2 days of excursion, 2 days of learning, 2 days of networking, 2 days of fun!
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The trip started with an amazing drive from Pforzheim to Bietigheim-Bissingen through a beautiful scenic route. The first semester MBA students were already excited to be on their first ‘Excursion’ together as a group.
DÜRR AG
The first stop was at Dürr AG, a worldwide pioneer in painting technology, and efficiency improvement system. The group was warmly welcomed by Stefan Grün, Director of Total Rewards and Global Mobility at Dürr and at the same time alumnus of the MBA International Management program. After a quick round of introduction, Mona Keller and Sabrina Lehrnbecher (both Talent Acquisition Team) briefed the students about the organization, its core competencies, about the diverse portfolio ranging from paint and final assembly systems, process and efficiency improvement solutions, electromobility as well as battery production and woodworking machinery. Katja Stiber, who oversees Corporate Communications, then presented Dürr’s strategy and operations. What stood out was the commitment to sustainability, emission reduction and automation. A detailed deep dive into the topic of sustainability followed by Karina Türkman. Karina is expert in the topic of sustainability at Dürr and explained the company´s drive for sustainability, and how the company has been proactive in including it in the business model, and its impact on products, logistics (circular economy) and energy. Friedrich Gert, Senior Manager Manufacturing, then took the students on a fascinating tour through the manufacturing plant where a high-end, multi-axes, dual tone and multi tone painting robot was being assembled. Mr Gert explained the assembly procedure and the production and quality control processes followed in the plant. After the tour, the MBA students took part in another informative session on business development by Andreas Keil. He explained the nitty-gritties of an electrode manufacturing technology called ‘Solvent Recovery and Coating’ and how crucial the process is in deciding the efficiency and lifetime of a battery. Dürr manufactures machines for electrode manufacturing with an aim to revolutionize battery production coupled with a customer-centric focus and continuous improvement. Throughout the sessions, the students curiously asked questions to decode the strategies and understand the mindset that is needed to be future industry ready.
Porsche Digital GmbH
The next stop came in the form of a pleasant surprise! The second company visit unfortunately had to be cancelled on short notice, but Prof. Markus-Oliver Schwaab, exhibited a classic example of converting a risk into an opportunity. He arranged a visit to Porsche Digital, and the students were so grateful to the team at Porsche for sharing their experiences and insights with them. Sebastian Dörner, a People and Culture Specialist and an alumnus of Hochschule Pforzheim, took the group on a tour of Porsche´s modern workplace. This was followed by a discussion about how Porsche is going digital and encouraging customers, to take part in creating the next Porsche design to improve the user experience. Alexander Kübler, Senior UX Designer in the Web3 Team, explained to us his most recent project - a Porsche 911 NFT drop that included a co-creation journey with the newly founded Porsche Pioneers community as well as community events and an airdrop. Ferdinand Henssler, Marketing Manager, then elaborated about another interesting project, Cyklaer, an e-bike by Porsche Digital and Storck, which is equipped with front and rear cameras for safety, as well as GPS and anti-theft features. Afterwards the group headed to the impressive Porsche Auditorium, to interact and discuss about Porsche Digital’s way of working, in particular the Role Based Organization’ initiative. The students learned about working in flat hierarchies, that roles are flexible, and that employees can take up secondary roles (where they are mentored accordingly) of their interest apart from their primarily defined tasks. This results in an atmosphere of supporting each other, ownership, accountability and strong and connected team spirit, leading to an improved productivity. Sebastian then shared with the MBA students how to build a personality, how to approach interviews and how to initiate healthy and fruitful conversations during recruitment talks. He also gave us a sneak-peak into the recruiters’ mindset and explained what recruiters expect from candidates. Thank you, Porsche Digital, for answering all our questions and all the fascinating insights.
Adolf Würth GmbH & Co. KG
The second day started with a visit to Adolf Würth GmbH and Co. KG in Künzelsau. The MBA students were very excited to meet with the CEO, Robert Friedmann who inspired them with his contagious energy and wisdom. Mr Friedmann warmly welcomed the group and shared with them Würth’s history, values, passion to serve the society, future-readiness, and the supportive work environment. His advice ‘Never be arrogant, never stop learning’ and ‘Go the extra mile’ was priceless to us! When he was asked about how he manages to balance his professional life and health, he spoke about the importance of physical and mental health and that the ‘Health first, people first’ leadership mantra is followed at Würth. Further, Paul Gehringer, who is responsible for enhancing Customer Experience, gave us a detailed presentation on the customer relationship management strategy, the benefits and challenges of transition from multi-channel to omni-channel Strategy, their methods to generate personalized impulses and to engage with human and digital touch points for interactions. One Plus, a platform for a seamless e-commerce experience and PICO, a chat bot designed to understand customer needs and increase efficiency was also introduced to the MBA students. Afterwards the group went on a tour into Würth’s Logistic and Warehouse Center to observe the complete end-to-end supply chain from in-bound to out-bound functioning and the strategies deployed for efficient supply chain management. Marius Helmer and Cora Schramm from the Human Resources Team, who put up the very insightful schedule for the MBA students guided them in every step and informed them over a joint lunch about the job opportunities at Würth.
MANN + HUMMEL
Next stop was MANN+HUMMEL, Ludwigsburg, a pioneer in inventing filtration technologies and manufacturing filters for cleaner air, cleaner water and mobility. Laura Görich, HR Business Partner, walked the MBA students through the company´s key competencies, focus points, and the way forward as an organization. Lars Biesinger who is responsible for Business Development explained the customer portfolio, collaboration with suppliers, quality checks, the technologies used for filtration and the business development models and strategies adopted. Lisa Bürkle, a Performance Manager spoke about the SPEED approach (a methodology like Agile and SCRUM) which is deployed to increase transparency, track the project progress better, steer them in the right direction and propel the completion of projects. She also touched upon the OKR (Objectives and Key Results) concept for building momentum in projects’ completion. Nils Detje, Director Global Corporate Social Responsibility, then delivered an insightful presentation of the need for sustainability, a carbon neutral and energy efficient mindset and the underlying challenges. This talk was followed by an impactful session on personality and leadership development by Vishwas Gawade, Vice President, Advanced Technology. After explaining the ‘technology, innovation and maturity lifecycle’ of a product at MANN+HUMMEL, he addressed the MBA students and gave them some personal advice like to strive for continuous learning, to develop the ability to ask the right questions, how to modulate the pressure and build a safety net for the team as a leader, to appreciate the positivity of diversity and cultures and make the most of the strength of the economies.
Throughout the excursion, the students asked many questions, exchanged their ideas and thoughts, engaged in fruitful conversations and formed meaningful connections. A great THANK YOU to all the companies that welcomed and hosted us during our first MBA excursion!
text:Aditya Yardi & Gnanendra Kumar, MBA Class of 2025
photos: MBA
