Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1497518
APRIL 2023 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 13 must really understand how we work together. is gets monitored for every single person by the mentor, the manager of the department, and by me. Shaughnessy: It sounds like you're talking about the culture, and making sure that they fit in. Bringing someone into the culture of the com- pany is one of the hardest things you can do. For example, we acquired part of Holders Technology in October 2021. All of a sudden, we had two completely different cultures com- ing together. e Holders culture was not bet- ter or worse than ours; it was just different. It was a top-down culture, where the boss speaks and everybody follows. is is in stark contrast to the culture at Ventec, where we have a bot- tom-up culture. At first it was very strange for me when I worked in my usual way. I would say things like, "We have something that needs to be done. Could you please organize this?" e Holders employees expected very clear instructions on how to go about it, so my type of instruction didn't work for them. is was a very interesting example of merging two com- pany cultures, because you have to understand why people work the way they do. My manag- ers must show and live that. Shaughnessy: How do you get the new people to accept this kind of change? is is one of the easiest parts. Every single day, I go to every employee at our facility, from the cleaning staff to the supply chain manager or the plant manager, and ask, "Hey, are you okay? Is your machine running? Is everything fine?" You get to hear directly what's going on, something like, "Oh, I'm waiting for my new saw blades." ey see that I value their input. Matties: They see that you hear them and act on it. Yes, that I actually listen and will do some- thing about it. ey see that they are listened to, trusted, and given feedback. at's very important to me. Matties: When you're bringing new people on board, how do they react to that sort of environment? It's interesting. I've had 99% of employees tell me they never experienced a company like ours. ey are not referring to the job they have to do, but the way it's managed. Matties: Because a new employee might be a little reserved about sharing their ideas with the boss, right? Yes. In Germany, if we met on the street, I would never say, "Hi Andy." I would say, "Mr. Shaughnessy," and you would say, "Mr. Lorentz." is is the usual way, particularly when it's a superior. But at Ventec from day one, I'm Frank. Yes, I'm the general man- ager, but they learn that we are a team. Every- body is working in the same company in dif- ferent departments with different responsibil- Frank Lorentz