In the interview with Dr. Klaus Wagenhals, author and change expert at metis leadership.

metisleadership is a network of experienced consultants with a wide range of expertise. The team led by Dr. Wagenhals develops sustainable strength for transformation processes in small, medium-sized, and large companies through unique approaches that address current and future challenges. Fundamental changes are underway in companies, driven by waves of agility and digitalization combined with sometimes drastic cultural shifts—partially intensified by the Corona pandemic affecting us all. These are also continually supplemented by "standard" cost reduction and optimization measures.

Their focus lies in combining hard and soft factors to create holistic, systemic business consulting. The team supports change at all levels, for example, with innovative strategy and leadership concepts, the ChangeLab, and hybrid project management approaches. The goal is to ensure lasting success within the company or project. In an interview with Dr. Klaus Wagenhals, we discuss globalized markets, the uncertainty of long-term decisions, digitalization and its significance for the future viability of companies, and how all of this relates to employee satisfaction.

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: Digitalization has much more to do with management than many decision-makers realize. What do you think is the reason for this?

Dr. Klaus Wagenhals: I’d start with a clarification of terms: management essentially refers to the systematic execution of various steps, such as defining goals, planning, distributing these plans among people, implementing them, controlling, and so on, until a result is achieved. This doesn’t do justice to the tasks of the many leadership levels in companies today. Since the 1980s, criticism of this approach—seen as too mechanistic (viewing people and organizations as machines)—has given rise to the leadership approach, which acts as the "lubricant" in a social organization like a company. Part of this includes leadership skills that are in high demand today: developing visions together with people in the company in a way that is understandable and serves everyone—so that they are pursued with motivation and people take pride in them.

Now, regarding digitalization: it is the continuation of a process observed for decades—miniaturization, increased efficiency, and renewal of work processes and products/services with the help of new technologies—now at a new level. This has partly drastic consequences for established, often hierarchical structures, as well as for the demands placed on people and the way they collaborate (often summarized as "culture").