Mailänder: It is important for every management member, regardless of their level, to take on a leadership role in their area

Despite the common rule that a company is led from the top down, management in the 21st century is simultaneously led from the bottom up. A modern manager, a CEO, will gather the best experts from every area that the company needs around them, while also developing good cooperation with lower management levels. Doris Mailänder, the CEO of the Hamburg consulting firm Mailaender Executive Plus, spoke about all this at the 12th International Controlling Conference held at the Sheraton Hotel in Zagreb.

In front of more than 300 conference participants, she delivered a lecture on the topic: Modern Leadership in the 21st Century: Challenges and New Roles in the Age of Transformation. She reminded that the mutual global connectivity among companies is significant, and therefore it is important for every management member, regardless of their level, to take on a leadership role in their area. But also, senior managers must not only recognize those at lower levels as leaders but also perceive them as such. This way, mutual trust and respect are created with clearly defined roles and authorities, resulting in quality collaboration that generates quality ideas.

Mailänder emphasized that leaders do not need to make all decisions themselves as they do not have all possible competencies, especially not those for the transformation of the company that follows if their owners want to survive in a future that brings changes. In this context, Mailänder posed an interesting question to the conference participants: ‘I am sure that each of you knows of a company that has disappeared. Do you think Google will survive? I don’t think so, especially today when we have ChatGPT, that is, artificial intelligence (AI)!’

Significant changes have already occurred, many of us are lagging behind them, Mailänder said, and they will be getting faster. Therefore, a leader must clearly define the roles of the C-level. How important it is to have quality managers, she illustrated with examples she knows – many good employees leave companies due to disagreements with the new director. Especially if the CFO does not cooperate well with middle management. Roles need to be clear, transparent, and honest towards middle management.

– You must adopt new methods. In order for new ideas in the company to be realized, they need to be optimized. If we want to involve middle management, we cannot just delegate authority; we must ask what that management can do – said Mailänder.

Authenticity is everything

Therefore, leaders must manage as a team to control all processes in the company. This has always been the case, but in the 21st century, it is especially important. She quoted a manager in the German company Hansainvest, Claudia Pauls: ‘As a leader, I have learned that authenticity is everything. Clear leadership and direct speech—without layers or pretense—builds true trust and connection. Integrity of words and actions is not just a value; it is the foundation of real authority.’

Leadership must be agile and flexible and embrace new technologies. Communication is of great importance, but so are social skills to ensure that communication is mutual. Sustainability and corporate responsibility are also among the fundamental features of future leadership. For example, Mailänder noted, in sustainability we can talk about the conflict between the owner’s desire for profit and the desire for the company to gain value in the future.

– In that case, ask investors, shareholders, talk to them, they may find it acceptable for the company to have lower profits in the first two years. Also, in ESG reporting – it is not just a matter of documents, but also how your company will be perceived – said Mailänder.

A good part of her lecture was dedicated to the role of the CFO, the second most important position in the company. For example, the director of digitalization usually reports to the CFO, who must delve into the project to understand why money is being spent. The CFO’s focus is to ensure that finances function well, that risks are identified in time, and today he has four new roles: catalyst (controlling conducted in accordance with procedures and plans), strategist (in accordance with the financial plan), economist (ensures that someone is taking care of the investment), operator (monitors all processes within the business in daily operations).

Excelica solved the problem

Dennis Ramulić, a data analyst and RPA programmer from Excelum, delivered a lecture on the topic ‘How to be a change manager’. He recounted the experience of a Croatian company that has been operating for 30 years. Ten years ago, its small procurement team was under great pressure, as in addition to a large volume of orders (the company had 200,000 items), management also demanded that old items be updated, new ones opened, contracts prepared, and employees sent for training… Out of five working days, they spent four working on orders and could hardly accomplish anything else. They were under tremendous pressure, even their health was affected.

The solution was offered by an employee who had just joined the company. He had a good mentor, and the solution was found in the most ordinary Excel. They set various parameters for when to order what (for example, seasonality…). Thus, the work on orders was shortened to two days, but as the other management members were skeptical because they now had time for coffee in the procurement department, they laughed more, wanting to test that solution. In the end, that Excel was so successful that everyone got involved, and ordering was shortened to one day. In a year, they raised the number of items to a new 100,000.

Ramulić used this example to show how ideas can also come from the bottom up and how, thanks to them, the company becomes more efficient. In his training, controllers (managers) come for training, for example, for Excel and Power BI. But it is concerning, he said, that they do not seek training for future programs, or better said – the present: Big data, data analytics and statistics, artificial intelligence tools, BPM – RPA – automation and digitalization of business processes. And digitalization is necessary. Therefore, he told the participants: ‘Change management starts with you!’