TOP Interim Manager CAPITAL 09.2022

Ein Leben. Als Ganzes erzählt.Im Laufe eines Lebens hinterlässt man viele Spuren. Man schreibt Beiträge, gibt Interviews, baut Unternehmen auf, führt Menschen, trifft Entscheidungen. Doch jede dieser Spuren zeigt nur einen Ausschnitt. Ein Foto hier, ein Zitat dort. Nie den ganzen Menschen.Eine Autobiografie ist etwas anderes. Zum ersten Mal fügen sich all die Erfahrungen, Erfolge und Niederlagen, die Begegnungen und die stillen Wendepunkte zu einer Geschichte zusammen. Zu deiner Geschichte. Sie zeigt, was dich geprägt hat. Und sie zeigt Seiten von dir, die selbst die Menschen, die dir am nächsten stehen, nie gesehen haben.Stell dir vor, deine Kinder lesen eines Tages, wie viel Mut deine Entscheidungen gekostet haben, die für sie immer selbstverständlich waren. Dein Partner versteht plötzlich die Nächte, in denen du nicht schlafen konntest. Ein alter Weggefährte begreift endlich, warum du damals so gehandelt hast und nicht anders. Und deine Enkel halten in vielen Jahren etwas in den Händen, wenn Worte längst verklungen sind.Manches wird verständlicher. Manches bekommt zum ersten Mal einen Sinn. Und manches, das ein Leben lang verborgen war, darf endlich gesehen werden.Vielleicht ist genau das das Besondere an einer Autobiografie: Die Menschen, die dich lieben, lernen dich noch einmal ganz neu kennen.Und vielleicht erkennst du dich auch selbst ein Stück weit neu. Ulvi, wie wir ihn noch nicht kannten Ulvi I. Aydin und QUANTUM, das ist eine lange Geschichte. Wir haben in den vergangenen Jahren viele Projekte gemeinsam auf die Beine gestellt, und ich würde sagen, dass ich ihn ziemlich gut kenne. Klar in der Sache, schnell in der Entscheidung, manchmal kompromisslos. So kennen ihn die meisten. Als wir mit der Arbeit an seiner Autobiografie begonnen haben, hat sich dieses Bild verändert. Ulvi hat uns von seiner Kindheit in Istanbul erzählt, wo er mit drei Müttern aufwuchs: seiner eigenen Mutter und seinen beiden Tanten. Als Austauschschüler in Michigan kam später eine vierte hinzu: seine Gastmutter, die ihn ihren Freunden nicht als Austauschschüler, sondern als „our German son“ vorstellte. Er hat uns von Entscheidungen erzählt, die er heute anders treffen würde, und dabei nichts weggelassen, auch nicht die Dinge, über die man normalerweise lieber schweigt. Um ein vollständiges Bild von Ulvi zu bekommen, haben wir seine Familie und langjährige Weggefährten gebeten, etwas über ihn zu sagen, so, wie sie ihn wirklich erlebt haben. Ehrlich gesagt hat uns das in der Redaktion mehr bewegt, als wir erwartet hatten. Für uns ist diese Autobiografie eine Premiere. Es ist die erste Ausgabe der „QUANTUM Autobiography Edition“, und das ganze Team hat mit viel Freude und Herzblut daran gearbeitet. Wir haben selten so gern an einem Projekt gearbeitet. Nehmen Sie sich Zeit dafür und lernen Sie Ulvi wirklich kennen. Norbert Wittmann QUANTUM Magazin English: A Debut. Getting to Know Ulvi I. Aydin All Over Again. Ulvi I. Aydin and QUANTUM go back a long way. We’ve worked on a lot of projects together over the years, and I’d say I know him pretty well. Clear about what he wants, quick to decide, sometimes uncompromising. That’s how most people know him. When we started working on his autobiography, that picture changed. Ulvi told us about his childhood in Istanbul, where he grew up with three mothers: his own mother and his two aunts. Later, as an exchange student in Michigan, he gained a fourth: his host mother, who never introduced him to her friends as an exchange student, but as “our German son.” He told us about decisions he would make differently today, and he didn’t leave anything out, not even the things most people would rather keep to themselves. To get a complete picture of Ulvi, we asked his family and longtime companions to tell us about him, the way they have really experienced him. Honestly, that moved us in the newsroom more than we expected. For us, this autobiography is a first. It’s the opening edition of the QUANTUM Autobiography Edition, and the whole team put a great deal of joy and heart into it. We’ve rarely enjoyed a project this much. Take your time with it, and get to know the real Ulvi. Norbert Wittmann QUANTUM Magazine

A One-Size-Fits-All Global Strategy Is a Management Illusion The biggest failures of multinational corporations rarely stem from poor operational execution on the ground. More often, executive teams confuse a global vision with a uniform global strategy. Why leadership must establish firm local footing before global scale can deliver results. Does global leadership mean forcing the same formula on everyone, everywhere? This mindset dominates the boardrooms of multinational corporations—and reliably burns through billions. Many executives confuse a global vision with a one-size-fits-all global strategy: They develop an abstract mission statement at headquarters, roll out the model worldwide, and then stare in disbelief as markets collapse, teams disengage, and margins plummet. The root cause is the misguided assumption that the world is a homogeneous marketplace with identical customer needs. When Global Arrogance Crashes Into Local Markets A corporation generating several billion euros in revenue operates across Asia, the Middle East, North America, Latin America, and Europe. Treating these economic regions as interchangeable amounts to strategic suicide. Each region follows its own economic rules, historically rooted value systems, and political realities. Regulations, the cost of capital, attitudes toward hierarchy, negotiating traditions, and government influence differ radically. Anyone who ignores these differences destroys capital and erodes trust long before the damage blows up in the quarterly reports. Business history is full of global campaigns that failed because of local ignorance. Take Walmart: In 1997, Walmart set out to conquer Germany with nonstop smiles and employees bagging customers’ groceries. The problem? German shoppers would rather pack their own bananas at record speed than engage in small talk. The overly friendly greeters at the entrance were perceived as an invasion of privacy rather than a welcoming gesture. To top it all off, German men sometimes misinterpreted female cashiers’ mandatory smiles as flirting. Ultimately, the American giant retreated with a billion-dollar loss, driven out by a nation that simply wants to shop in peace. When American service enthusiasm collides with the German love of efficiency, disaster is practically guaranteed. Starbucks had a similar experience in Australia: In 2000, the company assumed it could take the land of kangaroos by storm simply by opening stores aggressively. The problem? Australians did not need American lessons in caffeine—they already had a sophisticated coffee culture shaped by Italian and Greek traditions. For a nation that celebrates a perfectly handcrafted flat white at its favorite neighborhood café, syrup-laden, sugar-heavy American swill in a paper cup was nothing short of a culinary insult. “Coffee for people who don’t like coffee” is a description frequently heard when Starbucks comes up. The result of this clash in tastes and cultures? Roughly 70 percent of its stores shut down spectacularly. Australia showed the giant that authentic coffee pride cannot be washed away by mass-market franchising. International Leadership Cannot Be One-Size-Fits-All Leaders fail globally primarily because of cultural clumsiness. American teams expect clear financial incentives, aggressive performance targets, and visible opportunities for personal advancement. Leaders who communicate too cautiously are seen as weak. In Asian markets, by contrast, loud confrontation and aggressively singling out individuals for advancement undermine team cohesion. Consensus, saving face, loyalty, seniority, and quiet authority carry weight. Publicly reprimand someone there, and you lose their support for good. In Scandinavia, pressure based on hierarchy falls flat; flat organizational structures demand genuine dialogue. In Latin America, personal relationships open doors, while contractual clauses alone carry little weight. So does a single leadership style across every continent create strength? Wrong. It creates conformity, paralysis, and cynicism. Global standards are nevertheless mandatory: Compliance, financial integrity, quality assurance, workplace safety, and core ethical values must be firmly established worldwide. Without exception. But standards define the destination, never the route. Standards provide the foundation; local leadership designs the architecture. Anyone who ignores the region’s dialect will fail to be understood. Five Action Items for Leaders of Global Companies Hands-on experience in international turnarounds, restructurings, and supervisory board assignments yields five clear directives: Limit global requirements to nonnegotiable core principles. Corporations should establish no more than five to seven globally binding guardrails covering areas such as financial ethics, quality standards, and compliance. Operational implementation belongs entirely in the hands of local subsidiaries. Trust beats an obsession with control. Make cultural competence a firm hiring requirement. Managers must abandon the illusion that technical expertise alone is enough for global leadership. Anyone who lacks empathy for regional traditions should be replaced. Companies should prioritize local talent for leadership roles abroad instead of sending emissaries from headquarters. Eliminate centrally imposed, one-size-fits-all KPIs. Imposing identical metrics on fundamentally different markets distorts reality. Leaders must tailor performance targets and bonus incentives precisely to regional conditions. Success in India is measured in fundamentally different ways than success in Switzerland. Create channels for candid, unfiltered feedback. Leaders must stop the damaging practice of rewarding sugarcoated status reports from the regions. What is needed are forums where local managing directors can explain, without holding back, why directives from headquarters clash with realities on the ground. Move decision-making authority closer to the customer. Companies must radically shorten approval chains. A regional sales or product decision must never languish for months in committees at headquarters. Speed beats perfectionism. Conclusion: Think Global—Act Local! In the context of a global corporate strategy, the phrase “Think global, act local” takes on an entirely new, existential significance. No one wins worldwide by ignoring regional identities. A successful global vision has the flexibility to adapt culture and leadership consistently where they must actually deliver results: at the point of sale.

Der Video-Boost für dein Business: Kamera an. Energie frei!Was passiert, wenn Ameritum-Mitglieder gemeinsam vor die Kamera treten? Dann entsteht Dynamik. Dann werden Botschaften geschärft. Dann erleben wir Menschen plötzlich von einer völlig neuen Seite.Unser Video-Workshop in München hat es wieder gezeigt: Da steckt verdammt viel Power in diesem Kreis!Mitglieder, die im ersten Moment eher zurückhaltend oder förmlich wirken, standen plötzlich sagenhaft lässig vor der Kamera. Souverän. Authentisch. Mit einer Präsenz und einer Begeisterung, die uns alle mitgerissen haben. Da gab es einige echte Überraschungen – und richtig starke Aussagen!Und bis die Botschaft saß? Haben wir uns gegenseitig gecoacht. Gegenseitig gegrillt. Nachgefragt. Zugespitzt. Noch eine Aufnahme. Noch klarer. Noch überzeugender.Genau das macht Ameritum aus: Wir wollen, dass die anderen erfolgreich sind.Wir geben ehrliches Feedback, teilen unsere Erfahrung und treiben uns gegenseitig zu Spitzenleistungen an. Jeder bringt sich ein. Jeder profitiert. Und jeder freut sich, wenn der andere einen fantastischen Auftritt hinlegt.Das Ergebnis kann sich sehen lassen: 12 hochwertig produzierte Videos pro Teilnehmer, jeweils rund 90 Sekunden lang, im 9:16-Format und inklusive Untertitelung. Professioneller Videocontent für ungefähr drei Monate – für Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube Shorts und die eigene Webseite.Und das Beste: Die Videos gehören den jeweiligen Mitgliedern. Dauerhaft nutzbar, ohne zusätzliche Lizenzgebühren oder laufende Abgaben. Die eigene Botschaft. Der eigene Auftritt. Immer wieder einsetzbar.Dafür haben wir ein großartiges Umfeld: ein professionelles Filmstudio mitten in München, in der Nähe des Gärtnerplatzes. Picture Elements ist für uns inzwischen wie eine zweite Heimat geworden. Simon Dosa und sein Team von StarScan leisten dort hervorragende Arbeit. Mit einem sicheren Gespür für Menschen, starke Bilder und den Moment, in dem eine Botschaft wirklich zündet.Vielen Dank, lieber Christian! Vielen Dank, lieber Simon und liebes Team!Und großes Kino, lieber Ronny, lieber Gary, lieber Gerd und lieber Alexander! Mit eurer Offenheit, eurem Einsatz und eurer Energie macht ihr diesen Workshop zu einem besonderen Erlebnis.Bei aller Konzentration, allen Wiederholungen und allem Feilen an den Aussagen hatten wir vor allem auch eines: eine riesen Gaudi!Starke Menschen. Klare Botschaften. Gemeinsam zur Spitzenleistung. Das ist Ameritum.‍‍

SALES IS NOT A SCIENCE. IT IS A CRAFT. And mastery is earned. Never given. Sales is not rocket science. It is not some mysterious discipline reserved for a handful of gifted people. It is not even an art. Sales is a craft. A solid, honest, demanding, and sometimes brutally hard craft. A craft that requires discipline. Dedication. Repetition. And, above all, an uncompromising commitment to the customer. Let me explain. THE SAMURAI SWORDSMITH. A master Japanese swordsmith does not become a master by studying presentations about steel. He becomes a master by forging steel. Again. And again. And again. He strikes the steel thousands of times. He learns to understand the material. He develops precision, patience, discipline, and an almost obsessive dedication to perfection. But he does not forge a sword merely to produce a beautiful piece of steel. He creates a weapon worthy of the warrior who will carry it. A sword that commands respect. A sword that inspires confidence. A sword that makes its owner proud and his opponents think twice. The swordsmith's ultimate achievement is not the sword itself. It is what the sword enables its owner to become and accomplish. THE MASTER VIOLIN MAKER. Now think about a master violin maker. He spends years understanding wood, resonance, balance, and craftsmanship. He builds instrument after instrument, constantly refining his skills. But his ambition is not simply to create a beautiful violin. His ambition is to create an instrument that allows a virtuoso to produce extraordinary music. Music that fills a concert hall. That touches people's hearts. That captivates an audience. That transforms a piece of wood and a few strings into something unforgettable. The violin maker does not build a violin. He enables the violinist to create magic. And the greatest reward? When a world-class violinist recognizes him as a true master of his craft. NOW LET'S TALK ABOUT SALES. What makes you think sales should be any different? You are not selling a motor. You are not selling a machine. You are not selling a service. You are selling what your motor, your machine, or your service enables your customer to achieve. Higher productivity. Better performance. Greater reliability. Lower costs. Competitive advantages. More profitable business. Ultimately, you are selling customer success. And that requires far more than a polished presentation, an attractive quotation, or a competitive price. It requires dedication. Absolute dedication. You must know your product. You must understand your customer's business. You must recognize his challenges, his ambitions, his pressures, and his opportunities. You must earn his attention. Then his respect. And finally, his trust. Attention is not a right. Respect is not a gift. Trust is not a sales technique. All three must be earned. Every single day. MASTERY COMES FROM REPETITION. Nobody becomes a master craftsman by watching others work. And nobody becomes an outstanding salesperson by sitting behind a desk, studying dashboards, and discussing sales strategies. You become outstanding by doing the work. One customer visit after another. One conversation after another. One difficult negotiation after another. One rejection after another. One successful solution after another. A thousand customer encounters will teach you things that a thousand PowerPoint slides never will. Mastery does not come from a job title. It does not come from a business card. And it certainly does not come from calling yourself a sales professional. It comes from years of deliberate practice, relentless curiosity, continuous improvement, and an uncompromising obsession with customer benefit. Practice. Practice. Practice. There is no shortcut. STOP BEING A SALES REPRESENTATIVE. BECOME A TRUSTED ADVISOR. A master swordsmith earns the respect of the samurai. A master violin maker earns the respect of the virtuoso. And a master salesperson earns the respect of the customer. Not because he talks more. Not because he offers the lowest price. Not because he promises everything. But because the customer knows: This person understands my business. This person knows what he is talking about. This person is committed to my success. And I can trust him. That is the moment you stop being just another sales representative. You become a TRUSTED ADVISOR. Someone whose judgment matters. Someone whose expertise is respected. Someone whose presence creates value long before an order is placed. Someone the customer wants at the table when important decisions are made. MY FINAL POINT. I have enormous respect for salespeople who dedicate themselves to mastering their craft. People who go out every day. Who visit customers. Who listen. Who learn. Who challenge themselves. Who refuse to accept mediocrity. People who develop an almost obsessive focus on the value they create for their customers. Because that is what separates ordinary salespeople from true masters. Sales is not about pushing products. Sales is about enabling customer success. And the only way to become a master is to do what every great craftsman has done throughout history: Show up. Do the work. Improve. Repeat. A thousand times if necessary. And then another thousand. DON'T JUST SELL. MASTER YOUR CRAFT. DON'T JUST WIN ORDERS. EARN TRUST. DON'T JUST SATISFY CUSTOMERS. MAKE THEM SUCCESSFUL. Because at the end of the day, the greatest recognition a salesperson can ever receive is not a sales award, a bonus, or a fancy title. It is when a customer says: "I trust you. You are the master of your craft."