IPC International Community magazine an association member publication
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IPC COMMUNITY 27 FALL 2024 sionally exaggerate. If a report shows the market grew by 3%, some people cite this number even though it's lower than their own actual growth. If the report shows high growth rates in the future, it is ideal for use in discussions with banks and shareholders. That's not a good management strategy. Eighty-five percent of our data is based on real published data points and reports; the remain- ing 15% is calculated using company-specific indicators, such as trade debtors or headcount. According to our calculations, our numbers have a potential inaccuracy of less than ±1.5%. Work- ing with real numbers and the analysis that we do, which includes many more parameters than just revenue and headcount, allows the com- panies to identify their strong and weak spots faster and better. No one is indispensable, and doing a good job means making sure that someone can always take over the job if necessary. Together with IPC, we are working to guarantee that the important statistical work will always continue. When you received the IPC President's Award, IPC President and CEO Dr. John W. Mitchell highlighted your entrepreneurial career. What does that word mean to you? To be considered an entrepreneur is very mean- ingful to me. First, I feel a great responsibility for the people who work for and with me. I expect their loyalty, and in return, they get my full sup- port. Second is the freedom to go my own way in business and develop products and services for the industry. All my life, I feel I have been under- estimated by the people around me; perhaps some even considered me strange. While I don't have a master's degree or a Ph.D., I have made up for it with lots of energy and a very focused view and plan to accomplish my goals. I never follow the crowd. In a race, I would never run with the rest as I knew I would not win. Instead, I run in a different direction and know that I will be first. Much like you and your colleagues at IPC, I have always embraced "differentiation." What is your forecast for the EMS industry over the next three years? As in every industry, there will be winners and losers. While the EMS industry will further mature and grow, some companies will be left behind. The ones that exit will be merged or acquired by others, or closed due to lack of prof- itability. Many of these in the latter category will be smaller companies, but mainly those that don't have a proper strategy. The back end of