Today's Guest: Christine Pfisterer
What drives our employees? Where do they come from, what is their motivation and what is life at objective partner actually like? Questions upon questions, that will be answered in our series #EmployeeVoices . My name is Rebecca Jankowski. I started as Content Manager on May '22 - and let's face it - I’m responsible for literally everything around communication. That's why it's especially important to me to capture our employee’s voices and tell the world out there what makes us tick as a company.
What stages have you gone through so far - educationally and professionally?
After completing my Bachelor's degree in Tourism Management in Northern Germany, I completed my MBA in 2018 while working for Lufthansa Cityline. I then moved to Lufthansa Group Airlines and, in a roundabout way, got involved in a project in which seven airlines jointly introduced a new flight operations control tool.
Flight Operations Control Tool... What exactly do I mean by that?
The Flight Operations department is responsible for controlling all aircraft, i.e. when which aircraft flies to which destination, has to undergo maintenance, etc. You can think of the tool as a giant Gantt chart that needs to be aware of all regulations and restrictions. Irregularities are primarily "visually" noticeable here, so UI/ UX played a major role. Previously, each airline had its own tool. The project gave everyone a common system, which was then also the basis for AI. And this is where I realized that I really enjoy digitalization projects.
Okay. So that's how the idea of going in a different direction came about?
Yes, exactly. I wanted to move to a smaller company where I could be more than just a consultant. At some point I came across objective partner and realized that my wishes & expectations were in good hands here - the decision was so clear to me that it even worried me for a short time!
What makes objective partner so unique for you?
Our holocratic organization. There are no fixed structures and every employee has the opportunity to get involved and help shape the company. In addition, or perhaps because of this, we have an incredibly open culture. My colleagues are there to help and advise me and are also open to critical questions or other points of view. I think that we can only improve if we actually have such open discussions.
You are involved in many customer projects. What does your everyday life look like? And what is your "heart project" that you put your greatest motivation into?
Very varied. I have an external client and an internal project that receives funding. Of course, my main working time is spent on this. However, I also look after the OKRs in the company with two colleagues. OKRs stands for Objectives & Key Results. They serve as a control system in companies. Put simply, you could say that they are intended to serve as a guideline for the entire company for the next three months and are fed both bottom-up and top-down. As we are still in the learning phase here, there is always something to do and to improve.
I also regularly represent us at trade fairs and congresses on topics such as Asset-as-a-Service. This is also my biggest "heart project", as you put it.
Okay, and what exactly is driving you here?
I am absolutely convinced that Asset-as-a-Service will become a relevant business area for many companies. We are working for all these companies on the fundamentals of the functionality of asset administration shells. The whole thing is often incredibly complex, but that's what makes it so exciting. For example, I am involved in the BaSys4Transfer research project. The aim here is to simplify the use and implementation of Industry 4.0 for companies. It builds on the results of previous research projects in which we have already been involved.
And as far as the OKR topic is concerned: we can really shape something here and lay the foundations for the company's work in the following quarter in our workshops. We can become even better here as a company, and the opportunity to help drive this forward motivates me immensely. Just like our collegial environment. We work together, want to move things forward and solve problems. There are no politics or power games here, which makes working here incredibly pleasant (and above all saves a huge amount of time).
Time - a good keyword. What was your personal highlight and lowlight in 2022?
(she thought for a moment...) Wow, I had a lot of highlights. Above all, the personal meetings with colleagues, whether it was the private ski trip with colleagues from Munich, or trade fairs, congresses and the summer party or Christmas party in Weinheim. It was probably at all these events that the personal bonds grew the strongest, which also made everyday working life much easier. I can't think of any real lowlights, of course there are sometimes issues that take longer to process or to commission, but that's part of the job.
Keyword challenges. What challenges have you already faced and how were you able to solve them?
I always find it challenging in my role to work with an assigned budget, especially when the scope is not set in stone at the start of the project. This can lead to a situation where the project budget has been used up, but the customer may not yet be 100% happy. I try to prevent this by consistently creating transparency and maintaining an open exchange. This allows us to weigh up what is still possible at an early stage and the customer can decide between must-haves and nice-to-haves.
Understand. What are your best practices for attracting new customers and how do you keep them in the long term?
To be honest: I'm still learning from our experts myself, such as Pit Wunderlich. In general, an initial workshop helps you to delve deeper and weigh up the possibilities and added value. I always find it best to communicate openly about what we can and cannot do. I live in Munich and people here would probably say: don't take everything seriously. Fun is also part of the job. Even if we act as a service provider, we can create a pleasant working atmosphere with customers and sometimes laugh together.
I think that's a great attitude. What do you think we can do better as a company in the new year?
I think we can scrutinize ourselves even more closely to see whether projects, deadlines, etc. are set up efficiently and therefore really deliver the desired added value. We could and should make greater use internally of what we do very well for customers.
You are very much involved in various projects. How do you strike a balance?
Outdoors! I rarely spend my free time indoors, I do my sport outside all year round. At the weekend, I like to head into the mountains for hikes, via ferratas, ski tours, etc. I meditate every day because not everything is always about action. And when it comes to vacation days, you won't really find me in Germany anymore.
Finally, a slightly different question. Imagine you have 3 wishes: What would you wish for?
That's easy: health, happiness, and that the ice cream man I trust is no longer taking a winter break!
Thank you Christine for your openness and the pleasant interview!
Stay tuned for our upcoming employee story. After all, they build the foundation of objective partner.
