Article from Richard Weller and Christina Graser in the Facility Manager Magazin

At the GEFMA-Tag in July in Nuremberg Richard Weller requested flexible leadership concepts and agile structures for greater motivation and greater added value. The CEO of Alpha Immobilien Consulting GmbH emphazises this with a report of his own company.

Global markets with local requirements, complete knowledge transparency, automation, digitization, bureaucratic legal and compliance requirements, demographic change and simultaneous competition in the labour market: these are the current challenges faced by companies. Driven by markets, technology, and natural constraints, we find ourselves on a treadmill running faster and faster. We in the ALPHA IC have decided to take a different path: moving away from hierarchies and controlling towards collaborative knowledge-based work. In our opinion, the prerequisites for this are agile organization with a focus on self-management, personal responsibility, interaction and innovation.

Engaging employees in pursuing challenges

But what is the best way to implement the necessary change? We have learned that proactive thinking, networking and agile structures lead to greater flexibility in the organization. Decisive for us are two aspects: the corporate culture and the social competence of those leading the organisation. To fully support the company’s success, employees must be able to develop, flourish and contribute. This only works with an intact culture and a lot of motivation. Our recipe for success: moving from pressure to enthusiasm and from what should be done to what people want to do.

Transparency and meaningfulness are key

We spend a large part of our lives at work. But how useful is our work and who benefits? We used to work to live. It's different today. Work now frames our lives rather than being something that is merely the alternative to leisure. A very striking example: what is the purpose of hairdressing? Is it to cut other people's hair or is it to make people happy with a nice hairstyle? Which hairdresser works more motivated: the one who makes people happy or the one who only cuts hair? At the heart of ALPHA IC's work is the meaning of what we do and the awareness of the impact of our actions.