A successful premiere: Germanys’ virtual IM conference.

The Organization.

The German Interim Management Association has just held its’ first digital conference, which has been hailed as a groundbreaking event for Interim Management. As Dr. Marei Strack the DDIM Chairwoman explained: "We did not want to miss our annual family reunion and tried to transport the spirit of the event into a digital format”. The concept was a congress on an interactive 360° campus, hosted from a live studio with several stages, and moderated by Diana Scholz Head of the SMEs Alliance. This innovative format was developed in collaboration with Neyroo.

The participants were virtually put in the middle of the action, with numerous live events such as panel discussions, interviews, keynote speeches and 24 interactive workshops. After each session, the participants were invited to a discussion with the speakers in a dedicated videoconference room.

Another special feature was the marketplace where more than 30 Interim Management providers and partners presented themselves in the virtual room and were ready via video chat. Furthermore, the “Workaholic Bar” was a relaxed area, an ideal place to network with professional colleagues.

The entertaining conclusion of the congress was provided by the live concert of "Eldorado", the Cologne band whose bass player Andreas Kober had also previously participated in a panel discussion dedicated to the state of the event industry during the pandemic.

To quote one of the participants: "With the interactive presentation, DDIM set a new benchmark for virtual congresses. Organizing such an event needed a lot of courage, but the first-class format and excellent content made a real breakthrough"

The Keynotes.

In his inspiring keynote speech on "Supply Chain in the Times of Corona", Jochen Thewes, CEO of DB Schenker, spoke about the short- and long-term effects of the pandemic on logistics and highlighted the fundamental change air freight has experienced in a short time – from a near-standstill passenger air traffic to an enormous run on charter capacity, which has presented the industry with significant challenges. Using Schenker as an example, he showed how the logistics group had demonstrated a great deal of flexibility and foresight in the wake of the crisis: "We invested early in the transition to cloud services and this allowed us to switch quickly and successfully to home office" said the CEO.

A highlight in the afternoon was the keynote speech by automotive expert Prof. Dr Stefan Bratzel. The Director of the Center of Automotive Management demonstrated how the traditional “universe" of established car manufacturers is increasingly being challenged by new non-industry and financially strong competitors in the field of mobility and technology. The networking of vehicles is a focus of new business models. "New areas of the future, such as electromobility and autonomous driving, necessitate cooperation with new players and an adaptation of organisational structures." This also requires new competencies of Interim Managers, for example in the field of digitalisation and artificial intelligence.

The next event was the keynote by Dr Hans-Peter Klös on "Corona Pandemic, Economy and Labour Market: Big Picture and Options for Action". The Managing Director and Head of Science at the Institute of German Economy first painted an overall picture of the current economic situation, which was marked on the one hand by a surprisingly strong increase in orders in the industry in the third quarter, but on the other hand by large declines in sales in the service sector. The Corona aid, which is historically the largest aid package for companies and employees shows: "Germany has given a great financial stimulus, which is very effective," said Dr Klös. At the same time, there is a downward trend in self-employment. The economic expert proposed some labour market-related measures such as the promotion of flexible employment, a more fluid organisation of working hours and a rapid implementation of the 75 per cent economic aid policy.

The Panel Discussions.

Dr Marei Strack welcomed four Interim Managers to a panel discussion on "Interim Mandates in the Times of Corona" who gave an insight into their projects. Discussions included how the pandemic has changed the way of collaboration and how home-based agile teams have been managed.

Subsequently, the perspective of the entrepreneur was represented by Dr. Jürgen Platt, CEO of the Wickeder Group, in an interview with Rafael Apélian DDIM board member. The clients expect that "Interim Managers should work quickly, set priorities, implement the agreed goals with their expertise and by engaging with the companys’ employees"

At least as exciting was a lively panel discussion on the political and economic situation of self-employed people. Among other things, the following questions were discussed: Is an entrepreneurs’ wage justified for interim managers? Why speed up the status assessment process? What other emergency aid should there be for self-employed people, including those from the troubled event industry? For this live talk, top-class representatives from politics and business, including Carlos Frischmuth, CEO of the Federal Association for Independent Knowledge Work, and Dr Hans-Peter Klös, Managing Director and Head of Science at the Institute of German Economy were live at the DDIM Congress Studio.

Why a fair and professional relationship between interim managers, providers and customers pays off for a long-term partnership, and how DDIM supports, was the topic of the panel discussion "Law, Ethics and Trust in the Contractual Relationship".

Interim managers look to the future with optimism.

Interesting findings were provided by the Market Barometer, for which DDIM conducted a member survey shortly before the event. Dr Marei Strack presented the most important results

While the Interim Managers had started the year with extreme optimism, the mood felt somewhat clouded as a result of the pandemic at the end of Spring. Nevertheless, the current situation is good with a rather high degree of utilization: "Currently, 61 per cent of interim managers are in mission, which is only five per cent less than at the beginning of the year".

Also interesting is the change in the sectors in terms of mandate requests: Pharmaceuticals and IT have increased significantly, and structural changes such as e-mobility have led to an increase in automotive enquiries.

Naturally, home working has also increased during the pandemic and currently, Interim Managers operate completely or at least 50 per cent of their time remotely.