„Diversity is at the core of digital transformation,” says Alexandra Borchardt – and this is a woman who knows what she’s talking about: the managing editor of leading German newspaper the Sueddeutsche Zeitung, she is now a senior media consultant, Honorary Professor for Leadership and Digitalisation at TUM School of Management and Senior Research Associate at the Reuters Institute in Oxford.

„What digital transformation really is, is cultural change,” she tells MyCollective founder and CEO Dr. Ricarda Engelmeier in today’s podcast. “And that #culturalchange is often lacking because of a lack of diversity. Digital transformation is dealing with constant change. So that requires completely new leadership skills. It requires adaptability, listening… Not only by women, but by everyone.“

A mother of two herself, she also has advice for #workingparents trying to balance leadership positions with parenthood: “Stop trying to be perfect!” After all, “leadership… is about improvising and dealing with what you have, and as a parent you do this all day long, because you have certain ideals, then things don’t work out the way you want them to work out, so then you adjust, you experiment.” 

„You’ll never be the perfect mom. So just be yourself. Be a role model. And encourage your kids to be themselves.” 

Speaker: Prof. Dr. Alexandra Borchardt – Journalist, Media Adviser and Professor for Media Transformation

Interviewer: Dr. Ricarda Engelmeier – Founder @MyCollective

Music: sponsored by @Michaelkadelbach

Photograph: Prof. Dr. Alexandra Borchardt 

Graphic & Production: MyCollective

#getinspired #podcast #inspiration #MyCollective #digitaltransformation #newmedia #journalism #femaleleadership #diversity #leadershipskills #parentalskills #careers #inspiration #changingthenarrative #GetInspiredPodcast #changemakers #womenleaders #parenthood

More and more companies recognise the importance of #diversity, and not just because investors are increasingly looking at whether they meet ESG (Environmental, Social & Governance) Criteria.  But here in Germany, we still have a problem. And so #diversity is an agenda that we have to keep pushing. Corinna Schittenhelm understands this first-hand – she’s a female executive in a traditionally male-dominated field: automotive and industrial engineering. Corinna is a trailblazer for many of us, and as Executive Board Member for Human Resources and Sustainability at engineering giant Schaeffler she is working to normalise #diversity in the workplace. That includes things like ensuring that #workingdads take #parentalleave too.“Today when I have those discussions, not only with women, also with men – actually much more men, I really encourage them also to take time off,” she explains in this podcast. “I think it’s really important for both.” 

As we always say at MyCollective, parenting is a #leadershipskill – and in her position at the top of a big company, Corinna sees this too. „I’m also interested the individual,” she says, „in their family needs, how they feel, what they do, if they have special interests, and this really human-centric view – you keep this when you have children, and you have a family.” This is one of the reasons she advocates for more men to devote time to parenting: “I think this is something we would really need – that men also are courageous to show that they have this human-centric view and that they are also interested in other people and their needs and their character. And not always driven so much by facts, figures, data, you know. I think that would make them much more likeable!“

Speaker: Corinna Schittenhelm, Executive Board Member, Human Resources and Sustainability at Schaeffler 

Interviewer: Dr. Ricarda Engelmeier – Founder @MyCollective

Music: sponsored by @Michaelkadelbach

Picture: Corinna Schittenhelm  

Graphic & Production: MyCollective

Lena Stahl sees parenthood as a constant contradiction between holding on and letting go. Learning to let go is topic that keeps coming up for us at MyCollective too, and she’s explored it in depth in her latest film, “Mein Sohn” – or “My Son” – which won Best Production at the Munich Film Festival last year. 

„In the moment that you become a mother, there’s another thing which is sort of born with the child and that’s the fear of losing it again,” Stahl explains. „It’s always there. On the other hand, as a daughter know how important it is that my mother let me go at this crucial time of your life where you have to get out and do your own thing.”

Stahl is a screenwriter and photographer as well directing movies, and a big part of her work is creating more space for female stories. “We’re very used to watching movies with male leads;  there are very few stories with very strong female characters,” she says. She talks about how she hopes to change this, how she and her partner juggle parenting with creative jobs – and the importance of family-team-meetings in today’s podcast. 

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Speaker: Lena Stahl – Director, Script Writer, Photographer 

Interviewer: Dr. Ricarda Engelmeier – Founder @MyCollective

Music: sponsored by @Michaelkadelbach

Photograph: Lena Stahl 

Graphic & Production: MyCollective

#3 Never Stop Learning – what parenthood teaches us and other vital skills for women leaders

“As a leader you have to really know what you stand for. Find out what you really care about, and then choose that as your career path.” For Professor Claudia Peus at the Technical University of Munich, finding that path is a lifelong journey – and it involves a lifetime of learning. 

We often think of education as something that we do at school and university, before our career has even started. But if anything has shown us that we need to be open to embracing new knowledge and skills all the time, it’s the global pandemic that we’re all collectively experiencing. Almost all our jobs and workplaces have changed in some way since early 2020 – even more so for those of us who have juggled parenting with working from home. 

According to Professor Peus, shifting away from linear education and linear careers is natural and necessary. After all, as humans we are constantly learning new things. As women, it’s time we recognized and celebrated the added skillsets that parenthood has given us – after all, parenthood can be a steep learning curve, and it transforms us as managers and leaders. 

Peus also has some interesting tips for professional competencies that we might want to brush up on, especially as women. In this episode of our MyCollective Podcast „Get Inspired”, we talked about her Institute for Life Long Learning – and why it’s never too late to learn. 

Speaker: Prof. Dr. Claudia Peus, Professor of Research and Science Management at the Technical University Munich, Executive Vice President for Talent Management and Diversity, and founder of the TUM Institute for Life Long Learning

Interviewer: Dr. Ricarda Engelmeier – Founder @MyCollective

Music: sponsored by @Michaelkadelbach

Picture: Prof. Dr. Claudia Peus / TUM

Graphic & Production: MyCollective

#3 Change of Perspective – the meaning of gender equality when you’re a dad

„93% of all fathers don’t want to emulate their own fathers. So we have to learn most of this on our own.” Volker Baisch is the founder of Germany’s “Väternetzwerk“ – or “Network of Fathers” – and like us, he’s interested in gender equality. Because gender equality doesn’t just mean more women in leadership positions. It also means more men playing an active part in their children’s lives without having to worry about their careers. As our founder Ricarda Engelmeier likes to say – once men are having the same conversations about returning to work after parental leave as women do now, we’ll know that we’ve arrived! In today’s podcast, Volker Baisch tells us how men and women can support each other to ensure that they are able to thrive at both work, and as parents. His advice? “Keep talking. Communication is everything.“ Using that time during early parenthood to find a good work-life balance can be really crucial. “If you look at divorce statistics, the biggest risk is in the four years after the first child is born,” says Baisch. “So any time that you are able to invest into these 3-4 years will really benefit you and your children in the long run.” Speaker: Volker Baisch – Founder Väternetzwerk

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Interviewer: Dr. Ricarda Engelmeier – Founder MyCollective

Music: sponsored by @Michaelkadelbach

Picture: Volker Baisch

Graphic & Production: MyCollective

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