Heike Niehues in the Executives Day interview

As Executive Vice President of Webasto Thermo & Comfort, Heike Niehues is responsible for all business areas of Webasto Customized Solutions (CS) worldwide. With great dynamism and enthusiasm, she drives the development of CS forward to ensure the future viability of their hardware and software products and solutions for customers. At the Executives Day (24.11.2022, Frankfurt am Main), she will give a keynote speech on the topic "The Merit and Duty of Strategy Development." Ms. Niehues, what are the most pressing challenges currently facing your industry? Heike Niehues: Currently, and for some time now, we have been strongly confronted with the fundamental chip shortage, which poses significant challenges not only in the supply chain but also for our customers. Additionally, the Ukraine crisis is causing further uncertainties that affect both the supply chain and our customers. These points need to be navigated and resolved together successfully. Furthermore, we are actively engaged in electromobility and the accompanying transformation, which we aim to shape but also must adapt to. Here, every additional external influence poses another challenge – for example, in project development. And how are you addressing these challenges – especially in light of the Ukraine crisis? Heike Niehues: Naturally, we, like many of my colleagues, have initially set up a task force to comprehensively monitor the situation and be able to take short-term measures at any time. This concerns our essential supply chain but also has a lot to do with people. We are always close to the pulse of customers and support them where we can. The task force has been of great value, making us flexible and responsive. As the crises unfortunately persist, we have now transitioned to a longer-term mode, where we no longer have a pure task force but closely monitor things in daily business to take actions as required by the current situation. Now, moving on to the topic of digitalization: Germany is often criticized for lagging behind in digitalization. What is Webasto doing to drive digitalization forward? Heike Niehues: Digitalization has several facets. One concerns the company itself, its processes, and daily operations. Initially, it involves the internal setup and the range of tools that we, as employees, use with our colleagues. Digitalization also has a significant impact on our manufacturing. Where can we use robotics, for example? There are already many initiatives in progress, and we have made good progress in this area. Moreover, all of this affects our customer interface. How do we engage with customers? How do we adapt to online ordering becoming the new standard and customer experience in service increasingly relying on digital channels? I would say we are in a good position in this regard and have already implemented some useful tools. However, it is evident that traditional companies or those with a long history in the market maintain very close relationships with their customers that cannot easily be transitioned into a digital interface. This is a completely different transformation compared to starting from scratch as a startup. The key here is to collaboratively develop viable solutions with customers. What are the customer's preferences? Where can we easily involve our customers, and where do we need to have discussions? Personal contact remains crucial in this regard. As the pandemic seems to be losing some of its grip, many employees are returning to the office. What is your and Webasto's stance on topics like home office, New Work, and agility? Heike Niehues: Home office, New Work – I believe it is essential to strike a good balance. There are areas where successful collaboration in a global team using digital media and unified communications tools was already common before the pandemic. In other areas, the spontaneous exchanges that occur over a coffee, in my opinion, are fundamental for teamwork. We must find a common path that is not an either-or situation. I do not believe that the same setup can be applied to every function or department. Much needs to be tailored by the team individually. This also depends on how long a team has been working together. When collaborating closely for several years, you know your team members and can sense emotions during team calls that need addressing. This differs from a very young team that is newly formed and deliberately seeks new approaches. In the agile environment, we frequently bring together new topics and teams. In such cases, at least one, if not two days a week, should be dedicated to meeting in person. We are relatively relaxed about the environment in which this takes place. What matters is that the team comes together well to find the best possible collaboration and communication. Currently, what are you focusing more on at Webasto: improving structures and processes or changing the culture? Heike Niehues: I believe one cannot be done without the other. Webasto has a very good culture. We have deeply rooted values that describe our employee interactions very well: responsibility with foresight, passion for quality and innovation, heart and mind for our customers, joy in collaboration and improvement, proactive optimism. However, we also need to evolve our culture further. Over the past years, loyalty to the company has changed due to agility, home office, and other aspects. We need to address this, and we are doing so. Process and process change are my focus, and this is part of continuous improvement. If at some point I stop and say, "This is the perfect process," then I believe it is time for me to move on from that topic because I am no longer the right person. I had the opportunity to speak with an older colleague – he was 65 at the time – and he said one should question, turn everything upside down, and reinvent everything every five years. This impressed me greatly, and I also place great importance on ensuring that the continuous improvement process does not stall. With so many changes happening around us, especially with numerous innovations in IT solutions, there must be constant improvement within work processes. Therefore, structural and cultural changes go hand in hand for me. In a company like ours, everyone must continue to develop. But I believe we are already well aligned through our values. Why are you looking forward to the Executives Day? And why, in your opinion, should one definitely participate? Heike Niehues: Firstly, I believe, and this has been evident in recent months and years, that exchange is very important – exchange within the industry and beyond, to discover new perspectives and solution ideas. That's why I am very much looking forward to the Executives Day, to build a new network, to look beyond our own challenges, and to question things we do daily. What I have seen so far regarding the agenda and participants is very inspiring to me. Why should one participate? I believe we need to return to more collaboration. I also believe that Germany can only succeed in the future if we significantly increase collaboration and partnership to move forward together. Yes, we are in competition in many aspects. But I think we can achieve a lot together and make Germany an attractive business location again. Now, onto the final question. Have you ever been afraid of failing during your career, and do you have any tips on how to best deal with it? Heike Niehues: If it had only happened once, I would have been quite a perfectionist. I believe everyone fails from time to time – and from these failures come experiences from which we learn. I think one must deal with it honestly and openly. Therefore, I say: Failing is okay. We all know from studies, stories, and more that making a mistake once is okay. It should not happen a second time. This can only be achieved by sharing our experiences, exchanging ideas, and giving each other advice so that similar situations do not occur in future processes and projects. How do I deal with it? For me, it is important to talk about it, seek new perspectives – and above all, learn from it to improve. Otherwise, I need time for myself to come to terms with it. It is crucial to acknowledge what has happened and then say, "Now onwards and upwards!"