Not necessarily. At that time I was the first trainee ever at Von Guttenberg, and that was in the field of technical insulation. Luckily there was a vacancy in the roof and facade department and this was offered to me by Mr von Guttenberg. I knew immediately that this was the right thing for me. By then I was already in my second year of apprenticeship, dealing with customers — sometimes alone — and quite quickly chalked up my first successes.

I got to know every area of our operations during my apprenticeship. So I also helped out in the warehouse or delivered the goods when there was an emergency. As department manager, when I now ask someone to perform certain tasks I’m familiar with the effort behind the individual work steps. That keeps you grounded. You know what you can ask for — and what you can’t.

I don’t see myself as a department head at all. It is important to me to keep the team focused, but with warmth. This means that we don’t just talk about work, but about personal matters too. That’s important for the team spirit. And the team members know that they can always come to me, and I also know that nothing works without my team. It doesn’t matter what job title we have; we have a common goal, and that welds us all together.

We are a modern, medium-sized company with very short lines of communication — if I have a problem, I can call Mr von Guttenberg immediately. The decision-making paths are short, and the customer notices that too, as he gets help much faster as a result.