I am currently in the process of repeating the "old masters", so it makes sense to ask in the next column what managers can learn from Niccolò Machiavelli.

Contributing to the decline of Rome
In the end, the barbarians made an important contribution to the decline of Rome.

Extreme readiness
Rome had a notoriously efficient and effective army, but the barbarians had an extremely high risk and readiness for action (the English word "brave" is a derivation of the word barbarian), went into battle mostly without armor or other protection and, for rich booty, did not even shy away from a high blood toll in their own ranks.

Able to learn
Moreover, the barbarians were capable of learning. During the wars with the Romans, which lasted for decades, the barbarians adopted many of the military techniques and tactics of the Romans.

Overstretch and decadence
Due to the enormous size of the Roman Empire and the increasing decadence and convenience of the Romans themselves, it became increasingly difficult to find enough legionnaires to defend the empire.

The crucial mistake
The Romans then made a crucial mistake, namely that they took barbarian warriors into their legions as mercenaries.

Cultural outcasts
The problem: the barbarians were not interested in the values and culture of Rome, but joined the Roman legions only for money and booty. They had no loyalty to Rome, only a personal loyalty to their commanders and their tribe.

Rome has shot herself in the foot with this
Rome itself thus contributed to the weakening of its culture and strength at a crucial point, namely its military power.
 
The most important facts in brief
Managers should make sure that they only hire employees who share the company's culture and values, or who are likely to fit into or adapt to the company culture ("cultural fit"). Professional competence is therefore only one criterion in the selection of employees; if you do not take the cultural fit into account, you may bring your own enemy into the company. Of course, this also applies to company takeovers.

I find the time of the Roman Republic from 509 to 27 B.C. particularly interesting.

Disclaimer
Of course there are also many things we should not learn from the history of Rome, or fortunately have left behind today, we want to focus on the positive lessons.

Clear rights and obligations
A Roman citizen had clear political and civil rights and obligations that were inseparable. In the Republic, one-sided thinking of entitlements did not correspond to the ideal image of the Roman citizen.

Solid ethical foundations
The Greek and Roman philosophy, sciences and culture provided a solid foundation for all people with responsibility, in which they were also trained in their childhood and youth.

Meritocracy
The Republic's political system was multi-layered and ensured that the best minds were able to participate in broad areas and over long periods of time without the excessive dominance of individuals.

A well-organized army with profit-sharing
The Roman army was a disciplined, well-organized, well-equipped and innovative fighting machine. The legionnaires received not only regular pay (salary), but also a share of the spoils of the campaign. Today we call this a profit-sharing scheme.

Efficient communication
The Roman road network was efficient and extensive, and even today some roads in Europe are based on the roads originally laid out by the Romans. This allowed, for those times, fast communication between the headquarters in Rome and the provinces.

Bread, spas and games
The Romans had recognized early on that it was important to keep the less privileged classes happy.
Therefore, there were cheap food and health services as well as recreational activities, e.g. in the form of thermal baths, and cheap or free mass entertainment, such as gladiator fights and other major events, such as triumphal processions.

The most important facts in brief
Realize that you as managers have rights and duties, but also that your employees have rights and duties. Have a clear value system that you adhere to consistently. Encourage and promote employees who are competent. Involve your employees in the success of your company. Ensure efficient communication in your company, based on the latest technologies. Make sure that your employees feel comfortable and do not lack entertainment and other basic needs.

The latter should have all important elements of the value chain at its disposal independently and not have to fall back on the parent organization.
This means that the unit has its own research & development, production, marketing, sales, etc.

No mandatory access to the parent organization
It should be able to access resources and employees of the parent organization, but not be forced to adopt the processes and values of the parent organization.

In addition, it should also be possible to be completely independent in all staff positions or to be able to use external service providers, i.e. not be forced to use the internal staff positions of the parent organization.

Own reward system
The new unit should have its own reward system, and not be forced into the reward model of the parent organization, because the new unit achieves completely different kinds of progress and results (and usually much smaller ones) in the beginning, and it makes no sense to measure a smart young fox by the reward system for a circus elephant that has been trained for years.

Own distribution
The reason why the own sales department is so important is that in most cases the new, disruptive technology has to be developed with/for new customers or new contact persons at the customer's site than those of the parent company.

Free competition
The new organization must be free to compete with the parent organization and also to keep customers away from it.

Failure allowed
The new unit must also be allowed to fail (several times) and reinvent itself without being closed immediately. In the language of modern startups, this is called a pivot.

Is this efficient?
Doesn't sound very efficient to practically build up a parallel organization in order to bring the new technology to the market.

No, but effective!
But this has proven to be the most promising way to achieve the desired result, namely the continuation of market leadership and success. So not very efficient, but effective.

Failure due to internal hick-hack
Otherwise, the new unit usually fails not at all in the market or competition, but rather in the hiccup with the overpowering parent organization.

The most important facts in brief
The successful strategy when it comes to disruptive technologies and new competitors is to develop the new technology in a separate, autonomous business unit. This unit should have all important elements of the value chain at its disposal and not have to (but, if necessary, can) fall back on the parent organization.

Harvard Professor Clayton Christensen has intensively studied this topic and has come to an astonishing conclusion. Successful, even market-leading companies, which act in a highly professional and well-considered manner, still fail time and again when new competitors with new technologies appear in their market.

Why market leaders fail
This is due to the following problems, among others, which lead to commercial decisions that appear to be textbook correct in the short term, leading to disastrous results in the medium and long term:

Follow the Money
The fat bonuses and success bonuses of the managers in the parent organization, to which everyone has become accustomed over the years, promote the maintenance of the status quo, at all costs.

Listening to the customer does not work here
The parent organization is used to listening to the customer, but with new technologies, customers often cannot even imagine what is possible, so the providers have to think ahead for the customers. The employees of the parent company are often not used to this.

Peanuts
The markets, sales and margins that can be achieved in the first years with the new technology are peanuts compared to the old technology and the figures of the parent company. These small volumes are in fact of interest to few managers from the parent organization, or rather, one cannot earn a clever bonus in the old way.

Bananaware
The products of the new technology are only at the beginning of their learning curve, while the products of the old technology are already at the end of their learning curve.
This means, for example, that typically the quality and reliability of the products of the new technology is significantly lower than the quality and reliability of the products of the old technology.
Therefore, the sales organization of the parent company is usually wary of selling the products of the new technology because it is afraid of upsetting the existing customers.

Legacy Assets
The parent organization is completely invested in the existing organization and structures, both in real and emotional terms, and usually comes to think out-of-the-box, not out of the box, even in the most ambitious attempts.

Why the new technology does not come from the spot
All these conditions lead to the fact that investments in the parent organization and existing technology are constantly being made and the new technology does not get out of hand.
Or the new technology does get by, but with the agile new competitors and not with the previous market leaders.

The most important facts in brief
Market leaders often fail to introduce new technologies and ways of working because their entire system is geared towards incremental improvements and maintaining the status quo.

Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman has convincingly demonstrated that this basic assumption is completely wrong and that the vast majority of people are dominated by irrational, emotional and highly unstable drives.

Two systems of thought
Kahneman describes in his book "Fast thinking, slow thinking" that we have two systems of thinking.
System 1 is our animal brain, it is fast, instinctive and emotional. System 2 is our logical brain, it is slow, reflective and rational.

The problem: System 1 dominates system 2
Whether we like it or not, for the vast majority of people their System 2 answers, i.e. their "rational" answers to a problem or a situation, are simply a reflection or a derivation of the judgements, emotions and impressions already preformed by their System 1.

We feel, therefore we think
Put simply: we feel, therefore we think. And this leads to an irrational, cognitive distortion of all our thought processes, which we do not even notice.
Kahneman and Tversky have identified more than 150 such distorting influences, which, imperceptible to us, lead to a massively distorted picture of the world.

The logic whitewash
Of course, in the past 200 years, as the culmination of a millennium-long quest to distinguish ourselves from the animal world, we have systematically got into the habit of adding a lush whitewash of "rationality" and "logic" to our emotionally well-founded decisions.
In truth, only those rational and logical arguments are selected which confirm our already emotionally made decision.

Far reaching consequences
These insights have far-reaching consequences for ourselves and for our dealings with others.
If we want to achieve our goals in dealing with others in the best possible way, we should first think about how we can best influence their emotional system 1, i.e. their unexpressed feelings, fears, worries, i.e. the emotional state of the other person.
If we succeed in influencing the other person's System 1 through our behavior, body language, voice, questions and statements, then we can also influence his "rational" conclusions and reactions in his System 2.

Personal effectiveness on a completely new level
The consistent implementation of this insight enables us to raise our personal effectiveness in dealing with others to a completely new level.
It's like if we had previously tried to play tennis with a table tennis racket and now suddenly hold a modern high-tech tennis racket in our hands. The difference is like day and night.

Maximum control over our own System 1 and 2
For ourselves, of course, this means that we have to go in exactly the opposite direction.
We ourselves should strive to exercise the maximum rational control over our system 1 and 2.
In concrete terms, this means, for example, having personal techniques of relaxation and concentration that calm us down and allow us to proceed in a rational and controlled manner.
This can be sports, meditation, yoga or similar, something different works for everyone, but the important thing is that we become calmer inside and can think more clearly.

Do not overestimate our rationality
Secondly, it means for ourselves that we should humbly not overestimate our rationality and give ourselves a chance by using working methods and tools that help us to increase our rationality.
This includes, for example, writing, i.e. making important decisions in writing, not making decisions hastily, but rather the famous "sleeping on it", and the support and guidance of our important decisions by other people, e.g. consultants who have a reputation for approaching things in an unbiased, uninfluenced, rational and structured way.

What Vienna has to do with it
One of the most prominent, and perhaps the most interesting, representatives of Stoic philosophy is Mark Aurelius the Roman emperor and philosopher, who died in 180, possibly in Vienna.
Stoic philosophy is especially suitable for people with responsibility, who have both feet on the ground in life and who want to take on this responsibility at the highest ethical level.
While other philosophies of life focus on lust, pleasure, joy, happiness, utility or the like, the Stoic has the central concern not to disappoint himself. The Stoic wants to be the best version of a person, especially on a moral-ethical level.
The Stoic is not afraid of pain, cold, suffering, poverty, death and the other, often terrible, vicissitudes of life.

To be in control of oneself
He knows only one concern, and that is that the things he has complete control of, and that is essentially himself, he actually has optimal control and handles them optimally.
The Stoic takes responsibility for only one thing, but for this he takes full responsibility, namely for himself, his soul, his will, his emotions, his thoughts, his habits, his behavior.
His aim is to be virtuous, to make his best possible contribution to the common good and to perform the task assigned to him in the best possible way, i.e. to assume his moral responsibility.
The Stoic is a deeply pragmatic and action-oriented person. The Stoic does not worry about what tomorrow will bring, because tomorrow is not under his control. But he thinks about what to do today and does it.

Relevant in times of crisis
The Stoic has trained his mind for so long that he is no longer afraid of the apparent dangers, but concentrates only on the central danger, namely the danger of unvirtuous action and the resulting damage or degradation of his own soul.
It is obvious that these insights have special relevance in times of crisis or other turbulences that existence on this planet inevitably brings with it.
"Greatness is the realization that virtue is enough." Ralph Waldo Emerson.

The most important facts in brief
Take responsibility for only one thing, but take full responsibility for it, namely for yourself, your soul, your will, your emotions, your thoughts, your habits, your behavior. 

But there is a small problem, namely that it is quite difficult to establish new habits.

The trick to establish habits
But there is a trick for this that has proven itself over thousands of years and is highly effective. However, it requires courage.
Let's assume that you have not done enough sports over many years and are not fit enough now. Your doctor strongly recommends that you take more exercise regularly and you will notice it yourself, it is really necessary, because even a slight climb up a staircase will make you out of breath.
If you start any kind of sport now, say rowing, the key to success is to concentrate on establishing a habit first and then gradually increase your performance.

Accepting ridiculous performances
This means that they even have to be willing to accept an initially "ridiculous" efficiency, or "ridiculous" performance in order to get moving.
Perhaps you only manage to row for 3 or 5 minutes the first time and then need a day of rest.
It takes courage to confront your own weakness and inadequacy and still keep going.
After 2 days, you'll get back on the rowing machine and you may have been rowing at a slow speed for 7 minutes.
In the beginning the efficiency is low, but once the habit is anchored in your system after about 10 weeks (as studies show), you only need to extend the time and gradually increase the quality, then it works.

The ritual, the habit and the continuous improvement process are the key to success
One more note: Their further development will not be linear, because they are not a machine, but a human being who also has a daily form.
There will also be setbacks, for example, you will already have been rowing for 30 minutes, but on a certain day you might only manage 15 minutes and then run out of air. That is insignificant. Now it's time to keep at it.
The important thing is that the medium and long-term overall trend is upwards, you gain strength in your whole body and feel better.
That's why records are important so that you can follow the trend and progress.
You can apply exactly the same principle to your leadership work if you are not afraid of not being perfect right away.
For example, if you feel that you don't have enough time to lead your employees, you can start to undertake to invest 5 minutes each day in conscious employee development.
If you do this for 10 weeks, and we're only talking about 5 minutes a day, then you should usually be able to establish a new habit.
Then all you need to do is extend the time and work on quality to achieve greater effectiveness.

The most important facts in brief
First you concentrate for ten weeks on establishing the ritual of the new habit, and do not expect a high degree of efficiency. Then, once the ritual and the habit are established, you slowly increase performance and quality step by step.

Steve Jobs was exceptional
The extraordinary contribution Steve Jobs has made as an innovator and business leader is undisputed.
Jobs has played a key role in the revolutionary evolution of at least six industries: Personal computers, animated films, music, telephone, tablet computers and digital publishing.

Wisdom in choosing our role models
The search for and imitation of role models is one of the most powerful and important processes of how we develop as human beings.
This applies not only to children, but also to adults.
It is therefore very important that we proceed with wisdom and a sense of proportion when choosing our role models.

Arrogant genius
Steve Jobs was not only an obsessive innovator, but also, as repeatedly reported by people who worked with him, an arrogant genius who did not hesitate to give people unnecessarily hurtful feedback or put them under massive pressure with psychotricks.

Bipolar interaction with employees
Another behavior that caused a lot of stress was his often bipolar way of dealing with employees, which could quickly change from total enthusiasm for the employee ("genius") to complete rejection and devaluation ("asshole").

"Your are fired"
This could also result in him firing employees on the spot for initiatives he did not like.

A steel bath of terror
Some have somehow endured this "steel bath of terror" and continued to perform, but on the other hand Apple has lost many talented employees over the years, who then performed exceptionally well in other environments.

Are you perhaps also a genius of the century?
It's tempting to think that you belong in the category of geniuses like Steve Jobs and can therefore allow yourself to live out your character flaws and ego, or egomania, in an uncontrolled way.

Here are a few tips for a realistic assessment:

A probability of 1 in 800 million
I would estimate that there are about 5-10 business leaders per generation on our planet who have had such extraordinary successes, with such a strong impact on markets and consumers, as Steve Jobs had. So the probability that you are one of these people is about 1 in 800 million.

Negative impact proven
Secondly, the negative effects of reckless, arrogant and hurtful behavior in leadership work have been scientifically proven.
These are not only demotivating and thus reduce performance, but also lead to a significantly higher employee turnover.
Typically, negative selection also occurs because the most talented employees are the first to leave the company under such conditions, while the less talented employees are more likely to stay because they have fewer alternatives.

Sectarian loyalty is rare
Thirdly, very few companies manage to create a culture that leads to an almost sectarian loyalty and a very high level of suffering among their employees.

Contradicts the golden rule
Fourthly, a leadership approach that does not value people very highly also contradicts the principles of good and sustainably successful lifestyles that we have known for thousands of years, such as the golden rule ("Treat others as you would like to be treated by them."), which has been empirically proven to produce good results for thousands of years.

Could things have been even better if they had been friendlier?
Fifth, we don't know if Steve Jobs would have been even more successful with a different, more positive behavior.

The most important facts in brief
In summary, therefore, within the framework of a concept of life based on reason, the empirical findings of millennia and realistic probabilities, it seems wiser, as a leader, not to adopt the dysfunctional behaviors of Steve Jobs and to try to learn only the good from him, for example his absolute commitment to success and exceptional quality. 

Humans have significance for the course of events
History and all human activities are not primarily driven and influenced by abstract forces, but very much by human behavior, especially by people in leadership roles. Put simply, leadership behavior makes a difference, you make a difference.

Acting as the art of the possible
Henry Kissinger was a hard-nosed pragmatist and realpolitiker who understood that action in the real world can only succeed on the basis of a realistic assessment of the framework conditions and human nature, and not on the basis of airy ideals or an over-optimistic view of the world or human beings.

Reliability and predictability as a central prerequisite for trust
Kissinger recognized that power and the ability to shape the world and influence others depends not only on hard power factors such as weapons and sanctions, but also on reliability and predictability in action. This maxim still applies, and also to successful management.

The dangers of specialization
Kissinger recognized that there is also a paradox in the high degree of specialization that a bureaucratized society requires in order to be successful in that society.
For once the ascent to higher spheres of administration or management has been successful, it is not the specialists who prove themselves, but the generalists who can keep the overview and develop a versatile understanding of problems and solutions.
This paradox also continues to apply and affects many managers who have moved up in companies.

Commentary for the critical reader
There is no doubt that there are some things you should not learn from Henry Kissinger. But this blog does not want to focus on this negative perspective today.

Clamp on the steering wheel as long as possible
Allow only yes-men and pleasing personalities to advance or join your company, so that no strong successor personality is created.
If a strong personality does emerge, you will get rid of it within a very short time with insult and disgrace.

When selecting your employees, let your gut feeling be your guide instead of professional help and advice.

Penny-wise and Pound-foolish
Because we are already at the consulting stage. Do not engage a professional consultant who will carry out an exclusive and professionally managed sales process for you and expect an appropriate fee for this.
Instead, over the years, assign various non-exclusive mandates to consultants at discount fees and tell anyone else who seems opportune about your sales intentions.

A "shopped deal"
As a result, word will spread throughout your industry and the entire market that your company is for sale and you will constantly be confronted with potential buyers who in reality do not fit your company but steal your time.
In the meantime, serious prospective buyers get the impression that your company is not for sale in reality or that you don't want to sell seriously and they write the whole thing off.

No Investment Story
Don't bother to formulate an attractive investment story, including forecast figures, for the successful future of your company, but simply give potential investors a number graveyard of your past data with a shaky forecast for the current year. Beyond that, leave the investors in the dark about the potential of your company, apart from general statements.

Absurd purchase price claims
Put absurdly high purchase price demands in the room, if possible immediately upon first contact with interested parties. You may think that by doing so you will increase the attainable purchase price, freely according to the "bazaar" method.
In reality, you are only driving away serious prospective buyers who stand for the long-term future of your company and you are wasting the time of everyone involved.

Ignore objective market data
Wipe out all serious valuations of your company based on objective market data. Instead, stick stubbornly to your absurdly high purchase price demand and demand a "strategic" price that takes into account the chances of your company in the future.
But don't forget that a reasonable buyer does not want to pay for a future for which he himself first has to work hard and invest hard-earned money.

Faith in miracles, instead of common sense
Summarized: Disregard commercial reason and common sense, but simply hope for a miracle.
In this way you will ensure that you leave your heirs an exciting problem, which in many cases ends in an emergency sale or worse. As Louis XIV said: "After me the Flood."

The most important facts in brief
If you want to successfully sabotage the sale of your company, simply throw common sense overboard and go into this adventure, which is unique for most entrepreneurs, as naive and badly advised as possible. As Louis XIV said: "After me the deluge.

In keeping with the beginning of the year, I would like to share with you a highly effective key to happiness: gratitude.
This key works on a large and small scale and after just a few weeks of use, it is already amazingly effective.
First and foremost, we should realize that nothing can be taken for granted and that we have a right to nothing.
We live on a rock that races through an infinite universe, everything we have is only borrowed and everything can be over again at any moment.
That is why we should consciously perceive every positive experience, even the smallest one, and thank for it.
Unfortunately we get used to positive, external circumstances all too quickly and then stop appreciating them.

Here are a few things to be grateful for. One or the other of these aspects will suit most of us:

Simply that we wake up in the morning and are not yet in the pit.
That the sun is shining.
That the heating works.
That we have met one or the other nice person.
That we have been allowed to laugh many times in our lives.
That we were allowed to experience one or the other beautiful place, or maybe even live in one.
That by and large everyone can pursue their business and interests undisturbed.
That we live in a democracy and a constitutional state and not in a dictatorship. A small note on this: according to the Economist's Democracy Index, only about 4.5% of the world's population live in full democracies.

The most important facts in brief
This list can be extended and continued endlessly and the more we become aware of how well we are already doing, the more strength we have to cope with the adversities of our existence.

However, we do not live in this ideal world and the chance that we are confronted in business life with people who are not in control of their emotions is high.
We are talking about people whose strong emotional needs are constantly taking control of them and who then behave dysfunctionally, i.e. not in accordance with their role.
Examples: Yelling at other people whose opinions you don't share, or always looking at everything negatively and not giving a damn about any new initiative or idea.

No chance without therapy
People who are not in control of their emotions or negativity are difficult cases because they cannot be brought under control themselves, except possibly through therapy or medication.
And understanding this is also the key to dealing with these people.
The key point is to realize that the behavior of these people has nothing to do with us, but is driven by their own emotional needs.
If we allow ourselves to be impressed and influenced by the aggressive or passive-aggressive behavior of these people, perhaps because of our own insecurities, and perhaps even set reactions to them that put us in a bad light, then we have fallen into a trap.
It is typically hopeless to change these people, or at least in a management context the right toolbox is not available (therapy and medication).

Two reasonable strategies
This leaves you with two reasonable strategies, which you may even combine.
First, control their reactions to the dysfunctional behavior of these people and react professionally and calmly.
This is admittedly difficult, but in many cases it is very effective in taking the wind out of their sails.
Often the emotional reward that these people get from their dysfunctional behavior is precisely that they can successfully provoke, unsettle and upset other people.
If this no longer works, it is possible that the behavior will stop.
Secondly, you need to develop a plan to have as little contact with this person as possible, to stand out through performance and results, and at the same time, if politically realistically possible, to work to remove this person from the company, or at least from the position from which this person can harass you.
If this doesn't work, and you can't or won't tolerate the situation any longer, then you will have no choice but to pull the ripcord and move yourself out of this system.

The most important facts in brief
The crucial point in dealing with people who are emotionally out of control is to realize that the behavior of these people has nothing to do with us, but is driven by their own emotional needs. Control their reactions to the dysfunctional behavior of these people and react professionally and calmly, then you usually take the wind out of their sails. If this is not enough, avoid these people, try to remove them from the system or leave the system yourself.

If we are looking for leadership roles, especially those at the top of companies, then we should first make it clear whether we are prepared to pay the necessary personal price.
After all, if we only see the advantages of a top position in a company, i.e. high income, status, corporate jet, etc., then we really have only understood half the equation.
Here, from my Executive Coaching practice, are some of the challenges you will face at the top of companies:

The most difficult decisions will stick to you.
As CEO, you bear the ultimate responsibility. You are only faced with decisions that cannot be made at lower levels ("The buck stops here.") This leaves you with decisions that require difficult and delicate considerations and have far-reaching consequences.

Others may be immature, but not you
You are constantly confronted with the inadequacies, mistakes and sensitivities of others, but you are not allowed to make mistakes yourself.
On the contrary, you are expected to have your ego and your sensitivities under control and even to handle the inadequacies, mistakes and sensitivities of others, e.g. your colleagues on the board of directors, members of the supervisory board, investors and employees, intelligently and constructively.

You will also have to make personally difficult decisions
For example, to part with a long-serving employee or board colleague who may have become a personal friend in the meantime.
Or to sell a part of the company to save the whole, but also to part with hundreds of loyal employees who have relied on you and have been loyal for decades.

The next crisis is sure to come
If you have been responsible for the management of a company for a longer period of time, say 15-20 years, you can expect to go through at least one or two crises that threaten your existence.
When everyone jumps to cover or panics, you as CEO are called upon to keep your nerve and master the situation.

You cannot speak honestly with anyone
You no longer have anyone to talk to openly and honestly. Try to discuss your worries and uncertainties with your supervisory board members, investors, colleagues on the board or employees.
Usually not a good idea, because they are always rivals or competitors, or your employees expect leadership from you and not uncertainty.
It is also very risky to burden your life partner with all these questions and doubts.
Firstly, because your partner may expect leadership and responsibility from you, not uncertainty and instability.
Secondly, because your relationship should not be a business partnership but an emotional and romantic one, and the constant rushing of business problems is a burden here.

That leaves you cold?
Paradoxically, if you now think "all these dilemmas and considerations leave me cold", then paradoxically you may not be suited for the CEO role at all, because then you lack the human and authentic dimension that makes a highly effective leader at the top.

The most important facts in brief
If we are looking for leadership roles, especially those at the top of companies, then we should first make it clear whether we are prepared to pay the necessary personal price.

In today's blog I would like to show you, by means of practical management examples, that these four cardinal virtues are just as relevant today as they were 2500 years ago. They are an excellent guideline especially for people with high responsibility.
The four cardinal virtues are prudence, justice, moderation and courage.

Prudence
Wisdom, also called wisdom or reason, is the ability to take the right action in a concrete situation based on all relevant factors.
Wisdom is an absolute prerequisite for success, especially for managers at the top of organizations.
If most decisions at the lower levels of the organization can still be made schematically and relatively standardized, the big, trend-setting decisions, or even the small symbolic decisions, can only be made in a holistic and well-considered manner. This is necessarily multidimensional and tailored to the concrete individual case.
Managers who do not have the ability to think openly and freely in all directions, but coupled with the ability to ultimately bring this thinking back to the point and translate it into concrete actions, cannot successfully lead complex organizations.

Justice
Justice means that what is equal is treated equally and what is unequal is treated unequally.
There are different concepts of justice, so every human being must ask himself or herself the question, according to which standards of value he or she, his or her decisions should be just.
What is essential for managers here is, firstly, to make their own value standards clear to themselves and, secondly, to adhere to them consistently.
Management research has shown that, within a certain range, employees are willing to be led by a manager whose value system is not completely in agreement with the employee's, as long as this value system is consistently adhered to by the manager.

Moderation
In a time that is characterized by excesses in many areas, moderation does not sound very attractive, but rather somewhat "moderate".
But if we understand moderation in the sense of prudence, self-control and consistent, predictable behavior, then we realize that it is a very important virtue for managers.
Successful management is not a sprint, but a marathon that must be run consistently over many years or decades.
It is of no use to you if you perform excellently for one week and then crash completely the next week and in this way, completely erratically, oscillate through the year.
What counts in management is that you can be relied on, that you deliver your performance continuously and reliably.

Bravery
Bravery and courage are the ability to survive difficult situations. It also includes the willingness to make and implement difficult decisions without having a guarantee that you will not suffer any disadvantages.
Bravery and courage are so important because without bravery and courage, the other virtues cannot be realized. Because virtuous behavior always requires a standing up for one's own values and values are only worth something if I am willing to pay a price for these values.

The most important facts in brief
The four cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, moderation and bravery are just as relevant today as they were 2500 years ago, especially for people with high responsibilities.

In the seventies and eighties of the 20th century, the Swiss watch industry was plunged into a deep crisis by the advent of quartz-powered electric watches and by competition from Japan.
After a sharp contraction, the Swiss watch industry rose like the Phoenix from the ashes in the 1990s. Above all thanks to the visionary leadership and consistent management of exceptional personalities such as Nicolas Hayek and Jean-Claude Biver.
Nicolas Hayek has firmly anchored the Swatch, the watch as an affordable and stylish fashion item, in the consumer world.
Jean-Claude Biver (e.g. Blancpain, Hublot, TAG Heuer) has firmly established the watch as a jewel, cultural heritage and eternal work of art in the mythical world of our aspirations and our quest for the good, the beautiful and the true.

Three insights were essential to the success of these two very different entrepreneurs:

First: watches are not there to tell the time
Until the 1970s, the Swiss watch industry defined itself as a primary quality characteristic, above all through its striving for ever greater mechanical precision in watches.
This goal became obsolete with the invention of the quartz watch.
But it went even further. Today no one needs a watch to know what time it is. Every cell phone contains a perfectly precise watch and watches are omnipresent in public places, too.
The clock as a time indicator thus turned out to be a dead end leading to economic ruin.
The watch as a fashion accessory or the clock as a cultural heritage and a view of eternity, that is a completely different story.

Secondly, for most men, watches are the only piece of jewelry they wear
The boom in luxury watches is primarily a topic for male buyers. With one or more watches, "man" can easily and efficiently convey status, wealth, success and cultural sophistication in everyday life.
And in a way that you always have with you and can take with you practically anywhere.

Third: Storytelling
Whether Hayek or Biver, both understood that human beings are sense-oriented creatures who need a context and a story to exist and act, and both were or are masters at creating that context and story.
"The mechanical clock is culture, tradition and art and it is eternal. In 100 years, this clock will still be running." Jean-Claude Biver.

The most important facts in brief
In our often mindless high-tech age, it is all the more important to create the right context and story and to tell it consistently to reach people.

Having recently read a new biography of him and we are celebrating his 250th birthday this year, I thought it would be interesting to work out a few aspects that managers can learn from Napoleon.

Learning and intellectual orientation
Napoleon was not only a good mathematician, which was beneficial to his artillery skills, but from his early youth, all his life, intellectually highly interested and an avid reader of specialist books, philosophy and fiction. His encounter with Goethe and his diary entries on the subject bear witness to this.

Consistent implementation of innovations
During the youth of Napoleon, numerous innovative works on military strategy were published. Napoleon studied these works and, above all, applied them consistently in his campaigns, while his opponents fought with outdated strategies.

Organizational strength and initiative
Napoleon was a master of organization, who did not leave out any detail when it came to preparing his armies for a campaign.
For example, after his soldiers had to cover long distances on foot, he always took great care to ensure that they had good footwear, and even as emperor he regularly issued orders for procurement and released budgets for this purpose.
But Napoleon was also a master of improvisation. When, as a young general, he received practically no funds from the revolutionary bureaucracy for his Italian campaign, he borrowed the money from bankers without further ado, only to pay it back later with the spoils from the campaigns.

Speed
Like his great role model Julius Caesar before him, Napoleon surprised his opponents with fast troop movements, which were made possible above all by high discipline, motivation, good equipment and an innovative system of supply.

Compartimentalization
Napoleon was able to devote himself to a matter with full concentration, for example, giving his officers a flood of precise orders under high pressure during the battle, but then switching over, as if he were simply flipping a switch and unimpressed by the drama of the battle in progress, writing a love letter to his wife Josephine or dictating detailed administrative instructions to his Parisian governor.

Consistent action orientation
Napoleon was almost always ready to act decisively to secure the initiative and shape the future.

Enthusiasm for oneself
Like Caesar and Churchill, Napoleon had a very strong sense of self-worth and an exceptionally high self-confidence, which enabled him, even after setbacks, to quickly get back on his feet and continue the struggle.

Courage in all forms
Last but not least, Napoleon showed extraordinary courage in various forms during his life.
Not only physically, which should be a matter of course for a soldier, but also in the form of daring, for example, when several times at the beginning of his career he conducted negotiations without the authority of his superiors or acted on his own authority in order to legitimize his behavior retrospectively through his success.
Here, too, Napoleon followed his role model Julius Caesar. Both realized the maxim of Greek philosophy that courage is the most important of the virtues, because only courage ensures the realization of the other virtues.

The most important in brief
Napoleon distinguished himself, among other things, by learning and intellectual orientation, consistent implementation of innovations, organizational strength and initiative, speed, focus and compartmentalization, consistent action orientation, high self-confidence and courage.

Limited rationality
For example, if a person feels fear, you cannot make progress in negotiations with that person through rational behavior because fear greatly impairs that person's rational decision-making ability.

Tactical Communication
Here it is important to use empathy and tactically skilful communication to bring the negative emotion to light and thereby defuse it. Only then is the way clear for a solution to the problem.

Bringing negative emotions to light
Bringing the negative emotions to light sounds dangerous, but with a few simple techniques it can be learned and implemented very effectively. The risk of implementation is in reality manageable.

Your risk is manageable
Consider your alternatives. You are in a negotiation where failure is not an option.
If the fear (or anger, rage, disgust, shame, sadness) of your counterpart does not come to light in a controlled manner and is thus weakened, it will continue to bubble under the surface and boycott from within any possibility of a rational solution.

Step 1: Recognize the emotional state of the other person. Instead of directing your mind inwards and concentrating on your next argument in the negotiation, concentrate entirely on the other person. Give him your full attention and take him completely. Pay attention to what this person says and to the tone of his sentences, his facial expression and his posture. Feel your own emotional reaction to the feelings of the other person. Let your mirror neurons work.
The vast majority of people can perceive the feelings of other people when they direct their attention to them. The more often you practice this perception, the better you become at it. Develop a hypothesis about which emotion is currently the most important for your counterpart.

Step 2: Address the other person's emotional state. Use neutral formulations that encourage the other person to react. An example from a negotiation: "We have gone through all the points together over the last few days to ensure that you receive an excellent performance from us. Nevertheless, I sense a hesitation about this cooperation".

Step 3: Shut up and listen. Take a short break so that your words can work and the other person can react. In many cases, you will now receive information from the other person that will help you to define, in a creative way, next steps that will take you forward in the negotiation.

The most important facts in brief
For example, if a person feels fear, you cannot make progress in negotiations with that person through rational behavior because fear greatly impairs that person's rational decision-making ability. Recognize the emotional state of the other person. Address the emotional state of the other person. Shut up and listen. In many cases you will now receive information from the other person that will help you to define next steps in a creative way that will take you further in the negotiation.

There are situations in life where your back is against the wall. Situations where the clever recipes we all know from the Harvard method, for example, don't help you anymore. Situations where you are not dealing with an opponent who is fair and rational, but sneaky, ruthless and brutal, but with whom you unfortunately still have to make a deal.
Maybe it is a job you urgently need to secure the survival of your company or a company acquisition you absolutely need for your growth strategy. Some people may even be thinking about his or her divorce.
In such situations, a number of behaviors have proven to be effective:

No trial of strength
If you see negotiations in such a situation as a trial of strength, you are making the problem worse.

Relationship orientation as a negotiation tactic
Even if you find it difficult because of the, possibly, negative emotions you may have towards your negotiation opponent, see the negotiation as a dialogue, as the development of a relationship that leads to the other side gaining trust in you, revealing to you the information and opening the flanks necessary for your success.

Negotiation as seduction
Much more helpful than the image of measuring your strength, therefore, is to see the negotiation as a seduction process in which you ultimately achieve your goals.

Smile
Smile and appear inaggressive. Get used to having a positive and open charisma in difficult situations.
Pay attention to your voice and pitch. If the other side creates pressure and you react with aggressiveness and counter-pressure, you will usually escalate the situation and make it worse.
The dialogue will deteriorate and it will become more and more difficult for you to get the information that you ultimately need to succeed.

Reduce your ego
Concentrate on the goal, namely to conclude the negotiation in a positive way for you and be prepared to drive back your own ego needs and to satisfy the ego needs of the other side in a controlled way.
Never forget that negotiations are a highly emotional and psychological process.

Emotions and irrationality as a chance
If the other side behaves irrationally and emotionally, then this is of course often extremely irritating at first glance, but on the other hand it holds enormous opportunities for you.
Because if the other side behaves irrationally and emotionally, it also means that if you play the right emotional cards, you can influence the other side emotionally and thus achieve objective and real negotiating advantages and results for yourself, while the other side only receives emotional and psychological advantages, which are subjectively more important for the other side because of its emotional orientation.

The most important facts in brief
Keep a cool head. Remain open and friendly and use the emotionality and irrationality of the other side for your advantage.

Christian Morawa is a trained mechanical engineer and studied economics. Before becoming Managing Director of BMW Austria GmbH, he was Managing Director for Austria and Switzerland at the AUTO1 Group. Morawa has been active in various areas and management functions in the automotive industry for more than 20 years.

Michael Hirt: 
Mr. Morawa, the automotive industry is in a highly dynamic phase of change. What are you doing to successfully manage this transition?

Christian Morawa:
In fact, our industry is undergoing a tremendous process of change - from e-mobility to autonomous driving to digital services, there are numerous issues whose management will determine the future of every single manufacturer.
As the technology leader in our industry, we at the BMW Group have an excellent strategy for the future, but there is no question that change is happening at an incredible pace. A current example: The number of 25 electrified models announced for 2025 will be available to our company as early as 2023, two years earlier than previously. If you know what is involved, from production to sales training, then this is a major challenge for all areas of our company.
Now, e-mobility is probably the most prominent example in the industry, but in fact comprehensive changes are taking place at all levels. In Austria, too, many thousands of people who work directly or indirectly for the BMW Group are confronted daily with our transformation into a tech company.
Now to the core of your question: For me there are two essential factors in the transformation process - understanding and participation. An important task of change management is to explain the necessity of change in such a way that every employee can accept it - that is the first factor, understanding.
At the same time, an awareness must be created that each individual is involved in the success of the transformation process - that is the second factor, participation.

Understanding and participation are essential if one does not want to run the risk of overburdening the organization with the change. This is also an essential learning that I have drawn from my time in the start-up!
For me, this means not only implementing our future strategy "Number ONE > Next", but also continuously explaining why we do this and why everyone has to be a part of it. Of course I expect the same from my management team.
Especially in dynamic times, it is very important that managers act strategically and at the same time highly flexibly in order to adapt optimally to the often volatile conditions.
Of course, the corporate culture is also very important. At the BMW Group, we involve employees in our transformation process on a broad basis.

Transparency and openness are essential pillars of our cooperation, making it easier to conduct a constructive dialog and to anchor understanding and participation. For example, we also retreat for a day to discuss strategic decisions - with all 400 employees.

Your employees are the decisive resource with which you as a manager can achieve your goals. To do your job effectively, you need competent, trustworthy, cooperative and honest employees.
If you have been careful in your selection of employees, you have already done 50% of your leadership work. Now it's time to handle the other 50% professionally, and this includes a good start, with a good initial interview with the new employee.

The following elements can be helpful here:

Welcoming the employee and expressing pleasure in working together

• Make your own goals and priorities transparent
• Explain the context of the employee's task and role and its significance in the overall context
• Explain the contribution to overall success expected from the employee
• Make concrete goals and expectations for the cooperation with the employee transparent
• Explain job description of the employee's position and answer questions
• Explain the assessment criteria or competence profile for the position of the employee and make an appointment for the next, official appraisal interview
• Clarify and agree on measures for employee progress and success
• Explain own working methods, working style and preferences in communication, general working methods, progress control, quality control and information intake
• Discuss initial concrete key tasks and key projects
• Point out resources, work aids and colleagues who can be helpful
• Clarify openness to feedback/feedforward in both directions (i.e. what employees can do to be a better employee and what managers can do to be a better manager or supervisor for the employee)
• Ask employees: 

1. What is important to you in a collaboration?
2. What do you need from me to be successful?
3. How can I optimally contribute to their productivity?
4. What motivates you?
5. Are there any other points that are important to you that we should discuss now?

• Clarifying communication channels and rhythm (Jour Fixe, communication channels in urgent cases)
  
  

The most important facts in brief
If you have been careful in your selection of employees, then you have already done 50% of your leadership work. Now it's a matter of handling the other 50% professionally, and that necessarily includes a good start, with a good initial interview with the new employee.

Many people believe that negotiations are above all a competition between two smart and quick-witted people and focus their attention on the concrete act of negotiation, i.e. the interaction between the actors.

Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance
Experienced negotiators, on the other hand, know that a large part of the success of a negotiation is decided before the actual talks begin.
This is because the 5P principle applies: "Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance", good preparation avoids weak performance.

Preparing negotiations professionally
Here are a few elements that are essential for the good preparation of a negotiation

Walk-Away Power
The most important thing is to have alternatives to a degree. You need what the Anglo-Saxons call "walk-away power", also the ability to walk away from a bad deal and not make it.
Work hard to have alternatives before you start the negotiation, i.e. different ways of closing or the possibility of not closing at all.
For example, if you want to buy a house, try to find different houses where you can imagine living well. Avoid making an early preliminary decision or "falling in love" with a house.

Analysis of the balance of power
Another part of the preparation is the analysis of the balance of power between the negotiating parties.
In many negotiations, forces are not equally distributed; instead, one party has one or more advantages.
The main factors influencing the balance of power between the parties are the need to reach a conclusion, the emotional desire to conclude (both cause lack of walk-away power), competition and the time factor.
Analyze your own position based on these four factors and form hypotheses about the position of the other side based on these four factors in order to use this knowledge to your advantage in the negotiation.

Information
What information about the other side do you need to find out in order to expand or consolidate your negotiating power? How will you proceed?
What information must the other side not find out about you so that you do not reduce your negotiating power? How will you cleverly protect this information without lying, which is not only unethical, but can also result in liability and criminal prosecution?

The most important facts in brief
Experienced negotiators know that a large part of the success of a negotiation is decided before the concrete discussions begin and prepare themselves accordingly.

Professor Frei and her colleague Professor Oberholzer-Gee from the Harvard Business School have looked at how you can think creatively about your strategy.

The Triple Win
In the previous blog, we recognized that an excellent strategy is based on understanding the triple-win thinking and the constant, creative quest to make the cake bigger for everyone - customers, companies and suppliers.
Today we want to focus on your employees, a form of your suppliers.

Two strategies towards your employees
Basically, you have two major strategic thrusts in dealing with your employees.

Strategy 1: Sweat Shop
First, you can try to pay your employees as little as possible and be as stingy and minimalist as possible in the working conditions you offer.
If you can keep your employees' willingness to sell to you (WTS - Willingness To Sell) the same, you can increase your profit margins at the expense of your employees.
Such a strategy can work - apart from ethical considerations - if, for example, you have an almost endless "industrial reserve army" in the form of starved agricultural workers and day laborers, for whom a job in your company, no matter how hard and unpleasant, is still better than starving in a mud hut after the next hurricane.
However, since such a desperate situation is quite rare, especially among well-trained people, in highly developed economic areas, this strategy does not have the best chance of attracting and retaining good employees in your company.

Strategy 2: Country Club
More promising, in highly developed economies, is a second strategy that consists of reducing the Willingness to Sell (WTS) of your employees.
Remember, the WTS is the lowest price your supplier is willing to sell you his product or provide you with his service.
There are companies that have found a way to pay employees comparatively less without making them dissatisfied or, in many cases, even enthusiastic.
This sounds surprising at first glance, but has to do with the fact that most people, above a certain minimum level, are not as money-oriented as is wrongly assumed.
Companies that offer an attractive corporate culture, with a high sense of belonging and great team spirit, have a good chance of finding and retaining excellent employees, without money, in the form of high salaries and bonuses to throw around.
When these companies also offer rapid development opportunities, the accelerated rise of talented individuals to positions of responsibility, excellent technology and tools to work with, good training and development opportunities, and flexible working hours and locations, the supposed advantages of competitors who may offer a large salary but otherwise have little to show for it quickly fade away.
The company can therefore pay lower salaries than its competitors and thereby increase its margins.
And the great thing about it: Everyone is satisfied! Customers get great products and services, employees feel great and the company makes higher profits. A classic triple win.

The most important facts in brief
Think about how you can help your employees reduce their Willingness To Sell while increasing your profit margin and employee satisfaction. This will create a triple-win situation.
In the next blog you can read how to prepare yourself well for difficult negotiations.

Professor Frei and her colleague Professor Oberholzer-Gee from the Harvard Business School have looked at how you can think creatively about your strategy.

The relationship between the manufacturer and its suppliers
In the last blog we talked about the relationship between the manufacturer and its customers. Now it's about the other side of the equation, namely the relationship between the manufacturer and his suppliers.
For our purposes, we want to define suppliers as broadly as possible and include here also the employees, i.e. all "elements" that the manufacturer needs to produce his goods or services.

Is it really about minimizing costs?
The sum of the expenses for these suppliers in a broader sense is the manufacturer's costs.
The lower the manufacturer's costs are, the more value the manufacturer can divide between itself and its customers.
A simplistic analysis could come to the conclusion that it should be the clear goal of the manufacturer to pay his suppliers as little as possible in order to bring his own costs down as much as possible.
However, this analysis does not go far enough because, as Porter, Brandenburger & Stuart have shown, a manufacturer needs three key elements for long-term success and sustainable growth: satisfied customers, good profitability and satisfied suppliers.

The triple-win strategy
Only if these three elements are well balanced in the sense of a win-win-win thinking ("triple-win") and remain balanced in the medium term, a stable medium and long-term successful development of a company is possible.
A truly excellent strategy is therefore based on an understanding of this triple-win thinking and the constant creative striving to make the cake bigger for everyone, i.e. customers, companies and suppliers, rather than on a win-lose thinking in which the company tries to let customers and/or suppliers ultimately lose out.
The triple-win is also an important part of the success strategy of numerous medium-sized companies, the famous "hidden champions", who, without making a fuss outwardly, are highly successful in their markets and niches.

The most important facts in brief
An excellent strategy is based on an understanding of the triple-win mindset and a constant creative quest to make the cake bigger for everyone - customers, companies and suppliers - rather than a win-lose mindset in which the company tries to let customers and/or suppliers ultimately lose out.

Professor Frei and her colleague Professor Oberholzer-Gee from the Harvard Business School have looked at how you can think creatively about your strategy.

The Triple Win
In the last blog entry we realized that an excellent strategy is based on understanding the triple-win thinking and the constant, creative quest to make the cake bigger for everyone - customers, companies and suppliers.

The Cooperative Strategy
Another concrete strategy with which you implement the triple-win is cooperation between your company and another company, which leads to an increase in the willingness of your customers to pay (WTP - Willingness-to-Pay).
For example, suppose you have a product or service that creates a very high value, possibly even a new value, for your customers. Unfortunately, you are also new to the market and do not have a recognized brand or network in the relevant target market.

Many subjective components of the purchase decision
Before we take this example further, it is important to understand that many customers do not only want to buy a product or service that promises a high value through its objective performance characteristics in the narrower sense, but that many subjective components also play a role in the purchase decision.
For example, there are customers, who would buy a product with certain capability characteristics, from a certain mark, which they trust.
They would not buy a product with identical features, but from another brand they do not know and do not trust, or they would only be willing to pay a significantly lower price for it, for example, because they would be worried that there would be problems later, e.g., with the warranty or service.

Brand plus product raise the price
For example, if you are able to forge a partnership with a company already established with the relevant group of buyers and the product can be marketed under the partner's brand and through its distribution networks, at significantly better prices, then you have increased your customers' WTP without changing the physical characteristics of your product.

1 plus 1 must make 100
Since partnerships in business life (and not only there) involve many complexities and risks, such an approach is only worthwhile if the partnership gives you a dramatically higher success and profit potential for the joint product or service than if the partners remain alone.

Everyone has to bring something to the table
In addition, you must ensure that both partners make a valuable contribution to our mutual success, so that both partners have a commercially justifiable claim to a tidy profit from the collaboration.
So coming back to our example from above, both the brand of one partner must allow a significant price entry and the product of the other partner must create a really high value for the customers. Then the two can enter into a triple-win relationship.

Are they really ready for that?
Finally, it is also important that you want a partnership at all and are also willing to show the necessary cooperation and willingness to compromise that is necessary for the success of a long-term partnership.

The most important facts in brief
If you succeed in forging a partnership with a company already established with the relevant group of buyers, and your product can be brought to market under the partner's brand and through its distribution networks, at significantly better prices, then you have increased your customers' WTP (Willingness-to-Pay) without changing the physical characteristics of your product.

Professor Frei and her colleague Professor Oberholzer-Gee from the Harvard Business School have looked at how you can think creatively about your strategy.

The Triple Win
In the last article we recognized that an excellent strategy is based on understanding the triple-win thinking and the constant, creative quest to make the cake bigger for everyone, i.e. customers, companies and suppliers.

The Complementary Strategy
A concrete strategy with which you can implement the triple win is, for example, the so-called complementary. Complementaries are products or services that increase the willingness to pay (WTP - Willingness-to-Pay) of your customers.
A simple example is sausages with mustard. Because sausages with mustard are offered and appreciated by customers, the combination of the two products increases the willingness of customers to pay for the combination without increasing the costs of the manufacturers of the sausages or mustard.
Connect your product intelligently with others.
The complementary approach is about finding creative ways to increase the attractiveness of your product and the willingness of your customers to pay by intelligently combining your product with other products or services.
It is often about putting yourself in the customer's shoes and improving the overall customer experience. This usually requires intelligent segmentation of customers.

The perfect fitness center
A good example of this approach is an upscale fitness center that offers a well thought-out overall system and thus a well thought-out and positive, integrated customer experience by combining the pure fitness club, with childcare, parking, good food, a rest area for working and meeting rooms.

It's all about the overall experience
Now here a total experience is offered, which in the connection of these different factors, for example for the target group of the high-level personnel, self-employed persons and entrepreneurs with children, a highly attractive offer creates, with which time-optimized different life tasks and goals can be connected with one another.

The most important facts in brief
Find creative ways to increase the attractiveness of your product and the willingness of your customers to pay by intelligently combining your product with other products or services.

Professor Frei and her colleague Professor Oberholzer-Gee from the Harvard Business School have looked at how you can think creatively about your strategy.

What your customers pay for
Your customers value your products and services for a variety of reasons, such as their utility, design, status factor, ease of use, durability, etc.
In summary, the appreciation your customers have for your products and services can be summed up with their "willingness to pay" (WTP).
If you charge only slightly more than the WTP for your product or service, the customer will not buy because they no longer gain subjective and objective benefits from your product or service.

What your costs have to do with this
The counterpart to WTP is the cost of the manufacturer. Between the customer's WTP and the manufacturer's costs there is a value field that is divided between the customer and the manufacturer, by the manufacturer's price.
The customer gets the field between the WTP and the price and that is the value the customer gets and the reason why the customer is enthusiastic about your product.
The difference between the price and the cost is of course the manufacturer's profit.

Is profit maximization really the goal?
Simply put, you might think that the manufacturer's goal is to maximize the price to the WTP in order to maximize profit. But that is too short a thought.
The most successful companies make sure that, beyond the price, enough value remains on the customer side so that customers are enthusiastic and loyal, keep buying new products and services and even become brand messages that drive the company's growth massively through word of mouth and recommendations.
This makes it possible to have enthusiastic customers and high profits at the same time and to grow rapidly.

The most important facts in brief
Think about how you can use concrete measures to increase the subjective and objective value of your products and services that your customers perceive, while at the same time increasing enthusiasm and profits.

If one compares the return on invested capital (ROIC) of the 500 largest American listed companies year after year, one arrives at an enormous fluctuation range of -10 percent to +40 percent.

Professor Frei and her colleague Professor Oberholzer-Gee from the Harvard Business School have looked into how this large fluctuation range can be explained:

One of the key factors contributing to these large differences in the performance of these companies is their strategy.
Strategy is essentially the plan of how the company builds, expands and defends its competitive advantages.

Through these competitive advantages, the company either creates higher value for its customers than its competitors and/or achieves lower costs than its competitors, or at least is able to control its costs so that a good margin remains.

For companies in the highly developed economic areas, a simple strategy based on producing the lowest possible costs and passing these on to the customers through the lowest possible prices is only promising for a few companies in view of the global competition.
For the vast majority of companies, the key to strategic success is therefore to increase the company's profit margins while (!) creating more value for customers and suppliers, including employees.

Sounds like a difficult problem, doesn't it? And it is exactly that.
Creating high value for customers and exploding costs makes as little sense in the long run as subjugating your suppliers and employees to low costs and low prices.

The most successful companies in the highly developed economic areas have understood that the competition between companies is in reality the competition between the brains and the intelligence of their best employees, because only with creativity and innovation, solutions can be found to create higher margins and more value for customers, suppliers and employees at the same time.

Sir Karl Popper said: "All life is problem solving", and he was right.
In the next blog we will see together what you can do in concrete terms to creatively develop your strategy.

The most important facts in brief
The most successful companies in the highly developed economic areas have understood that the competition between companies is in reality the competition between the brains and intelligence of their best employees, because only with creativity and innovation, solutions can be found to create higher margins and more value for customers, suppliers and employees at the same time.

If you, as a manager are entrusted with employees, then this is more than a purely contractual, functional relationship.
Of course they are not responsible for the entire life success of this person, but they have, from a human perspective, to take appropriate responsibility for this person.
This means, for example, that you cannot simply ruthlessly demand 100 percent performance from this person without also providing him or her with appropriate conditions and support. In practice, you can do this with the following measures that Professor Lakshmi Ramarajan and her colleague Erin Reid have identified

Develop your own versatile identity
One problem with our entire identity being dependent on our work is that professional challenges and setbacks have a much stronger negative impact on us.
Another problem is that people who are only concerned with their work are in reality often boring and one-dimensional and personally do not have much to offer.
This is a problem, especially if you want to sell successfully, for example, in the high-end sector. Because the decision-makers there not only want excellent services, which is a matter of course for you with the prices they are willing to pay, but also work with interesting people who generally entertain and enrich them.
So, in order to become more resistant and more attractive to other people, you should start with yourself and cultivate your identity outside of work: your community contribution, your sporting identity, your family identity, as well as extra-professional interests and hobbies.
This will not only make you live better, but also make you more successful in business and a better role model and thus a better leader for your employees. Sounds like a good deal.

Minimize time-based rewards
We don't live in a meritocracy, we live in a results society. What really counts is not how much is dredged in, but what comes out.
Nevertheless, there are still many business models that are based in a subtle or less subtle way on maximizing the work input instead of the results.
For example, if a consultant is rewarded for having a high workload or selling as many hours as possible to the client, you encourage a mindless input-maximization mentality that not only harms employees by setting nonsensical incentives, but is also highly unethical towards clients.
Which sensible businessman would like to go the long way if he can reach the same goal faster? But if the consultant earns better money the longer way, then you don't have to puzzle for a long time about which way he will recommend you.

Protect the private life of your employees
The practice of many companies, which theoretically give their employees unlimited freedom and design options, has in many cases proved to be less than happy in the end.
Netflix, for example, has offered employees unlimited vacation time. In practice, this has resulted in many employees working more than before.
Theoretically, there was a pronounced norm that one could take unlimited vacation, but in practice the unspoken norm was that one should be available around the clock.
Companies should therefore, on the contrary, consider establishing clear rules on minimum vacations, regular breaks and reasonable total working hours per week for all employees to help them develop broader personal identities.

The most important points in brief
Maintain and develop your identity outside of your work. Not only will you live better, but you will also become more successful in business and a better role model and therefore a better leader for your employees.

Professor Lakshmi Ramarajan and her colleague Erin Reid have been studying the behavioral strategies for employees in high-performance work environments.
High-performance work environments are characterized by the fact that employees are expected to be available at all times and 100 percent committed.
Typically, they are neglecting areas of life other than work, such as relationships, parenting, personal needs and health.
People who work in high performance work environments typically use one of three strategies to deal with this.

Accepting the system
People who accept the system adapt to its requirements and bring 100% commitment because it is expected and rewarded.
This behavior carries two major risks. First, that you slowly work your way into burnout. Second, that it is more difficult to recover from professional or other setbacks that affect professional performance, because your entire life identity is solely dependent on work.
Often people who accept the system also have problems in successfully developing employees because they cannot deal with other people who do not perform at 100 percent.
The recommendation for these so-called "acceptors" is to actively plan time for other aspects of life and to develop an understanding for other employees and colleagues for whom work is not the only priority.

Tricking the system
"Tricksters" find ways to successfully combine their career with other aspects of their life by tricking the system.
For this purpose, a wide variety of tactics are used. One tactic is not to disclose the information about his or her whereabouts to others, for example colleagues and clients, thus opening up opportunities for optimization, e.g. for family and sports.
Another tactic is, for example, to build up local clients as consultants, which makes it possible to significantly reduce travel times or to work more with clients where video and telephone conferences are possible.
An important aspect of the trickster strategy is typically to keep these strategies secret from others in order to avoid criticism, envy or resentment. You simply bring your results and do not talk about the other aspects.
The disadvantage of this strategy is that it may become more difficult to establish strong relationships with other colleagues and superiors at work because you have to keep a part of your life and the tactics involved secret.
In addition, you maintain the illusion of 100% availability to the outside world, giving a distorted picture that contributes to the fact that others who do not see through the trickery are tempted to accept the system and go into burnout more quickly.
The recommendation for tricksters is to build relationships with selected colleagues and to discuss strategies with these colleagues to survive in the system, thereby also avoiding that these colleagues are tempted to accept the system without criticism.

Challenging the system
The third strategy is to challenge the system openly and demand concrete improvements and adjustments that will allow for better personal management of work and other important aspects of life.
Research in high performance work environments shows that "challengers" often face negative consequences for their career.
Paradoxically, a challenger strategy can also lead to the "challenger" losing credibility due to his or her perceived lower performance orientation, which is derived from the open challenge of the organization, and thus having less influence on the change of the organization!
 
The most important facts in brief
If you want to be successful in high performance work environments and still have a life, then a trickster strategy is recommended. Get your results, minimize the time required for them and live your life outside of work successfully without talking about it. Paradoxically, this also gives you the highest chances to change the system from within.

Questions like: What areas should I focus my energy and management activities on
in order to maximize leadership effectiveness and produce results that are truly meaningful for me and others? Where do I want to go in terms of my physical,
mental, emotional and spiritual development? In this article, I have put together a number of questions to help you reflect on the past year and plan for the next. Generally speaking, one of the quieter days during holidays is ideal for taking time to think about these questions and the upcoming year in a focused and productive manner.

Looking back

• What significance has this year had for my life?
• What life lessons have I learned this year?
• In what ways have I improved this year?
• What challenges have been dealt with successfully? 
• What has been accomplished?
• What goals have I achieved in the most important areas of my life (esp. career, family, friends, community, self-improvement)?
• Where am I standing in life? Am I happy with what I am doing? Do I feel satisfied with how life is going for me? Is my life turning out the way I envisioned it, or has it drifted off course?
• What challenges, old or new, remain unsolved?
• Why are these challenges still unsolved, and what can I do next year to make progress on addressing them?
• What am I grateful for? 
• What has been particularly encouraging this year?
• Consciously wrap up the past year and move on.
• Some people give a spiritual dimension to this process, for instance by saying a prayer in thanksgiving for all the blessings of the past year.

Looking ahead

In what ways would I like to improve next year?

• What contributions will I make next year? How will I be doing
• good to other people (family, friends, employees, clients), adding value to their lives?
• What goals do I hope to achieve in the most important areas of my life
• (esp. career, family, friends, community, self-improvement), and how do I intend to get there?
• What can I do to ensure my life will (continue to) turn out the way that I have in mind, that I consider important, that is in line with my inner compass?
• What relationships to people and what activities may be helpful in this context?
• What relationships to people and what activities may not be helpful in this context?
• What are the things I can leave behind in order to focus my time and energy on what really matters to me? Taking responsibility for your life also means that you need to decide with whom and what to spend your time and, even more importantly, with whom and what not to spend your time.
• What challenges do I want to overcome? 
• Who or what can help me make it happen?
• What could be my motto for the next year?
• What word or phrase best summarizes my top priorities in the coming year? 

Some people give the beginning of the new year a spiritual dimension by making a conscious effort to start the year off with

positive energy.

Writing things down helps make this New Years ritual more effective. It is important not to answer these questions as if they were items on a to-do list, but to engage in a process of reflection and careful consideration, to do some soul- searching and to listen to your inner voice and your inner compass. In this context, you may find it helpful to choose a special place, e.g. one where you can enjoy the beauty of nature, for your New Years ritual. Some people go for a walk in nature or spend time at a place where they can contemplate in silence. However, you can also create an environment conducive to reflection and careful consideration at home, for instance by lighting a candle in a quiet room. This ritual may help you refocus and start
the new year with mindful awareness. We step back to take stock, and in doing so we gain clarity and strength, allowing us to embrace the new year with confidence and the desire to shape our future.
I wish you all the best for your New Year!

1. Restructuring of your corporate portfolio and focusing on businesses and regions that have the largest growth potential
2. Igniting growth with a new and more vigorous approach to your marketing, sales and pricing strategy
3. Geographic expansion to enter new markets with growth potential
4. Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) to achieve fast growth in new markets or market segments by acquiring or merging with other companies, or forming joint ventures and strategic alliances
5. Classic Innovation through new or improved products or services and new processes
6. Strategic Innovation through new business and operating models
7. Management Innovation, focusing on novel approaches to culture, organization and leadership to become a true high-performance organization

1. If your company is a top performer in an attractive market with good growth, then right now may be the right moment to sell at a top valuation.
2. If the growth of your market is already beginning to weaken, but your company is well positioned to continue to gain market share, it may also be a good time to sell.
3. If you see a technology change in your market in good time and come to the conclusion that an investment in the new technology does not pay off for you, or is associated with too high a risk, you should sell.
4. When important patents of your company expire in a few years and you find a buyer in time who can do more than you with the remaining term of the patents and market access.

The most important thing is to have alternatives to a deal. You need what the Anglo-Saxons call "walk-away power", the ability to walk away from a bad deal and not make it. Work hard before the start of the negotiation to have alternatives, i.e. different ways of closing a deal or the possibility of not closing a deal at all.

Another part of the preparation is the analysis of the balance of power between the negotiating parties. In many negotiations the forces are not equally distributed, but one party has one or more advantages.The main factors influencing the balance of power between the parties are the need to close the deal, the emotional desire (both cause lack of walk-away power), competition and the time factor. Analyze your own position against these four factors and form hypotheses about the other side's position against these four factors to use this knowledge in the negotiation to your advantage.

What information about the other side do you need to find out in order to increase or consolidate your bargaining power? How will you do that? What information about you should the other side not find out so that you do not reduce your bargaining power? How will you protect this information without lying, which is not only unethical, but can also have liability and criminal consequences?

Stay cool, calm and collected.

Show discipline, composure and cautious optimism.

Maintain good habits and rituals: sleep, nutrition and exercise are now particularly
important.

Show empathy.

Communicate transparently.

Decide quickly, but still deliberately.

Questions that are important here:

• How do we ensure that the actions and initiatives are supported by all key managers?
• How do we ensure that the actions and initiatives are consistently implemented throughout the organization?
• How are we going to measure results and progress in the right direction?
• How do we make sure that corporate bureaucracy, does not stop us from taking decisive action, e.g. by unnecessary delays and CYA 1 -behavior?
• Consistent project management and reporting on the decided actions and initiative portfolio.
• Short-term, at least weekly, in many areas daily, review of actions and initiatives and their impact and flexible adjustment.

What is the starting position of your company?

• What is the financial situation?
• Where are the current strategic and operational initiatives standing?
• What are the broad strategic options for the future?
• What are the structural and lasting effects of the Corona crisis and what do they mean for your company? E.g.:
• The go-to-market approach will change. E-commerce will become a much stronger sales channel and new business models such as rental or leasing will grow strongly, also to overcome consumer caution in purchasing decisions.
• Cooperation and alliances with competitors will increase strongly in order to bring technological innovations faster to the market and also to spread the financial risks of their development.
• With low company valuations and many companies in precarious situations, there will be more opportunities to acquire companies at good prices. For this, one must prepare oneself, both organizationally and financially.
• Due to the increasing digitization and automation of work processes, the tasks of employees will change significantly and there is a need for reorganization and reskilling.
• The global value chains, which are in many cases precarious, will be reconsidered and new value chains with stronger local and regional shares will emerge.
• Supply relationships that are on the critical path for the provision of products and services, for example in production, will be increasingly secured by means of redundancy, i.e. multiple supplier relationships, or the distribution of production of the same model across several plants.
• In general, there will be an effort to reduce fixed costs and make costs variable in order to have a lower break-even volume in times of high volatility.
• Early warning systems are to be established to monitor risks from the online and offline world on an ongoing basis in order to be able to react to further instabilities early enough and optimally.
• In general, an attempt must be made to maximize the flexibility of the workforce and its deployment. This is not only in the interest of the companies, it is also in the interest of the employees to have more flexible working time solutions, for example to be able to better meet family obligations for children and older family members.
• What are the major scenarios for the future?
• How will the Corona crisis develop and how will governments react in your most important markets?
• How will the economic crisis develop and how will governments react in your most important markets?
• How do these two streams play together? What are the major scenarios for your company?
• What medium-term strategic directions for your company are your starting position and the scenarios suggesting?
• First develop separate action plans for each major scenario.
• Then, work out measures that make sense under the vast majority of scenarios and can be implemented in any case, to increase your flexibility.
• Then, develop conditional reaction plans to specific events (trigger events) and a portfolio of measures that you can implement under the different circumstances.
• What is the special, positive contribution that your company will make for your local community and region? How will you differentiate from your competitors and play a special role in your local community and region?
• What short and medium-term measures will result from this?
• Find the right balance between resolute, short-term action and the creation of the right strategic and operational conditions to be successful in the medium and long term.
• Make sure that all key decision-makers and all important stakeholders support the scenarios and resulting decisions. Decisive action is critical, because action reduces risk and helps you to better manage the situation and makes sure that you outrun your competition.

Questions that are important here:

• How should the return of employees to the company, after the relaxation of government protection measures, be well managed tactically and operationally?
• Which employees will return to the company, when and in what way?
• How is the legal liability dimension of the return of employees, for example in the event of illness and infection in the company, handled?
• Which employees can continue remote working and under what conditions?
• What rules and guidelines will be issued to manage the return and further work under the new framework conditions in a responsible manner?
• How long will the new situation last?
• How will the changes in working methods during the Corona crisis have a lasting effect?
• Will remote work play a much greater role in the future?
• Will temporary work and alternative working models, such as the increased use of freelancers (gig economy), increase significantly?
• What does this mean for operational and strategic HR work?
• What changes in the market environment, consumer behavior, competition and state regulation are to be expected or taken into account?
• What does this mean for the workforce? In the short term (Corona effects), from the perspective of returning to work. Medium-term (recession and corresponding, or lack of, government measures and their impact on the company), from the perspective of the medium-term strategic renewal of the company and the resulting demands on the workforce.
• What do these changes mean for the competencies of employees and how must training and continuing education respond to them (reskilling)?
• How will demand develop in the short and medium term?
• What does this mean for liquidity and profitability?

How should top management organize itself to address the challenges? A clear
division into three teams has proven helpful.
 

• First, there must be a Core Team 1 (operations) that takes the key short-term decisions and monitors their implementation by the operational teams.
• Secondly, there must be a Core Team 2 (strategy) that focuses on the medium and long-term future and derives appropriate measures from this.
• Thirdly, there must be a Core Team 3 (Scenarios), which develops scenarios, assumptions, assessment models, trigger points and options for corresponding consequences, so that Core Teams 1 and 2 use the same assumptions and models in their work.
• Typically, the membership of Core Teams 1 and 2 will overlap to some extent, but it is important that the teams agendas are clearly different.
• Typically, the CEO will be a member of both Core Team 1 and Core Team 2 to ensure that a truly integrated short, medium and long term strategy is developed and implemented across the organization.
• It is key for all Core Teams to make sure they avoid serious decision-making errors, for example through excessive optimism, groupthink or other cognitive biases.
• How do you ensure maximum rationality and an independent view in our decision-making processes?

Develop a plan on how to return to the profitable growth path under the "new
normal”, as quickly as possible.

It is important to correctly assess the structural and sustained effects of the crisis on
your business and business environment and to derive the right strategic and
operational adjustment measures.

Furthermore, it is important in this phase to use the opportunity of the crisis to carry out a fundamental strategic review and repositioning of your company.
The goal cannot be to stubbornly attempt to return to the pre-crisis state with state
aid, cheap loans and superficial restructuring measures.

On the contrary, the dynamics of the crisis and the urgent need for action that it
creates, should now be used to quickly implement forward-looking, far-reaching
changes in the company that will secure its competitive advantages and
competitiveness for the next 10 years:

• Rapid implementation of productivity improvements to free up capacity for growth. Now is the time to act decisively to increase productivity, radically simplify processes and help employees to concentrate on what really matters.
• Selling of unproductive units in order to focus management on growth topics and productive units.
• Being prepared to make acquisitions, before demand picks up again and the market recovers.

Even during the survival phase, it is important to seize immediately arising

opportunities, for example through new products and services that create particularly
high value for your customers in the current situation.
Or, through opportunities to decisively deepen relationships with key customers and key business partners through unbureaucratic and pragmatic action.
Or, through opportunities to enter into partcipations or strategic alliances with other companies (M&A) or to sell parts of your company.
Under which conditions will which measures be taken?

• Dealing decisively with the immediate effects and challenges of the situation for employees, customers, business partners and your company. Ensuring short and medium-term liquidity and business continuity
• Questions that are important here:
• How can I optimally protect my employees?
• How can I optimally strengthen my customer relationships in this phase?
• How can I maintain my supply chain in this phase?
• How do I ensure liquidity?
• How do I ensure operational capability and infrastructure?
• What are our core risks and critical areas, especially strategic, financial and operational?
• What are the main scenarios for the development of these core risks and critical areas?
• How do these core risks affect our short and medium-term liquidity?
• How do these core risks affect our short and medium-term financing options?
• In particular, how do they affect the terms of our financing agreements (debtcovenants)?
• How do these core risks affect our short and medium-term operationaloptions?
• What short-term measures should we take?
• Daily liquidity check based on key indicators and corresponding actions
• Daily check of further key indicators and key parameters of the company to ensure operational performance: e.g., availability of managers, employees, locations, business partners, production facilities, offices, distribution networks, logistics, suppliers and taking of corresponding actions.
• Communication with shareholders and key stakeholders.
• Disciplined project management and reporting concerning your portfolio of actions and initiatives.

4. Fools

• Of course you need discipline and you have to be able to differentiate, the knowledge society makes higher demands on the independence and self-management of the individual than the rigid industrial model, but it also offers more freedom and opportunities for development
• My recommendation, and I have been doing this for almost 20 years, is to set your phone permanently to do not disturb and set the ringtone to vibrate silently
• Furthermore, I would redirect your landline to your mobile phone and the mailbox there
• So you have only one answering machine or voice mailbox to listen to, because everything comes together on your mobile phone
• Furthermore, you are never disturbed during work, but decide for yourself when to call back or make telephone appointments
• If it is important, people will leave messages, or you will see the numbers of the vast majority of callers on the display anyway
• You can give the information to important people how they can avoid the do not disturb, or you can use a second, private mobile phone for this

• Do at least 30 minutes of sport every day, better 60 minutes. Now is the time to have good habits
• Consider what many of us have noticed in the last few weeks, namely that working online is very tiring, more tiring than working live in meetings and workshops
• Don't plan to have online meetings longer than 2 hours, take a 15-20 minute break between online meetings and use the break to really do something else, to relax, not to continue working on your emails
• Working online can be extremely productive because unnecessary travel and general chitchat is usually much shorter than usual
• On the other hand, it is exactly the ways and the general chatter things that help us to recover and regain strength for the next meeting
• If these organic breaks are missing, we can quickly become very exhausted, so we have to create replacements for them in the form of active and conscious recreation
• Take breaks and use them for sports, small chores in the house in the fresh air or exercise in the fresh air
• Why don't you call a colleague from the office to have a little gossip
• If you have online meetings with video, pay attention to your personal hygiene, I don't think much of the corona beard and most of your colleagues and clients don't either
• Be prepared for surprising video meetings with executives and clients, have appropriate clothing ready
• Have a hairbrush and a mirror and use them
• Find a good background for your business video conversations.
• Check the background for indiscreet or untidy looking elements and remove them. A bookcase is always good as a neutral background, unless your books are raunchy
• Remember Murphy's law (Anything that can go wrong will go wrong) and make a short test call with a colleague in good time before an important call, to get to know the video conferencing software and also to test the bandwidth
• Motivate yourself by rewarding yourself with small gifts, some good food, going for a walk, chatting with your children, chatting with your spouse, drinking a glass of water, listening to nice music, anything that helps you stay productive and in a good mood
• I also recommend photos of your loved ones, because they are motivating for most of us
• Whatever environment you use, make it a friendly and pleasant environment. Surround yourself with art, travel photos, memories and other things that motivate you. The more comfortable you feel in this environment, the more productive you will work
• Have healthy snacks, such as fruit, available for the small hunger in between. I also always have a stock of high-percentage, i.e. at least 70% cocoa, chocolate to give me a little boost in between. The advantage of high percentage chocolate is that it supports the slim line
• Drink good coffee and tea. Life is too short for poor quality. Create little waste in the process. Every day I enjoy my espresso from an Italian, fully chrome-plated espresso machine, of course with a Gaggia head and not with aluminum capsules
• Have a cough or throat tea available, so you can do yourself some good when you talk all day

3. Rules

• You need explicit rules for your roommates, partners, children, pets
• If the door is closed, that must mean that you cannot be disturbed
• In addition, I recommend a sign please do not disturb or please do not ring the bell, knock, open the door or enter. Conference call in progress, so that people don't even knock when you really want to be undisturbed
• Loud noise in the corridor must also be prevented
• Ensure good lighting conditions so that your videoconferencing partner can see you. Avoid backlighting, i.e. sitting with your back to a strong light source such as a window, because your face will be dark
• During video conferences, sit upright and set your camera so that the person you are talking to has the impression that you are looking directly at them
• Smile
• Set your audio unit to mute when you are in a videoconference and have nothing to say, thus avoiding surprising background noise (children, dogs, lunch is ready, etc.)
• You need the discipline to not, instead of working, play with the dog or chatting with the children and the courage to tell your partner that the household matters, errands and other things to be discussed have to wait for another time, for example also the common meals
• If you have the basic privacy of a lockable room and you are disciplined and your environment participates, then working from home, in terms of productivity, convenience, support and flexibility, is unbeatable, but you have to admit that these are demanding conditions that have to be met, and here we are at the last chapter, which is: (Part 4)

2. Tools

• You will need a private area where you can close the door, preferably even lock it. But this area does not have to be very large. Actually, a desk and a telephone will do it
• Ensure good ventilation and good, natural light, a good desk lamp is important so that you can read documents faster
• A high-speed Internet connection and a network, better in the form of a LAN, WLAN is not as stable. Make sure you get the maximum bandwidth available from your Internet provider
• Place your WLAN controller at a high point in the room
• Make sure that your WLAN has a good encryption method
• Use a WLAN amplifier if necessary to ensure perfect coverage in your office
• If you do not have a powerful Internet connection, you can get a mobile WLAN hotspot for temporary bridging. You can also borrow this small device in cube or bar form from some mobile network operators
• Temporarily expand your bandwidth for increased data transfer, for example through pay-per-use models of your provider
• Have you stored a second WLAN/LAN router already, so that if something breaks, you can put the second system into operation in a few minutes. You can also run the routers in parallel, so that you have two WLANs or two LANs

• It is worth investing in a good chair because back pain and tension are a common problem
• I have had good experience with the models from Vitra. I myself sit on a HeadLine from Vitra, which was designed byMario and Claudio Bellini. It is excellent
• But also the office swivel chair Meda 2 or Meda XL from Vitra are excellent. I really wouldn't skimp on the seating
• I can put you in touch with my office furniture supplier, through me you can get a good price

• Of course, you also need a table at the right height and a minimal filing system for things you still have on paper and a few shelves for books and office
• I recommend having two independent phone lines and internet providers so that if one fails, you are not cut off from the environment. Don't get everything from one provider
• You should have a separate phone number for your home office, so that you have a second phone number for your private calls and also private calls that come in
• The phone should have a speakerphone, a headset and speed dial memory, you should also have a headset and microphone for the PC
• You may need a second chair, for visitors
• If you do not have a powerful Internet connection, you can get a mobile WLAN hotspot for temporary bridging. You can also borrow this small device in cube or bar form from some mobile network operators
• Temporarily expand your bandwidth for increased data transfer, for example through pay-per-use models of your provider
• Have you stored a second WLAN/LAN router already, so that if something breaks, you can put the second system into operation in a few minutes. You can also run the routers in parallel, so that you have two WLANs or two LANs

1. Tools, Rules & Fools

Working from your home office offers numerous advantages:

• You have the full comfort of your home at your disposal
• If you have a garden, you can use it
• You can have lunch with your family
• You don't waste time with logistics
• If you have a swimming pool, you can use it
• You can have an easier contact with your neighbours
• You can use the breaks to do small errands or housework in the fresh air and relax at the same time
• You do not have to automatically dress in a suit or other office clothes
• You can work flexibly and organize your working hours much better
• For example, you can work in the morning from 6-11, then spend a few hours with the children, and then work again, for example in the evening when the children are already asleep
• Some people prefer to go the office, of course, because their living conditions are very restricted. If they don't have a private area that they can use as a home office, then that is a problem of course, but here too there are solutions and approaches that can make life easier
• To work successfully in the home office, you need 3 elements: good tools, clear rules and consistent implementation by all parties involved. I have, somewhat casually, summed this up with the 3 terms: Tools, Rules and Fools, because we often get in the way of ourselves when it comes to working productively and I don't exclude myself from this.