Interim CEO, CRO, COO, Project Manager, Operational Excellence

Preparation of a restructuring report according to IDW S6 for a real estate developer as consultant/assessor

• Prepared a restructuring report
• Captured the current situation
• Checked insolvency risk and over-indebtedness
• Planned liquidity
• Defined necessary actions and developed strategy
• Launched implementation of individual measures and presented results
• Completed the report very quickly
• Created a sustainable strategy
• Built confidence among creditors to continue supporting the client
• Managed extreme time pressure to deliver the report
• Persuaded the shareholder to provide (additional) loans to continue operations

Reorganization of sales processes and implementation of a lead-to-order process for business development after a revenue crisis

• Reorganized the sales organization and developed a standardized, scalable sales process to increase revenue, including a systematic lead-to-order process
• Analyzed existing sales and marketing processes (as-is assessment)
• Restructured customer acquisition processes (including automating individual steps)
• Built CRM-based lead generation
• Trained internal sales staff on new tools and processes
• Attended sales meetings and managed sales controlling
• Monitored process improvements using KPIs
• Built a functional sales pipeline with over 1,000 qualified leads
• Generated more than 35 active new customer relationships
• Established sustainable process-oriented sales management
• Dealt with extreme price pressure in the market
• Worked under time pressure to generate inquiries
• Overcame entrenched structures at the client
• Handled a high volume of inquiries

As CEO: Successful implementation of SAP in a mid-sized company in steel and special machinery manufacturing

• Selected and implemented a new ERP system (SAP Business One)
• Chose the right system
• Applied for the government digital grant
• Prepared and migrated data
• Adapted and introduced processes to fit the new ERP
• Trained staff on the software
• Went live
• Achieved a successful SAP Business One rollout
• SAP implementations are a challenge on their own...

As CEO: digitized and implemented paperless processes in a steel, mechanical and special machinery manufacturing company

• Eliminated paper overload and moved to a paperless office
• Created transparency across all orders
• Increased employee efficiency
• Limited printer use
• Established digital infrastructure
• Adapted existing process structure to new challenges and implemented changes consistently
• Partially digitized existing documents
• Reduced paper consumption by 98%
• Cut inefficient search tasks by two person-months per month
• Fully digitized order documentation
• Significantly reduced response times to customer inquiries
• “We’ve always done it this way…” – especially from the long-standing co-owners remaining in the company
• Helped employees adapt sustainably to new requirements, processes and methods

As Director Order Fulfillment: scaled operational structures for growth in a family-run R&D company in special machinery for the automotive industry

• Led both functional and disciplinary aspects of the Order Fulfillment division (Project Management, Order Planning, Design (mechanical, electrical, software), Commissioning, Service)
• Merged two sites into a unified function
• Realigned strategy considering both locations (e.g. “Best Cost” vs. “German Thoroughness”)
• Identified and realized synergies
• Developed and implemented cross-site processes
• Handled company strategic planning
• Defined strategies for sales, projects and aftermarket
• Financial planning, including implementation and monitoring
• Workforce planning targeting double-digit revenue growth annually
• Personnel development
• Introduced LEAN and Six Sigma
• Replaced some department heads with technically and personally suitable managers
• Optimized processes and introduced new ones
• Established communication channels for key markets
• Closed critical and outdated projects
• Implemented suitable staffing and order planning tools
• Lobbied affiliate business partners
• Personnel development, mainly in project management and commissioning
• Closely integrated design processes and workflows with production, under project management control for details and order planning overall
• Promoted sense of community between the German and Czech teams
• Achieved over 25% revenue growth since my start
• Improved efficiency of the German and Czech departments so that headcount did not need to increase despite higher revenue
• Successfully introduced unified processes across all departments and countries
• Co-responsible for redesigning the globally implemented AVL project management handbook
• Completely realigned the project management department and cross-country teams between Germany and the Czech Republic
• Significantly improved product quality led to even higher market acceptance
• Introduced a modular test stand concept to reduce costs and lead times
• Standardizing processes, developing training concepts and expanding commissioning activities led to massive efficiency gains, time and cost savings and reduced commissioning times
• Implemented a tool for hour-accurate planning and reporting of commissioning tasks
• Introduced an easy-to-use production planning tool that is also used for better sales activity planning beyond production
• Introduced cost and revenue planning tools for financial management
• Linked capacity planning of individual departments within my division for more efficient project workflow planning
• Burnt-out teams due to high and unstructured workloads (no suitable processes)
• Mistrust between the German and Czech teams
• Very weak leadership team, especially long-standing members
• Quality issues
• Poor standing of AVL Zöllner within the AVL group

BU Manager in China: Strengthening the competitive position through revenue growth and new USPs – Leading a business unit in R&D-focused special machinery for the automotive industry

• Exploring revenue growth potentials beyond the already established business areas
• Increasing the unit's profit through appropriate development of the BU
• Creating nine USPs compared to competitors
• Searching for a partner company with outstanding technical standing, products that fit our activities, and a desire to establish in China
• Using our own sales team to co-market the partner's products and services and include them in our offerings
• Developing and implementing a suitable marketing strategy
• Achieving additional seven-figure revenue in the first year
• Increasing profit by over 30%
• Gaining many new customers
• Expanding the product portfolio with the partner's products and services
• Growing revenue and profit from selling our own products via the new USPs created by the cooperation
• Establishing a new product and a previously little-known provider in China
• Initial distrust in our company's top management toward the strategy and the partner
• Enforcing the relatively high but fair prices of the partner's services and products

Interim BU Manager for a machine in special machinery engineering in China

• Mapping the current situation
• Stabilizing and restructuring the BU
• Closing critical projects
• Defining and introducing key processes
• Introducing SCM
• Establishing first functioning processes
• Closing critical projects
• Achieving full transparency
• Implementing a working SCM
• Dealing with distrust from Chinese colleagues and condescension from German colleagues
• Creating understanding for a German process-driven way of working
• High customer pressure
• Weak market position

Interim Operations Manager for a special machinery engineering company in China

• Identifying deficits in the BU's project business in China
• Supervising and supporting the then BU Manager
• Introducing project management standards
• Introducing production and capacity planning
• Introducing communication standards with headquarters and customers
• Assessing the current situation
• Implementing German PM standards
• Developing and implementing project management standards and production and capacity planning
• Holding regular meetings with headquarters and customers
• Implementing required measures under challenging conditions
• Initiating steps to improve customer satisfaction
• Establishing structured communication
• Facing extreme distrust from Chinese colleagues
• Time pressure in critical projects
• Boycott stance from the Chinese GM