| Joerg
Otto Meier
Portaits
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Chairman of the Board Blohm + Voss AG (1988-91), 46 years October 1989 |
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»The ship as a means of transport is a technical product which has an enormous potential for innovation. |
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Excerpt: The higher you get, the greater the strain, because the decisions you have to make are of an order of magnitude which is quite substantial, in fact they affect the existence of the company. For instance, if a serious technical error occurs, because somebody didnt pay attention or because they just couldnt handle the job, you lose a lot of sleep. But the worst situations that my colleagues and I have had to deal with in the last few years were basically things like the closing down of the Rosswerft (shipyards). Wed bought a share, originally planning to go on building there, but then had to accept that it wasnt viable. That causes great personal stress. Nevertheless, theres no alternative. Otherwise you might be risking not just 1,000 jobs, but 5,000 or 6,000. Those are very bitter situations. And you cant delegate things like that. Normally I try to reach an agreement on all major decisions not only with the board, but also with those immediately below the board, with directors and area directors. Because theyre the ones who have to implement the decisions we make. We can give the most fantastic instructions and have the greatest ideas, but if they dont execute them properly, its a completely pointless exercise. Where decisions of such portent are concerned, it wouldnt be fair to delegate them. You really have to say, ok, Ill take the responsibility for this. Thats the reverse side of the coin in this otherwise well-paid job and there are lots of other interesting aspects too. So you have to accept that. But those are things which are a big personal burden. I dont know any entrepreneur and there are plenty of other branches where thereve been massive cut-backs who isnt affected by it, who doesnt suffer. After having had a few problems over the last few years, I can only hope that Ill be spared this sort of thing in the future. ...
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© Joerg Otto Meier, Portraits of people and big ships |
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