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Anyone who wants to ensure stability today must be prepared to endure instability.
Rarely have I lived through times as turbulent as these. Partnerships and reliable structures that have endured for many decades are now suddenly crumbling. Power dynamics are shifting on both a large and small scale. New technologies are transforming #business models. Markets are reacting quickly and often radically. Especially in such turbulent times, stability isโฆ
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Criticism of Social Media
Right now, the topic of ๐ฆ๐ผ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐ ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฎ is causing a huge stir. This baffles me, given that the architecture and mechanisms of these platforms have been widely known and well-researched for decades. Incidentally, their negative effects have also been demonstrated in adults. The criticism is directed at the ๐๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ป-๐๐๐ต๐ผ๐: Facebook was specifically programmed toโฆ
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Changing Skill Profiles in Sales
๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฉ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฏ ๐๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ป๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผToday, sales rarely fail because of the productโbut rather because of the skill set.The platform economy is changing not only channels and processes, but also, quite specifically, the requirements placed on sales representatives. Anyone who still relies exclusively on experience, relationship building, discounts, and product depth when selling is increasingly hitting their limits in day-to-day work. ๐๐ฟ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐น๐ฒ ๐ฉ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฏ๐๐ป๐ด: Data literacy is becoming operationally relevant. Sales representatives mustโฆ
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Changes Brought About by Digital Marketplaces
๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ผ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ฉ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ฏ๐๐ฎ๐น๐น๐๐ฎ๐ด ๐ถ๐บ ๐๐ป๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ดรผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ด๐ฒ๐๐ฐ๐ตรค๐ณ๐ is changing faster than many organizations are willing to admit. The platform economy is no longer an abstract strategic issueโit directly impacts processes, roles, and priorities in sales. Not someday, but right now. A first, often underestimated effect: Sales is losing its monopoly on information. Today, buyers systematically researchโฆ
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Platform economyโฆ
๐๐ฒ๐ฟรค๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฒ ๐ฉ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ธ๐๐๐ป๐ด ๐is fundamentally changingโeven if many still underestimate this. For years, the sale of capital goods was characterized by direct relationships, customized offers, and long decision-making cycles. Platforms were considered a B2C phenomenon. That is now changing noticeably. Today, digital B2B platforms fulfill three strategically important functions simultaneously: ๐ธmarket access, ๐ธinformation control, and ๐ธdata aggregation. Marketplaces,โฆ
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Is tradition a value proposition?
๐๐๐ง ๐จ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐จ๐ง๐๐๐โ๐๐๐จ ๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ฃ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฃโ is a phrase I often read on the websites of small and medium-sized businesses. I always find myself wonderingโฆ Is tradition still a value today, or is it more of a risk to being perceived as modern, innovative, and dynamic? From a customerโs perspective, I always find myself askingโฆ
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B2B sales have changed significantly
The older members among us still remember the bygone era of sales. Contracts were sealed over dinner. Business relationships were based on years of trusting collaboration, and CRM was the business card holder. Those days are gone. B2B sales has evolved from an intuitive โart formโ to a data-driven โscience.โ Those who lead their team and the organizationโฆ
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Priorities are shifting
I really like this chartโitโs so simple, so clear, so unambiguous. It illustrates very clearly how priorities in tractor development have shiftedโaway from purely mechanical performance metrics toward electronics, software, connectivity, telematics, and sustainability. Digitalization and automation are now the dominant areas! This shift is notโฆ
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New Year's Reception of the German-Canadian Society
Yesterday, at the New Yearโs reception hosted by the German-Canadian Society e.V. in Berlin, I had the opportunity to speak with Canadian Ambassador Vera Alexander about one of my current projects. Art and culture are not only expressions of social values, but also powerful tools for international economic relations. In April, the VSO will be performingโฆ
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Yesterday I rediscovered an old childrenโs book that had fascinated me greatly as a child. *The Green Cloud* sparked my imagination and allowed me to experience amazing adventures in my mind. *The Green Cloud* is an adventure story that Neill used to tell his children at bedtime while they were at boarding school, and inโฆ
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Crises are no longer exceptional eventsโthey are part of everyday life. Global uncertainties, technological disruption, and structural changes force companies and individuals to constantly navigate between stability and change. What matters, therefore, is not whether crises occur, but how we deal with them. The economist Peter Drucker summed it up: โThe greatestโฆ
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Corporate Culture
โCulture eats strategy for breakfast,โ management researcher Peter F. Drucker is said to have remarked. What this means is that corporate culture should be considered a more important factor in success than strategies and processes. Corporate culture is what is actually lived out within the companyโnot whatโs written in nicely designed brochures. Culture isโฆ
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What Drives Us
Art is far more than mere decoration. It is a reflection of society, a barometer of moods and values, and always a testament to its time. Anyone who wants to understand what makes a society tick cannot avoid engaging with art and culture. Carsten Brosda, Hamburgโs Senator for Culture, writes in his book *The Significanceโฆ*
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Migration as an Economic Factor
In public debate, migrants are often mentioned in connection with problems. What gets overlooked is that people with a migrant background have long since become a key driver of innovation and growth in Germany. Itโs important to me to highlight that in this post. The facts are clearโฆ Over the past ten years, their share hasโฆ
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Motivation in Difficult Times
Motivation is a particularly important topic, especially in difficult times. What is motivation? What drives us to get up in the morning and go to work with enthusiasm? The scientific definition of motivation is the state that triggers and guides a personโs goal-oriented behavior. But how does this state arise? It has been well studied scientifically andโฆ
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๐ช๐ฒ๐๐๐ฏ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฏ๐๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ฒ๐ถ๐น๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐๐ฟ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ป๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต๐ต๐ฎ๐น๐๐ถ๐ด๐ฒ๐ ๐ช๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ๐ณ๐๐ฒ๐ป
Time and again, I hear in public discourse that ecology and the economy are portrayed as irreconcilable opposites. But the exact opposite is true! It has long been proven: ๐ช๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ๐ณ๐๐น๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ฟ๐ณ๐ผ๐น๐ด ๐๐ป๐ฑ รถ๐ธ๐ผ๐น๐ผ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฉ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ป๐๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐๐ป๐ด go hand in hand and reinforce one another. Sustainable business means balancing economic, environmental, and social interestsโฆ
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How do we want to live in our old age?
This image really moved me. It was a simple question posed by FORUM Gemeinschaftliches Wohnen e.V., the national association, to passersby at the Kirchentag in Hanover. Everyone could use a red dot to indicate their preference regarding the question. The result clearly illustrates peopleโs wishes and needs. The central message: In old age, people would like toโฆ
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Information literacy and one's own opinionโฆ
Yes, having your own opinion is a tricky thingโฆ I often read about โsuppression of opinionโ and โimposition of opinion.โ Is that really the case? And is whatโs being expressed there actually an opinion? What is an opinion? Ideally, oneโs own opinion is formed on the basis of facts. Facts are objective, evident, and verifiable realities. They areโฆ
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We need transformation, not just change
The world is spinning faster and faster. Technological advances, changing customer needs, and new competitors are challenging companies to constantly adapt. But simple adaptation processes are no longer enough. What companies need today is a fundamental transformation. Why Change Is No Longer Enough: Imagine a caterpillar that wants to run faster and fasterโฆ
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Lifelong Learning
When the general cargo ship ๐ ๐ฆ ๐๐น๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐ป was launched in 1958, it was a very modern ship for its time. When, in 2006, the ๐ฆ๐๐ถ๐ณ๐๐๐ป๐ด ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ฏ๐๐ฟ๐ด-๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐บ from being scrapped and brought to the Hamburg Museum Harbor, a particular difficulty arose. There was no one among the active sailors/seafarers whoโฆ
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China, the Underestimated Competitor
For a long time, China was viewed merely as a manufacturing base for German industry. At first, China was not seen as a serious competitor. โAll they can do is copy and imitate,โ was the prevailing view for a long time. Innovation was not expected from the Middle Kingdom. Above all, it was attractive as a growing sales market. The country has rapidlyโฆ