We can get everything in life if we take the right path and drive at the right pace. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “There is more to life than simply increasing its speed.” Likewise, don’t blindly keep on driving the path, make the right stops wherever necessary.
In this episode of The Payal Nanjiani Leadership Podcast, Payal Nanjiani a Leadership expert, world-renowned executive coach, and a New York award-winning author goes one on one with Martin Schwenk | Managing Director, and CEO, Mercedes-Benz India. You can listen to the full episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Google Podcasts.
Payal: What is the competitive edge that you see now, especially during the crisis time?
Martin: Mercedes Benz is really a strong brand that stands for luxury. It’s a very good bus to start from. There are a lot of iconic products which we used and brought to customers. So the brand building is strong and yet we now define and design the product of the future again to make them desirable products. Strategy is relatively easy but it’s about competence and dedication to implement. The target picture to all of us is very clear and it’s completely clear how we want to approach it.
Payal: How difficult is it to look ahead and define what’s next, especially during these times?
Martin: You should always focus on how to get a grip on what’s happening, currently what bothers you, what is your challenge, your problem. On the other hand, you should develop a sense of what are the trends of the future and then take your emotions into that field and your energy and intelligence into that, and put your teams on it. If that can be done then it is about unleashing the resources for implementation and that is probably the hardest part.
Payal: What keeps you going when things get tough?
Martin: I have a genuinely optimistic attitude. If you see a problem and you feel uneasy, that’s not the right thing. You have to have an attitude that things can be resolved and I am personally of the opinion that if we look at problems from different angles if we work with eternity if we involve our teams then we always find a way. In almost all situations in my professional career, I have felt, there is a way to solve that very problem.
Payal: What would be your advice to the modern-day organization and leaders?
Martin: The world is uncertain and volatile. What we need to understand is that we have to deal with this in two streams. One is dealing with whatever immediate crisis or problems we are having. That is, set up the right structure, have the right teams, and provide the support in whatever way it’s needed, but at the same time, you think about the future. You try to be positive, you try to create hope because you know, after this there will be something else. You try to push for a new vision of the future. You have to set up the right structure, address it and manage it and at the same time, you continue working on your bigger projects.
There is a way to solve every problem!
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